Babyface (musician) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Babyface
Babyface in 2013
Born	Kenneth Brian Edmonds (1959-04-10) April 10, 1959 (age 66) Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
Other names	Face Y Corp
Education	North Central High School
Occupation	Singer songwriter record producer
Years active	1974–present
Television	College Hill Soul Food
Spouse(s)	Tracey Edmonds ​ ​ (m. 1992; div. 2005)​ Nicole Pantenburg ​ ​ (m. 2014; div. 2021)​
Children	3
Relatives	Kevon Edmonds (brother) Melvin Edmonds (brother)
Musical career
Genres	R&B soul new jack swing
Labels	Chi Sound LaFace SOLAR Epic Arista Mercury Motown Def Jam Capitol Soda Pop

Kenneth Brian Edmonds (born April 10, 1959), known as Babyface, is an American singer, songwriter, and music producer. He has written and produced over 26 number-one R&B songs. He has also won 13 Grammy Awards, which are major music awards. NME magazine ranked him as one of the top 20 greatest music producers ever.

Early Life and Music Beginnings

Growing Up in Indianapolis

Kenneth Edmonds was born on April 10, 1959, in Indianapolis, Indiana. His parents were Marvin and Barbara Edmonds. Barbara worked at a medicine factory. Kenneth was the fifth of six brothers. Two of his brothers, Melvin and Kevon, later joined the band After 7.

As a young person, Kenneth was shy. He wrote songs to share his feelings. When he was in eighth grade, his father passed away. His mother then raised her sons by herself.

How He Became "Babyface"

Later, Kenneth met a funk musician named Bootsy Collins. Bootsy gave him the nickname "Babyface" because he looked so young. Kenneth played guitar in a group called Manchild. They had a hit song called "Especially for You" in 1977.

He also played keyboards and guitar in an R&B group called the Deele. In this group, he worked with drummer Antonio "L.A." Reid. They later became a very successful songwriting and producing team. One of Babyface's first big songs for another artist was "Slow Jam." He wrote it for the R&B band Midnight Star in 1983. This song was on their popular album No Parking on the Dance Floor. Babyface stayed with The Deele until 1988.

Babyface's Music Career

Solo Albums and Collaborations

Babyface released his album Playlist on September 18, 2007. This album included eight cover songs and two new songs. It was the first album released on the re-launched Mercury Records label.

In 2014, he released a duet album with Toni Braxton called Love, Marriage & Divorce. This album won a Grammy Award. In April 2024, Babyface announced that he would be performing in Las Vegas.

Behind the Scenes: Writing and Producing Hits

Babyface performing in 2009

Creating Songs for Top Artists

From the late 1980s to the early 1990s, Babyface wrote and produced many R&B and dance songs. He worked with famous artists like Bobby Brown ("Roni"), Karyn White ("Love Saw It"), and Pebbles ("Girlfriend"). He also created hits for The Whispers ("Rock Steady"), The Deele ("Two Occasions"), and Johnny Gill ("My My My").

In 1989, Babyface and L.A. Reid started their own record label called LaFace Records. Some of their first artists were TLC, Usher, and Toni Braxton. These artists became very successful. TLC's album CrazySexyCool became the best-selling album ever by an American girl group. Babyface helped write and produce many songs on it. Under his guidance, TLC sold over 60 million albums worldwide. Toni Braxton's first two albums, Toni Braxton (1993) and Secrets (1996), sold over 15 million copies combined. Babyface wrote most of the songs on these albums.

Babyface also helped create the R&B group Az Yet in the late 1990s.

Number-One Hits and Awards

In 1990, Babyface produced "I'm Your Baby Tonight" for Whitney Houston. This was his first number-one hit on the US Top 40 chart. He also wrote and produced "End of the Road" for Boyz II Men in 1992. This song stayed at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for a record-breaking time.

He worked with Madonna on her 1994 album Bedtime Stories. This album included the hit song "Take a Bow" which was number one for seven weeks. Babyface also shared a Grammy Award with Eric Clapton for their chart-topping song "Change the World." In 1995, he wrote and produced "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" for Whitney Houston. He also worked on the entire Waiting to Exhale movie soundtrack, which sold 10 million copies. This soundtrack had more hits for Houston, Brandy, and Mary J. Blige.

Babyface has produced and written music for many other stars. These include Michael Jackson, Michael Bolton, Paula Abdul, Céline Dion, Mariah Carey, Bruno Mars, Kelly Clarkson, Ariana Grande, and Phil Collins. He won the Grammy Award for Producer of the Year three years in a row, from 1995 to 1997.

In 2013, Babyface produced most of the songs for Ariana Grande's first album, Yours Truly. This included her song "Baby I." In 2014, he sang a duet with Barbra Streisand on her album Partners.

Other Projects

Acting and Movies

In 1994, Babyface appeared and performed on an episode of the TV show Beverly Hills, 90210.

In the mid-1990s, Babyface and his then-wife, Tracey Edmonds, started a movie company called Edmonds Entertainment Group. They produced films like Soul Food (1997) and Josie and the Pussycats (2001). They also created the soundtrack for the movie The Prince of Egypt (1998). Babyface also helped compose "The Power of the Dream," the official song for the 1996 Summer Olympics. Céline Dion performed this song.

Babyface also competed on the TV show Dancing with the Stars in 2016. He was partnered with professional dancer Allison Holker.

Soda Pop Records

In 2009, Babyface started his own record label called Soda Pop Records. The R&B duo K-Ci & JoJo released their album My Brother's Keeper (2013) as the label's first project.

Personal Life

In 2007, Babyface started dating Nicole "Nikki" Pantenburg, who was a backup dancer. They had a daughter named Peyton in 2008. Babyface and Nicole got married on May 17, 2014. In July 2021, they announced that they were ending their marriage.

Impact and Recognition

Honors and Awards

In 1999, a 25-mile (40 km) part of Interstate 65 in Indianapolis was renamed the Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds Highway.

In 2006, Babyface was honored as a BMI Icon. He has won the BMI Pop Songwriter of the Year award seven times. He has also received a total of 51 BMI Awards.

On October 10, 2013, Babyface received the 2,508th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. This is a special honor for people who have made a big impact in entertainment. In 2018, he received an honorary doctorate degree from Indiana University Bloomington for his amazing music career.

Grammy Awards

Babyface has won many Grammy Awards for his work:

Discography

Studio Albums

• Lovers (1986)
• Tender Lover (1989)
• For the Cool in You (1993)
• The Day (1996)
• Face2Face (2001)
• Grown & ... (2005)
• Playlist (2007)
• Return of the Tender Lover (2015)
• Girls Night Out (2022)

Collaboration Albums

• Power and Love with Manchild (1977)
• Feel the Phuff with Manchild (1978)
• Street Beat with The Deele (1983)
• Material Thangz with The Deele (1985)
• Eyes of a Stranger with The Deele (1987)
• Love, Marriage & Divorce with Toni Braxton (2014)

See also

In Spanish: Babyface para niños