Rosie Gaines facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Rosie Gaines |
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|---|---|
| Birth name | Rosemary Gaines |
| Born | June 26, 1960 |
| Origin | Oakland, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Pop, funk, soul, R&B, dance, house, hip hop |
| Years active | 1985–present |
| Labels | Dredlix, Motown, NPG, Epic, Dome, SUsu |
Rosie Gaines (born Rosemary Gaines on June 26, 1960) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. She comes from Pittsburg, California. Rosie was a member of Prince's band, the New Power Generation. She sang with Prince on their famous song "Diamonds and Pearls". Rosie also had many dance hits. Her song "Closer than Close" was very popular, reaching the top 10 in the UK Singles Chart in 1997.
Contents
Music Journey
Early Bands
Rosie Gaines started her music career in a family funk and soul band called Unity. She played the organ. Her brother Carl played bass guitar, her cousin Lacy played guitar, and her sister Mal played drums. Her sister-in-law Dianne sang background vocals.
Later, Rosie also played in bands called The Oasis and A Touch of Class. She then joined The Curtis Ohlson Band. A bandmate, Levi Seacer, Jr., asked her to come to Minneapolis, Minnesota. She went there to record a demo song for The Pointer Sisters.
Working with Prince
While Rosie was recording the demo, Prince came into the recording studio. He was very impressed by her singing. Prince then asked her to join his band, The New Power Generation.
Rosie's first time on a Prince album was Graffiti Bridge. Her voice was heard clearly on the song "New Power Generation". She also appeared with the NPG in the movie Graffiti Bridge.
Rosie wrote and sang on the Diamonds and Pearls album. Her lead and background vocals were on many songs, including the hit singles "Gett Off", "Cream", and "Diamonds and Pearls".
After the Diamonds and Pearls tour in 1992, Rosie went back to her solo music. But she still worked with Prince sometimes. Prince even produced a remix for her 1995 song "I Want U". She also sang a duet with Prince on the live version of "Nothing Compares 2 U". This song is on his 1993 album, The Hits/The B-Sides.
Rosie also sang on other Prince songs like "I Rock Therefore I Am" (from Chaos and Disorder) and "Jam of the Year" (from Emancipation). She also sang on a new version of "1999" called "1999: The New Master". In 1999, Rosie performed with Prince and other famous musicians at a special New Year's concert. This concert was released on DVD as Rave Un2 the Year 2000.
Solo Career
Rosie Gaines recorded her first solo album, Caring, in 1985. Her next album, No Sweeter Love, came out in 1987. These albums did not become very popular at first. However, you can now find both albums online.
After working with Prince and the NPG, Rosie started recording her next solo album. She recorded many songs. An album called Concrete Jungle was planned for release. But it was not released until 2010.
Rosie then released her third solo album, Closer than Close, in 1995 with Motown Records. This album had the singles "I Want U" and "Are You Ready?". It also included "My Tender Heart," a song Rosie wrote with Prince. Prince and The Steeles sang background vocals on it. In 1995, Rosie also sang with Tevin Campbell on the song "I2I" for the Disney movie A Goofy Movie.
A club remix of Rosie's song "Closer than Close" became a single in 1997. This remix was very successful in the United Kingdom. It reached number four on the UK Singles Chart. It also appeared on many club music albums. The song won Rosie a MOBO Award for Best International Single in 1997. This success led Rosie to record another club song, "I Surrender," later that year. The "Closer than Close" remix is now seen as a classic club song.
Rosie Gaines started her own record label called Dredlix Records. She wanted to share her music directly online. In 1997, she released an online-only album called Arrival. Only 2,000 copies were made, and they were sold only on her website.
In 2003, she released her album You Gave Me Freedom in the UK. In 2005, Rosie sang on the single "Dance With Me" by K-Klass. She released her album Welcome to My World in 2006. She also released Soul Survivor in 2013. This album included songs from You Gave Me Freedom and new music.
Two compilation albums, Essential Rosie (a 'hits' album) and Dance with Me (a club album), were both released in 2015.
Later Life and Support
Rosie Gaines has faced some health challenges over the years. In early 2015, her friend and fellow singer Brenda Vaughn organized a special concert in Oakland. This concert was to help support Rosie. Many famous artists took part, including Lenny Williams, D’Wayne Wiggins from Tony! Toni! Tone!, Wilton Rabb from Graham Central Station, Tuck and Patti, Tony Dwayne, and Levi Seacer, Jr. As of 2016, Rosie Gaines was living with her daughter.
Music Albums
Studio Albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| US R&B /HH |
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| Caring |
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| Closer than Close | 99 | |
| Arrival |
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| No Sweeter Love |
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| You Gave Me Freedom |
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| Try Me |
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| Welcome to My World |
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| Concrete Jungle |
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| Soul Survivor |
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— |
Compilation Albums
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Essential Rosie |
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| Dance with Me |
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Extended Plays
| Title | EP details |
|---|---|
| Be Strong / I Only Wanna Be in Your Arms / Heart Like Stone |
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Singles
As Lead Artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US R&B /HH |
US Dance |
IRE |
NZ |
SCO |
SWE |
UK |
UK Dance |
UK R&B |
||||
| "Skool-ology (Ain't No Strain)" | 1985 | 72 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Caring | |
| "Wake Up" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Good Times" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Crazy" | 1987 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | No Sweeter Love | |
| "I Want U" | 1995 | 90 | 28 | — | — | — | — | 70 | 10 | 14 | Closer than Close | |
| "Closer than Close" | 1997 | — | 6 | 11 | 36 | 12 | 53 | 4 | 1 | — |
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| "I Surrender" | 1998 | — | 16 | — | — | 47 | — | 39 | 4 | — | non-album single | |
As Featured Artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US |
US R&B /HH |
AUS |
CAN |
FRA |
GER |
NZ |
SWE |
SWI |
UK |
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| "Gett Off" (Prince and the New Power Generation featuring Tony M. and Rosie Gaines) |
1991 | 21 | 6 | 8 | 25 | 97 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 3 | 4 |
|
Diamonds and Pearls |
| "Diamonds and Pearls" (Prince and the New Power Generation featuring Rosie Gaines) |
3 | 1 | 13 | 5 | 20 | 28 | 8 | 12 | 7 | 25 | |||
| "Hang On in There Baby" (Gary Barlow featuring Rosie Gaines) |
1998 | — | — | — | — | — | 69 | — | — | — | Open Road | ||
| "Dance with Me" (K-Klass featuring Rosie Gaines) |
2005 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 236 | Non-album single | |
Promotional Singles
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Bub. |
US Digital |
US R&B /HH |
US R&B /HH Digital |
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| "Nothing Compares 2 U" (Live) (Prince and the New Power Generation featuring Rosie Gaines) |
1993 | 7 | 43 | 66 | 31 | The Hits/The B-Sides |
Guest Appearances
| Title | Year | Other artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "1 Touch" | 2002 | Mousse T | Gourmet de Funk |
| "Don't Let 'Em" | Bootsy Collins, Snoop Dogg, Till Brönner | Play with Bootsy |
Soundtrack Songs
| Title | Year | Other artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "I 2 I" | 1995 | Tevin Campbell | A Goofy Movie |
Songwriting
| Title | Year | Artist(s) | Writer(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Money Don't Matter 2 Night" | 1991 | Prince and the New Power Generation | Prince, Rosie Gaines | Diamonds and Pearls |
| "Push" | ||||
| "The Voice" | 1993 | Mavis Staples | Mavis Staples, Prince, Rosie Gaines, Francis Jules | The Voice |
