Teddy Riley facts for kids

{{Infobox musical artist | image = Teddy Riley at the 90's Block Party Tour.jpg | name = Teddy Riley | caption = Riley in 2017

| alias =

| birth_name = Edward Theodore Riley | birth_date = (1967-10-08) October 8, 1967 (age 57) | birth_place = Manhattan, New York City, U.S.

| genre =

| occupation =

| years_active = 1984–present

| label =

| current_member_of =

| past_member_of =

Edward Theodore Riley, born on October 8, 1967, is an American music producer, singer, and songwriter. He is known for creating a special music style called new jack swing. This style mixes R&B and hip-hop music. Many famous artists used Teddy Riley's music and songs. These included Michael Jackson, Bobby Brown, Heavy D & the Boyz, Keith Sweat, Hi-Five, and the Jackson 5. They helped make new jack swing very popular with many hit songs and albums from the late 1980s to the 1990s. Teddy Riley also started and was the main singer for the music group Blackstreet and its earlier group, Guy.

With Blackstreet and Guy, Teddy Riley released many successful albums. He produced four songs that reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. These hits include "I Like the Way (The Kissing Game)" by Hi-Five, "Stutter" by Joe, "My Prerogative" by Bobby Brown, and "No Diggity" by his group, Blackstreet. He also produced Michael Jackson's "Remember the Time" and SWV's "Right Here (Human Nature Remix)". More recently, Teddy Riley has worked on music in Asia. He produced songs like "Call Me Baby" for Exo, "The Boys" for Girls' Generation, and "Mamacita" for Super Junior.

Teddy Riley has won two Grammy Awards. His work changed how contemporary R&B music was made. He used more samples, sound effects, and rapping along with singing. He also helped make the talk box vocoder popular. In 1991, he discovered the famous musician Pharrell Williams.

Contents

• Early Life and First Steps in Music
• Building a Music Career
• Family Life
• Music Albums
• Songs He Produced

• Singles
• Production Credits

• See also

Early Life and First Steps in Music

Teddy Riley grew up in St. Nicholas Houses in Harlem, New York City. He was a very talented child and started playing instruments in church when he was five years old. His uncle owned a club in Harlem called The Rooftop. He built a music studio in the club, and Teddy spent a lot of time there as he grew up. By the time he was 15, he was already working with artists like Doug E. Fresh.

Building a Music Career

A local music producer named Gene Griffin helped Teddy Riley. Together, they formed a group called Kids at Work, but it didn't last long. When Teddy was 18, he produced Kool Moe Dee's song "Go See the Doctor" in 1986. This song became a hit, reaching number 89 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Before that, he also worked on "The Show" by Doug E. Fresh and the Get Fresh Crew in 1985.

In 1987, Teddy Riley, Aaron Hall, and Timmy Gatling started the R&B group Guy. In 1989, Teddy produced "I Get the Job Done" for Big Daddy Kane. He also worked with the Jacksons, the Winans, and James Ingram. In the same year, he helped produce the first album for his rap group, Wreckx-n-Effect, called Wrecks-n-Effect.

After Guy's second album, The Future, Teddy Riley helped produce half of Michael Jackson's album Dangerous. Michael Jackson's producer, Quincy Jones, suggested Teddy for the job. After Guy broke up in 1992, Teddy focused on producing and promoting Wreckx-n-Effect's second album, Hard or Smooth. He also performed on this album.

In late 1991, Teddy Riley formed another group called Blackstreet. This group had many big hits. These include "Don't Leave Me" (1997), the number one song "No Diggity" (1996), and "Girlfriend/Boyfriend" (1999). The group has broken up and reformed several times over the years.

In 2000, Teddy Riley worked with Spice Girl Melanie B on her first solo album, Hot. He also produced songs for the group Outsiderz 4 Life.

In 2006, he was part of the New Jack Reunion Tour. This tour featured Blackstreet and Guy, along with other groups like After 7, SWV, and Tony! Toni! Toné!. In May 2006, Teddy Riley said he was planning new albums for both Blackstreet and Guy.

Around 2008, Teddy Riley faced some financial challenges. In June 2008, a fire destroyed his recording studio in Virginia Beach.

In 2009, Teddy Riley performed with Guy at the BET Awards. That same year, he worked with Amerie and Robin Thicke on their albums. After working on Snoop Dogg's album Ego Trippin', Teddy Riley joined a production supergroup called QDT. This group includes DJ Quik and Snoop Dogg.

Teddy Riley produced and helped write the song "Teeth" with Lady Gaga for her album The Fame Monster. In 2010, Teddy Riley shared that he was no longer working with Guy. He also said that the Blackstreet lineup included himself, Chauncey "Black" Hannibal, Dave Hollister, and Sherman "J-Stylz" Tisdale. He planned to release his own album, TRX, before a new Blackstreet album. He hoped to work with artists like Stevie Wonder and Elton John. Later, the Blackstreet lineup changed again. As of 2019, the group is called "Blackstreet 2" and includes Riley, Hollister, J-Stylz, and Rodney Poe.

In August 2010, it was confirmed that a new album by Michael Jackson would be released after his passing. This album, Michael, came out on December 14, 2010. Teddy Riley produced some of the songs on it.

More recently, Teddy Riley has become involved in the Korean music scene. He worked with rapper Jay Park on an English song called "Demon". He also produced a mini-album for the girl group Rania.

He produced songs like "Believe" and "Flow" for the R&B group Boyz II Men on their album Twenty. He also produced the song "The Boys" for the Korean girl group Girls' Generation. He has produced songs for other Korean groups like Shinee and Exo. He worked with Shinee on songs like "Beautiful" and "Dangerous". He also produced "Milk" and "All Night" for f(x) and "What Is Love" for Exo.

Family Life

As of 2025, Teddy Riley has nine children.

Music Albums

With Kids at Work

• Kids at Work (1984)

With Guy

• Guy (1988)
• The Future (1990)
• Guy III (2000)

With Blackstreet

• Blackstreet (1994)
• Another Level (1996)
• Finally (1999)
• Level II (2003)

Songs He Produced

Singles

Production Credits

See also

In Spanish: Teddy Riley para niños