- 3 minutes ago
Before they became global sensations, these iconic solo artists were part of bands you might never have guessed. From Post Malone shredding metalcore guitar to Lady Gaga’s underground rock days, their beginnings shaped their incredible journeys. Discover the surprising band roots of music legends and see how these groups helped launch their stellar solo careers.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00I think you know that it's not my way, and I can't hold it back, but I've got a fight.
00:07Welcome to Miss Mojo, and today we're looking at solo music artists whose stardom has completely eclipsed their roots in
00:14bands.
00:15I begged them and begged them for months to let me sing one song.
00:19And then they did, and then I got a taste of that, and then I didn't want to play the
00:22drums anymore.
00:24Post Malone, Ashley's Arrival.
00:26Pop, hip-hop, and country don't even begin to describe the range of genres that Post Malone has dominated.
00:33And yet, some may be surprised to learn that he started in metalcore.
00:37I used to be so cool not looking back, and I used to be way cooler than I am.
00:42Never mind that the charismatic vocal phenom was the lead guitarist for Ashley's Arrival, a high school crew out of
00:49Grapevine, Texas.
00:50Austin Post, as the locals knew him, even auditioned for Crown the Empire, only to blow it when he broke
00:57a string.
00:57I could have been torn like 17, and then right now 18 and stuff, but it just didn't work.
01:03He ultimately bounced around more than a dozen bands before making a stage name for himself with more mainstream singing
01:09styles.
01:10Ashley's Arrival still stands out for the viral video from 2010 that showed how far Post's love of music goes.
01:17Oh my God!
01:23Cindy Lauper, Blue Angel
01:32Before becoming the epitome of colorful pop in the 80s, Cindy Lauper had a more retro flair.
01:39In 1978, she and John Turi founded Blue Angel to bring some rockabilly to New York's flourishing new wave scene.
01:46I'm gonna be strong and stand as tall as I can.
01:54They signed with the manager for the Allman Brothers and released a well-received namesake album.
02:00But after poor sales, a lawsuit, and health issues, Blue Angel broke up in 1982 in worse shape than when
02:07they started.
02:07It was from the bottom that their front woman soared to the heights of musical success.
02:12Meanwhile, her old band reformed as Boppin' the Blues in 86, but they didn't make it very far without Lauper's
02:19star power.
02:20And you'll never know, darling, after you kiss me, you're there.
02:30Elton John, Bluesology
02:38The name Reginald Dwight doesn't exactly evoke the sort of gloriously gaudy showmanship that fills stadiums.
02:45In 1962, the pianist and co-founder of the R&B group Bluesology was just worried about filling pubs.
02:53By the mid-60s, they were playing with the Isley Brothers, Patti LaBelle, Major Lance, and other American greats.
03:00Their big break came when British blues trailblazer Long John Baldry invited them to be his resident backing band.
03:07But creative conflict set Bluesology up for breakup after driving away the charismatic Dwight in 67.
03:23As a parting gift, he referenced Baldry and saxophonist Elton Dean's names to become Elton John.
03:30And with Bernie Taupin answering his ad for a songwriter, one of Pop's greatest duo acts began.
03:36How wonderful life is, while you're in the world
03:45Eminem, D12
03:46These chicks don't even know the name of my band
03:50But they're all on me like they were the whole band
03:54Deshawn Proof Holton's Detroit rap crew relied on alter egos to fulfill the name Dirty Dozen with a six-man
04:01core.
04:02The later rebranded D12, nonetheless, became local legends for their serious lyrical talents, including Marshall Eminem Mathers.
04:23It wasn't long before he was discovered by Dr. Dre and became a solo sensation in California.
04:29Eventually, returning to D12 and Triumph, he produced two multi-platinum albums in the 2000s.
04:41Following Proof's tragic passing in 2006, Eminem stepped back with much of the mainstream not even knowing he was with
04:49the group.
04:49He feels that D12 essentially died with his best friend, but they continue to inspire the Detroit rap scene with
04:56their esteemed alumnus.
04:58Lady Gaga
04:59SG Band
05:00After dropping out of NYU, Stephanie Germanotta formed a namesake rock band with some college friends.
05:07Better known around the Lower East Side as the SG Band, they built strong underground buzz for their leading ladies'
05:14dazzling vocals and piano-driven theatrics.
05:16Don't tell me, I'll never be a superstar, cause I know I could look like a girl in your Hollywood,
05:26your Hollywood.
05:28A rising songwriter's showcase at the Cutting Room caught the attention of a scout for producer Rob Fusari, with whom
05:35Germanotta developed an electropop persona.
05:38Legend has it that his text message about the Queen song Radio Gaga was autocorrected to Lady Gaga.
05:44I was making all this theatrical pop, some of which ended up on The Fame, my first studio album, and
05:53I just really wanted to change my name.
05:57It didn't feel like it matched the person that I was becoming.
06:00The SG Band was effectively dissolved, soon followed by their frontwoman's professional and personal relationship with Fusari.
06:06But after the 2008 album, The Fame, the world barely knew about Lady Gaga's real name, let alone her namesake
06:14band.
06:22LUTHER VANDROSS
06:24You'd think that one of the silkiest tenors in R&B history wouldn't need help achieving mainstream stardom.
06:31LUTHER VANDROSS was indeed one of the best-kept vocal secrets in 1970s American sessions,
06:37until Italian producers Jacques Fred Petrus and Mauro Valavassi brought him to center stage in 1980.
06:43LUTHER VANDROSS
06:44We've come a long way and yet this is only the beginning of the world.
06:52The post-disco project change would be The Velvet Voice's big break, albeit as part of a rotating lineup.
06:59He only sang two songs on their debut album, The Glow of Love, including the chart-topping title track.
07:05Reaching far to find a star, our destiny is heaven sent. Making known this loving tone will never part the
07:12two of us.
07:13The financial dispute eventually caused to change their secret weapon, though they persist as a cult phenomenon to this day.
07:21Meanwhile, Vandross rode that first hit into so many more that few remember where it all started.
07:31Pink. Choice. In 1995, 15-year-old Alicia Moore teamed up with friends Chrissy Conway and Sharon Flanagan to form
07:40the teen R&B trio, Choice.
07:42Three white girls singing black R&B, that was the initial concept for the group, Choice.
07:48Their demo, Key to My Heart, quickly led to a contract with LaFace Records, and the Pennsylvania trio flew out
07:55to Atlanta to record an album.
07:58Unfortunately, tensions with producer L.A. Reid grew out of the record being shelved indefinitely.
08:03Alicia stood out, really stood out.
08:10And everybody had the same comment. Not sure about the group, but the girl is incredible.
08:14Choice's debut would instead be on the soundtrack of the massively panned Shaquille O'Neal movie, Kazam.
08:20Reid ultimately cornered Moore at a Christmas party in 1998 with an ultimatum, go solo or go home.
08:27Flanagan and Conway went home, while Moore became the generation-defining superstar better known as Pink.
08:41Michael Bolton, Blackjack
08:43Soft rock love ballads were hardly Michael Bolton's first love.
08:47He was a powerhouse hard rocker, whose band Blackjack released two albums in as many years.
08:53I've decided now the rest is up to you. Don't keep me waiting, tell me what you wanna do.
09:01Their front man would continue to try to conquer the genre after commercial letdowns broke them up in 1980.
09:07Tony Iommi claims that Bolton even auditioned for Black Sabbath after Ronnie James Dio left, but Bolton himself denies this.
09:15I did meet with Ted Nugent about singing on his new album and tour coming up. I flew to his
09:22house in Michigan, but I didn't do that. I pursued my solo career from there on.
09:28So that's a rumor of Black Sabbath.
09:29It would be Laura Branigan of all people who gave him his big break by recording a ballad he wrote
09:35with Doug James.
09:36After How Am I Supposed to Live Without You blew up the charts in 1983, the raging voice of Blackjack
09:42rebranded himself as one of the dreamiest voices in pop.
09:45I don't wanna know the price, I'm gonna pay for dreaming.
09:52Billy Joel, The Echoes, The Hassles, Attila
09:55The Piano Man's musical versatility was once a matter of carving out a niche in 1960s New York.
10:02I was up on stage and all of a sudden these women are looking at him, these girls. I'm thinking,
10:06hey, this is not bad.
10:07And at the end of the night, we were playing at some church somewhere, the priest comes over and he
10:11gives us five bucks a piece.
10:13So that was it, I was hooked.
10:14A teenage Billy Joel first tried to capitalize on the British invasion with The Echoes, which underwent several name changes
10:21before he jumped ship in 67.
10:23Session keyboard work then led to a mildly successful stint with the psychedelic soul outfit, The Hassles.
10:31You wanna wanna relax?
10:34Child of a child is me, baby.
10:40Joel's most surreal project was Attila, a costumed heavy metal duo that released one album before Joel fell for his
10:47partner John Small's wife.
10:49From the ashes of Attila came Joel's marriage to Elizabeth Webber, who managed him through his transition into a more
10:55mainstream sound.
10:56Now the fans love him just the way he is.
11:00I'll take the bad times.
11:02I'll take you just the way you are.
11:10If you love games, be sure to check out WatchMojo's new game, Terrible Influence.
11:14Just launched for purchase at terribleinfluence.com.
11:17Terrible Influence is a satirical board game about the dark side of fame from the writer of the most popular
11:22girls in school and us.
11:24Watch Mojo.
11:25Boom.
11:26I can make an apology video.
11:28Oh, you so would.
11:29Click on the link in the description to check out the game and be the first to play Terrible Influence.
11:36Madonna, Breakfast Club, Emmy.
11:38You may know that the Queen of Pop was forged in New York New Wave, but not that she started
11:43at the back of the stage.
11:45In 1979, struggling dancer Madonna Ciccone learned the drums and guitar to join Breakfast Club.
11:51See, I kept wanting to play in their band and they kept saying, no, you know, there's no opening, sorry.
11:57So for a year, just locked myself away and taught myself to play drums and guitar and piano.
12:06So I had enough knowledge to write music and then the songs just started coming, you know, like crazy.
12:11Frustration with artistic limitations prompted her to leave the following year to form Emmy.
12:16It wasn't long after that before she decided to invest in herself fully.
12:21You may be my lucky star, but I'm the luckiest by far.
12:28By the time Breakfast Club scored a Grammy nod for Best New Artist in 1988, Madonna already had three nominations
12:36to her mononym.
12:37Still, she's not above giving credit to the bands that brought her, as crucial as that step is for many
12:43of the seemingly singular forces in music.
12:46Don't ever tell me to stop.
12:53Who are some other superstars who started off sharing the spotlight?
12:57Give the group some credit in the comments.
12:59See you in the comments.
13:01Bye.
13:03Subscribe to the comments for watching the comments.
13:03Levittownetta.
13:03Bye, Ben.
Comments