Playa (band)

Playa is an American R&B-hip-hop group. The original lineup consisted of Jawaan "Smoke" Peacock, Benjamin "Black" Bush and Stephen "Static Major" Garrett. Playa is best known for their 1998 hit album, Cheers 2 U, produced by longtime collaborator Timbaland. Static was notable for being a successful songwriter of hit singles and album tracks for artists such as Ginuwine, Aaliyah, Truth Hurts, Lil Wayne and Brandy.

History

Early years

Jawaan Peacock, Benjamin Bush and Stephen Garrett met in the late 1980s and formed while the guys were still in high school. Smokey and Digital Black met through a mutual friend who thought the guys would sound good together, while Smokey and Static met in church while performing in a gospel group. Alongside other guys, the three men that would eventually form Playa created a group called A Touch of Class.

Joining Swing Mob

As A Touch of Class, the group met DeVante from Jodeci backstage at a concert. They began singing Boyz II Men songs when DeVante asked them if they knew any Jodeci songs. Essentially they impressed DeVante by performing a cappella versions of Jodeci songs backstage after a concert in 1991/1992. The guys were then signed onto DeVante's Swing Mob label with Elektra Records in 1993/94. Magazines such as Vibe and The Source attribute the signing to Static's close friendship with the boss and producers of the DeVante recording label. The group finally became known as Playa after DeVante heard the guys sing and called them "lil playas".

Band

Band or BAND may refer to:

Science and technology

Computing and electronics

Organizations

Playa

Playa (plural playas) may refer to:

Landforms

Named playas

Populated places

Donavon Frankenreiter

Donavon Frankenreiter (born December 10, 1972 in Downey, California) is an American musician and surfer. He is a long-time friend of Jack Johnson and his debut self-titled album was released in 2004 on Johnson's Brushfire Records through Universal Music. It made the Australian ARIA Top-40 charts in April 2004.

Surfing career

Frankenreiter took up surfing as a teenager on the beaches of San Clemente, California. He eventually signed a sponsorship deal with the Australian-based Billabong clothing company, which allowed him to travel the world over. During his travels, he would rent a room in North Shore, Oahu, Hawaii, from the parents of musician and surfing-enthusiast Jack Johnson; he and Johnson developed a strong friendship.

Donavon is well known for his appearances in the Drive Thru series of surf videos.

Musical career

Frankenreiter started playing in the group Peanut Butter and Jam at the age of 18. In 1996 he began to seriously pursue a musical career when he formed the band Sunchild. In Sunchild, Frankenreiter was the lead guitar player but did not sing. The band had a 70s rock sound similar in style to The Black Crowes. They released their first CD, Barefoot & Live, on Surfdog Records in 1997. Produced by Gary Hoey, the live album featured covers of The Allman Brothers Band, The Marshall Tucker Band, The Rolling Stones, and Van Morrison, as well as several originals. California Honey followed in 2000 on their own Sunchild Records. This studio album is now out-of-print. Sunchild disbanded in 2001 and Frankenreiter pursued a solo career.

Rubber Soul

Rubber Soul is the sixth studio album by English rock band the Beatles. It was recorded in just over four weeks to make the Christmas market, and was released on 3 December 1965. It was produced by George Martin. Unlike the five albums that preceded it, Rubber Soul was recorded during a continuous period, whereas the group had previously recorded albums during breaks in between tour dates or other projects. After this, Beatles albums would be made without the burden of other commitments, except for the production of short promotional films.

Rubber Soul incorporates R&B, pop, soul, folk rock, and psychedelic music styles. The album is regarded by musicologists as a major artistic achievement that continued the Beatles' artistic maturation while attaining widespread critical and commercial success. The album's name comes from the term plastic soul, which popular African American soul musicians coined to describe Mick Jagger, a white musician singing soul music. It was the second Beatles album – after the British version of A Hard Day's Night – to contain only original material; the Beatles would record no more cover songs for their records until 1969, with the "Maggie Mae" excerpt appearing on Let It Be.