Girl, I want to know your name..."
Tevin Jermod Campbell (born November 12, 1976), is an American singer-songwriter, out of Waxahachie, Texas, USA. A protégé of both Quincy Jones and Prince, Tevin is best known both for his hits "Can We Talk", "Round and Round", and "Tell Me What You Want Me to Do"; and his role as the Prince-esque Powerline from A Goofy Movie.
A gifted vocal prodigy at an early age, Campbell's career began in his local church; first as part of the choir, and later as a soloist. At 12 years old, a performance tape of Campbell singing made its way into the hands of Warner (Bros.) Records' executive Benny Medina, which immediately got him signed to the label, and brought under the wing of Quincy and his Qwest imprint. Campbell's professional debut was a feature on Quincy Jones' seminal 1989 release Back on the Block, performing a vocal cover of the Brothers Johnson's "Tomorrow (A Better You, A Better Me)", which was also the album's lead single. The song topped the R&B charts, and brought Tevin significant mainstream exposure, and the attention of Prince, who promptly featured him in his 1990 film Graffiti Bridge. Though the film was a massive flop, the soundtrack was a success; and Tevin's Prince-penned single, "Round and Round", cracked the top twenty of the Billboard pop charts, and earned him his first Grammy nomination in 1991. He would also make a cameo appearance on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air as the character Little T, a pop star, and the celebrity crush of Ashley Banks.
From there, Campbell quickly began working on his debut album T.E.V.I.N.. Largely produced by labelmate Al B. Sure! and Narada Michael Walden, with contributions from Quincy and Arthur Brown, the album was released in late 1991, and became a Platinum-selling success for the then-fourteen-year-old Campbell. "Just Ask Me To", the album's second single, was a top-ten R&B hit, and was featured on the soundtrack of Boyz n the Hood, and "Tell Me What You Want Me to Do" became Tevin's highest charting pop single, reaching number six on the Hot 100, and netting him his second Grammy nomination. Campbell would see greater success in 1993 with his sophomore release I'm Ready. Featuring a more mature and soulful Campbell, and contributions from Babyface and a returning Prince, the album would go double Platinum, and spin off two more top ten singles for Campbell in "Can We Talk" and the title track. I'm Ready earned Campbell three more Grammy nominations, and a spot as the opening act for Janet Jackson's Janet World Tour. in 1994, Tevin recorded "U Will Know" as part of the supergroup "Black Men United", which was featured on the soundtrack for Jason's Lyric, and the solo track "Gotta Get Yo' Groove On" for A Low Down Dirty Shame. The next year, he voiced the character Powerline for A Goofy Movie, performing the tracks "I 2 I" and "Stand Out".
Unfortunately, the child star curse came to pass for Campbell in 1996. His third album, Back to the World, was a commercial bomb compared to his first two, only reaching Gold certification. Campbell's 1999 self-titled comeback would be even more disastrous, though this was in part due to Qwest Records being dismantled during the release of the album. Nevertheless, Campbell would be dropped by Warner Bros. in 2001. These days, Campbell mostly keeps a low profile, but still does performances and collaborations once in a while.
In August 2022, Campbell came out as gay, ending years of speculation surrounding his personal life.
Discography:
- T.E.V.I.N. (1991)
- I'm Ready (1993)
- Back to the World (1996)
- Tevin Campbell (1999)
- The Best of Tevin Campbell (2001)
"Can we trope for a minute?"
- Break Up Song:
- The album-titled track for Back to the World is an “I Want You Back” variation of this trope, which is made more apparent by Tevin replacing the ‘the’ part of the song’s title with ‘my’ during his portion of the choruses.
- Off his self-titled fourth album are songs of the same type like “Since I Lost You” , “For Your Love” and “The Only One for Me”.
- Child Prodigy: He was an extremely gifted vocalist as a child, and became a gospel soloist before he even reached his teens.
- Cover Version: He's got quite a few under his belt; his most notable ones being the Brothers Johnson's "Tomorrow (A Better You, A Better Me)", and Shuggie Otis' "Strawberry Leter 23"; the latter of which featured an additional rap verse from Tevin.
- Former Child Star: He got hit with this HARD after I'm Ready, which contributed to his last two albums bombing. By his own admission, his career faded because people still see him as a little boy to this day.
- Intercourse with You: The most notable example is the Prince-penned and produced "Shhh" from I'm Ready. Before that song is the comparatively Lighter and Softer (and coincidentally also Prince-penned and produced) "Halls of Desire". Back to the World's "Break of Dawn" also counts as well.
- Just Friends: The second song off Back to the World, “Dry Your Eyes”, revolves around Tevin trying to convince a female friend who just had a bad breakup to give him a shot at being her man, only for the friend in question to feel that they should just remain friends, out of fear that a Relationship Upgrade might ruin their friendship should they not work out.
- Likes Older Women: Downplayed on "Lil' Brother", where the then-15-year-old Tevin tries to woo a 17-year-old girl who's into older guys.
- The Minneapolis Sound: "Round and Round",a Prince-produced track with an added swingbeat slant to his signature sound. Some of the Prince-produced tracks on I'm Ready would also have his Minneapolis thumbprint on the beats.
- New Sound Album:
- I'm Ready saw Tevin going into more soulful territory, with an emphasis on ballads.
- Back to the World was mainly Hip Hop Soul, with a couple club songs.
- His self-titled album ventured into Neo Soul, similar to D'Angelo and Erykah Badu.
- Protest Song: "Uncle Sam", an anti-racism song demanding an answer from America about why racism against black people is still at an all time high, despite so many years of supposed change.
- Relationship Upgrade:
- “What Do I Say?” from I’m Ready has him pushing for this with a female friend.
- As mentioned above, “Dry Your Eyes” from Back to the World also has this premise.
- Self-Titled Album: Downplayed with his debut album T.E.V.I.N., but played straight with his fourth album.
