Babyface (musician)
Kenneth Brian Edmonds[1][2] (born April 10, 1959), better known by his stage name Babyface, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He has written and produced over 26 number-one R&B hits throughout his career and has won 13 Grammy Awards. He was ranked number 20 on NME's 50 of The Greatest Producers Ever list.
For the guitarist and Beard of Wales, see Thee Faction.
Babyface
- Face
- Y Corp
- Singer
- songwriter
- record producer
1974–present
3
- Kevon Edmonds (brother)
- Melvin Edmonds (brother)
Early life[edit]
Edmonds was born on April 10, 1959, in Indianapolis, Indiana,[3][4] to Marvin and Barbara Edmonds. Barbara was a production operator at a pharmaceutical plant. Edmonds, who is the fifth of six brothers (including future After 7 band members Melvin and Kevon Edmonds, the latter of whom went on to have a modestly successful solo career), attended North Central High School in Indianapolis, and as a shy youth, wrote songs to express his emotions.[5] When he was in eighth grade, Edmonds' father died of lung cancer, leaving his mother to raise her sons alone.[5]
Music career[edit]
Edmonds later met funk performer Bootsy Collins, who tagged him "Babyface" because of his youthful look. He also performed in the group Manchild (which had a 1977 hit "Especially for You" with band member Daryl Simmons) as a guitarist. He played keyboards and guitar in the light-funk and R&B group the Deele (which also included drummer Antonio "L.A." Reid, with whom he would later form a successful writing and producing partnership). One of his first major credits as a songwriter for outside artists came when he wrote the tune "Slow Jam" for the R&B band Midnight Star in 1983. The tune was on Midnight Star's 1983 double-platinum No Parking on the Dance Floor album. Babyface remained in the Deele until 1988, when both he and Reid left the group.
His album Playlist consists of eight cover songs and two original works. It was released on September 18, 2007. It was the first album on the newly re-launched Mercury Records label.[6]
On February 4, 2014, he released a Grammy Award-winning duet album with Toni Braxton titled Love, Marriage & Divorce on Motown Records.[7]
In April 2024, he announced a Las Vegas residency via an Instagram video, featuring a playful spoof of Kidman's viral AMC Theaters ad.[8]
Personal life[edit]
In 2007, Babyface began dating his backup dancer Nicole "Nikki" Pantenburg (former backup dancer for and personal friend of Janet Jackson). Babyface and Pantenburg have a daughter, Peyton, born in 2008.[25] The pair married on May 17, 2014. In July 2021, they announced that their marriage would be ending after seven years.[26]
