Shanice Wilson was just a pre-teen (11) when she signed her first major-label record deal with A&M Records.
At the time, her labelmates included Al Green, Atlantic Starr, Janet Jackson, Jeffrey Osborne, Quincy Jones, Vesta Williams and more.
Three years prior, at age eight, Shanice, her mom and her aunt packed their belongings and took a Greyhound from Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, to Los Angeles, California.
It wasn’t long before Shanice landed a role in a Kentucky Fried Chicken commercial, singing alongside the First Lady of Song, Ella Fitzgerald.
Though it was a brief vocal moment, it wouldn’t be the last for the nine-year-old Shanice, especially on TV.
In 1984, Shanice co-starred in the first season of Kids Incorporated. She appeared in the first 13 episodes of the popular show that also starred Stacy Ann Ferguson, later known as Fergie.
Not long after, Shanice found herself center stage in the talent competition show Star Search, hosted by Ed McMahon.
“Being on Star Search was like my first big television appearance. It was my first time singing live on a platform that big,” Shanice tells Rated R&B. “My mom coached me on everything I did vocally. She helped me with my stage presence.”
It all paid off — literally. The then-11-year-old won the junior vocalist competition, which included a $5,000 prize.
“Back then, $5,000 was like $5 million for us,” laughs Shanice. “We were really struggling when we first came out here. My mom found this little studio apartment, and it was not in a great neighborhood. When I got that $5,000, you would’ve thought we hit the lottery.”
Following her Star Search victory, Shanice performed in the musical Get Happy at Westwood Playhouse, which celebrated the music of Harold Arlen. Music executive John McClain attended one of the shows.
“He heard about me and came to hear me sing in the musical,” Shanice recalls. “He signed me immediately.”
As soon as Shanice inked her deal with A&M Records, she got started on her debut album. Three years later, Shanice, 14, made her formal introduction with Discovery, released on Oct. 21, 1987.
The nine-track album was preceded by “(Baby Tell Me) Can You Dance,” which peaked at No. 6 on Billboard’s Hot Black Singles chart (now called the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart).
Every song on the album was written and produced by Brian Loren. “He literally created those tracks in front of me,” recalls Shanice. “I’d be in the studio like, ‘Okay, what are we working on today?’ And he’ll get on his drum machine [while] I’m sitting there watching him put the tracks together. I just remember being amazed watching him work.”
Discovery may not have garnered much commercial success (it peaked at No. 149 on the Billboard 200), but it certainly positioned Shanice as a vocal powerhouse who could soar the charts with the right hit. (She later bounced back in 1991 with her sophomore album, Inner Child, which included her hit “I Love Your Smile,” which peaked at No. 2 on the Hot 100.)
Now, back to Discovery. The album opens with “I Think I Love You,” a synth-funk groove that hears the teen professing her feelings to a love interest with hopes that he echoes her sentiments. The bulk of the album leans heavily into the Minneapolis sound, which makes for an enjoyable listen, especially if you want to dance.
Production aside, Discovery invites listeners on a young Black girl’s journey as she explores themes around puppy love.
Songs like “He’s So Cute” and “Spend Some Time With Me” are more flirty but still age appropriate. In the former song, Shanice coos, “He’s so cute / You know the boy is so fine / He’s so cute / I’d love to make him mine.”
“No 1/2 Steppin’,” the second single, shows Shanice’s confident side. “I’m not about playing games / I’ve got too much that I wanna do,” she asserts. Her confidence isn’t limited to the lyrics but also her vocal delivery. When she utters “no half steppin’” on the chorus, there’s a sense of self-assurance in her voice, indicating she means what she’s saying.
Just when you think you’ve had enough of dancing, Shanice slows down the tempo in the latter part of the album. It’s here where she truly shines in every aspect. The nearly six-minute “Do I know You” is among the highlights of the album. Then, there’s “Just A Game,” where Shanice flawlessly flexes her five-octane range.
To celebrate the 35th anniversary of Discovery, Shanice spoke with Rated R&B about the makings of her debut album. Here are some highlights from our conversation:
Shanice recorded an album before Discovery that got scrapped.
John McClain signed me at 11. I immediately went in the studio and worked with Teena Marie. She did a song for me called “You Met Your Match.” I still have a copy of it. It was funky. She was playing the bass on it and was singing backgrounds with me. It was actually a really good song.
I worked with Ricky Bell and Ralph Tresvant from New Edition. They did a song called “My First Kiss.” I loved the songs, but the [label] wanted to go in a different direction. We didn’t put the music out right away and, over time, my voice started changing. Richard Rudolph, who was Minnie Riperton’s widower, was the executive producer of the whole project.
The album was originally titled Genius.
John McClain was gonna name the album Genius. He renamed the album Discovery. I was discovering my voice, like new things about my voice. It was a lot of things during that album that I was discovering. I learned a lot.
Recording backgrounds was Shanice’s least favorite part of the process.
I did all my background parts. I remember recording so many backgrounds. I was a little frustrated with that because I had to resing every chorus. It wasn’t like he could just copy and paste it, you know, do it one good time and then it’s done. It was a lot of work.
“(Baby Tell Me) Can You Dance”…
A lot of people don’t know this, but Karyn White is singing backgrounds on “Can You Dance” with me. Bryan Loren put her voice down and brought me in, and I put my voice down. We weren’t there at the same time, but her voice is on the song.
I remember being at my friend’s house when I heard “Can You Dance” for the first time on the radio. I literally lost my mind! It did well in Europe and in Japan.
“No 1/2 Steppin’” allowed Shanice to channel a different side of her.
Bryan had me singing it with more attitude. He wanted me to sing it kind of funky and kind of how Mavis Staples would sing it. It was like I was playing a character. Outside of that song, I’m very shy and soft-spoken. I had to come out of my shell and be someone else. It was fun.
I also remember the outfit I wore in the video. I got a little bit of backlash on that because it was kind of sexy. I was showing my legs a little bit. I remember some people were like, “Do you think, at 14, you should be dressing like that?” But I was discovering and trying to figure it out. Barry Lather choreographed [the video]. He’s an amazing choreographer who also worked with Janet [Jackson].
The King of Pop loved “No 1/2 Steppin’.”
Michael Jackson’s favorite song on that album was “No 1/2 Steppin.’” When I met Michael, I was 14 years old. They had a limousine come pick me up, and I went and sat with him in his trailer during his Moonwalker video shoot. We were talking and he said, “I love No 1/2 Steppin’.” He said, “Every night before I go to bed, I dance to that song in my dance studio.”
She recorded “Do I Know You” while she was sick.
That was the one song I loved on the album that I felt, vocally, I could have done a better job. It’s a beautiful song. But I literally had a cold when I was singing that song. I could not breathe (laughs). My nose was clogged up. After my cold went away, I asked, “Can I resing it?” I tried to resing it, but the label liked the energy with the cold, so they kept those vocals. The backgrounds didn’t bother me, but I felt like I could have done better on my leads.
“The Way You Love Me”…
I think that might have been one of the last songs we recorded. So, Bryan was tired of giving me every single idea to sing. He played the track and I’m in the booth waiting for him to give me the next note. He said, “You’re gonna do this yourself. I’m done,” (laughs). He walked out and kept the track playing. I was so mad at him. I just started singing. At the end of the song, I hit this long note. That was my first time coming up with my own ideas. I think when Bryan walked out on me, it pushed me to try my own stuff because I was totally dependent on him. I’m glad he did that because it showed me that I can come up with some really good ideas. He just told me a few years ago, “I never got to tell you when you were younger how impressed I was with what you did on ‘The Way You Love Me.’”
Shanice wanted to avoid comparisons to her labelmate, Janet Jackson.
Janet and I are good friends. I’ve known Janet since I was 10. When I recorded my album, Discovery, [her album] Control was out. Her hair was curly, and I knew we were both Black and on the same label. I didn’t wanna look anything like Janet. So, they gave me the same hair person that did Janet’s hair — and everyone else’s. She did my hair and I told her — this has nothing to do with Janet and she has nothing to do with this — but I told the hair stylist, “Since Janet’s doing her hair curly right now, can you do my hair straight? I don’t wanna look like Janet.”
So, she did my hair and gave me this dope look that you get on my album cover. It was bone straight. I was so happy. Then I went to Janet’s “Pleasure Principle” taping and it was like the same look as my album cover. The label didn’t wanna pay the money to reshoot the picture. When my album came out, I got compared to Janet and that wasn’t my fault. I don’t think Janet had a clue, so I’m not blaming Janet. But the hair stylist, I do blame her (laughs).
Me and @JanetJackson back in the day Lol… pic.twitter.com/p5zE7vc7
— Shanice (@Shaniceonline) August 27, 2012
I didn’t want people to think I was copying Janet. If you notice, on my first single, “Can You Dance,” my hair is super short. I cut it off because I wanted to have my own look. I was trying so hard to stay away from Janet because I wanted us to both have our own thing. I didn’t want people to feel like I was purposely trying to copy her and I didn’t want her to feel like I was trying to copy her.
But Janet and I always stayed cool. I think I told her about it too — about that situation. People really thought that I was copying her even with the music. But I’m 14 years old. I don’t know how to [produce] tracks. So those tracks that were given to me, had a Minneapolis-type vibe. That was the sound of the time. And I’m 14 doing what the head of the label asked me to do (laughs).
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What Discovery means to Shanice 35 years later.
Honestly, out of all the albums I recorded — and I love all of my albums — Discovery will always have a special place in my heart because that was my first album. I really loved all the songs on the album. It definitely should have been pushed a little harder. I wish we could have gotten more singles out of it because there were some really good songs. Sometimes I go back and listen to Discovery. It makes me happy. It takes me back to a good time.
Revisit Shanice Wilson’s debut album, Discovery, below.