R&B/Soul
Tony! Toni! Toné
Brothers Dwayne and Raphael Wiggins and cousin Timothy Christian have proven themselves durable guardians of the soul and funk tradition, while also infusing their music with enough contemporary devices to remain popular. This Oakland trio scored a number one R&B hit right out of the box in 1988 with "Little Walter." Their LPs, The Revival in 1990 and Sons of Soul in 1993, have also been enormously successful. Tony! Toni! Toné! released their fourth album, House of Music, in the fall of 1996. In 2003, members of Tony! Toni! Toné! were invited by Alicia Keys to guest on her album, The Diary of Alicia Keys. The song that resulted from that session was called "Diary," and when it was released as a single in the fall of 2004, it gave them their first Top 10 US hit in eleven years. A reformed Tony! Toni! Toné!, led by Wiggins and Riley, with Amil Khalil singing lead vocals has been touring since late 2008. In 2011, they released Icon, a compilation album, and they continue to perform and remain a hot ticket.