Tag Archives: Pop Culture

Jody Watley Shares Easter Message On Renewal, Decluttering Your Life

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A woman wearing a large straw hat and a light-colored shirt smiles brightly against a clear blue sky.
Jody Watley. All Rights Reserved 2026 Avid Music Inc

Jody Watley shares a special Wattage Thoughts message this Easter Sunday—reflecting on renewal, spring cleaning, and the importance of decluttering your life, not just your home. 🌸✨ Watch NEW Youtube Video Short: Here

A reminder that growth begins within—clear the space, reset your energy, and move forward with purpose, faith, and gratitude.

Celebrate the season of renewal with inspiration from Jody Watley

#JodyWatley #EasterSunday #WattageThoughts #SpringCleaning #Renewal #Motivation #Shorts #Inspiration #Mindset

About The Artist:

Jody Watley is a Best New Artist GRAMMY®️ award winner, 3 x Solo Nominee,  Multiple -platinum selling singer /songwriter/producer with a diverse ongoing music discography spanning decades.

R&B / Pop / Dance /House Music/ Downtempo Electronica / Jazz – 80s, 90s, 2000s. 

Jody Watley recognized as a style icon (VOGUE, People Magazine, Harper’s Bazaar +more) ranked by Billboard as one of the Top 60 Female Artists of All Time, Top 25 Dance Artists of All Time, Top 100 Black Solo Artists Of All Time. Crossover Music Icon from Black Music Honors 2017, Inductee in Women’s Songwriter Hall of Fame + more.

As a solo artist, Jody Watley has amassed 6 Billboard Hot 100 Top Ten Singles including iconic chart toppers “Looking For A New Love”, “Don’t You Want Me”, “Real Love” and the groundbreaking R&B/Rap collaboration “Friends” featuring Eric B. and Rakim. 6 Top 10 Hot 100 Singles, 13 # 1 Dance Singles, which led to a Billboard Magazine Dance Chart Lifetime Achievement Award;  2 R&B Number 1’s, 15 Top 40 Singles, Gold and platinum albums in the USA, Canada and Asia, a million selling fitness video and video compilation. 

2007 Billboard Dance Lifetime Achievement, 2017 recipient of the Black Music Honors Crossover Music Icon Award and nominations from the American Music Awards, MTV Awards, NAACP Awards and Soul Train Awards.

A visionary and trailblazer, she set the blueprint for the independent artist movement by launching her own label, Avitone, in 1995—decades before it became a trend. Her solo career continues to thrive with critically acclaimed and chart-topping releases including 2025’s “Let’s Dance Vol. 1 Hit Them Beats” which vaulted to #1 on iTunes Top Dance /Electronic Albums on July 11 and Amazon Music UK’s Top Dance Electronic Albums,

iTunes chart showing Jody Watley at number one for the album 'Let's Dance Vol. 1 Hit Them Beats'

Jody Watley’s Larger Than Life: How The Album Redefined R&B

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Album cover of 'Larger Than Life' by Jody Watley featuring her in a vibrant yellow feathered garment, posed with one leg bent and wearing high black boots.

Celebrating a milestone 🎶✨

Released March 27, 1989 — the platinum-certified second solo album “Larger Than Life” from Jody Watley.

A defining project of the late ’80s, the album delivered three Billboard Top 10 hits, with Watley contributing once again to the song narratives co-writing 9 of the 10 songs produced by Andre Cymone:

“Real Love” (Gold-certified), also her second R&B #1, “Friends,” and “Everything.”

“Real Love” — directed by Oscar-winner David Fincher— became one of MTV’s most nominated videos, pushing visual storytelling and fashion-forward aesthetics while cementing Watley as a true music and style trailblazer.

The groundbreaking “Friends” featuring Eric B & Rakim helped pioneer the fusion of R&B, hip-hop, pop, and dance (Source: Okayplayer), becoming one of the first crossover collaborations to hit the Top 10 across multiple charts. The video also featured voguing, street dance, with a cast of true New York club kids and sub culture icons such as Connie Fleming. The album also showcased emotional depth with the timeless ballad “Everything.”

Album Cover: Steven Meisel

Art Direction & Design: Lynn Robb | Jody Watley

Recognized among the greatest visuals in music history, Larger Than Life is featured in 1000 Record Covers by Taschen.

Stream Larger Than Life and explore the ongoing music discography of Jody Watley across your favorite digital platforms.

About the Artist:

Jody Watley is a GRAMMY® Award–winning Best New Artist and 3x nominee, multi-platinum singer, songwriter, producer, entrepreneur, and style icon. 

Renowned as one of the most defining female artists of the 80s and 90s with Top 10 hits including the iconic “Looking for a New Love,” “Don’t You Want Me,” “Friends” ft. Eric B. & Rakim, and the gold-certified “Real Love,” she has built a genre-spanning, critically acclaimed catalog across R&B, Pop, Dance, Jazz, Electronica, 80s, 90s, 2000s-Present including 2025’s #1 iTunes Dance Electronic Album “Let’s Dance Vol.1”

To date she has 6 Hot 100 Top 10 Singles, 13 Number 1 Dance Singles, 2 Number 1 R&B Singles, 15 Top 40 Singles, 3 Number 1 Dance Electronic Albums in the 2000s, numerous UK Soul Chart Top 5 singles in her ongoing independently released music.

An award-winning songwriter (BMI Medal of Honor, Women’s Songwriters Hall of Fame), Watley is ranked by Billboard among the Top 25 Dance Artists of All Time and Top 65 Hot 100 Female Artists of All Time. Her honors include Black Music Honors Crossover Icon and the 2022 Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award + more. A former member of the group Shalamar (1977-1983), Jody Watley was a part of the Band Aid #1 UK charity single “Do They Know It’s Christmas.

She was the first artist to brand herself and release a #1 Fitness Video to her music, in 1989, the first artist and black woman to appear on the cover of a Japanese fashion magazine, with the launch of SPUR that same year. 

Cover of SPUR magazine featuring a woman with long, wet hair, looking upward with a serene expression. The magazine title is prominently displayed in large orange letters.
Jody Watley – SPUR Fashion Magazine Japan Launch November 1989.

Celebrated as a fashion and cultural trailblazer, Watley has features in GAP, VOGUE, Harper’s Bazaar, Rolling Stone, People Magazine (Most Beautiful Issue) and more. 

A pioneer at the intersection of music and style. Her multi-decade, multi-generational career continues to evolve since her early Pop R&B era with MCA (1986-1994) through progressing into her independent label Avitone era 1995 into the present. 

Always Something To See and Hear – Jody Watley Youtube

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From the iconic Jody Watley classics to fresh new releases — plus behind-the-scenes moments and inspiring vlogs — there’s always something to see & hear.

A close-up of a woman wearing sunglasses and a large straw hat, smiling while speaking to the camera. Text overlay promotes Jody Watley's YouTube channel.

Subscribe now to the Official Jody Watley YouTube Channel and stay connected to all things Jody Watley  

Wanna stay Updated on Jody Watley? Subscribe to the channel and blog right here.

Follow as well on Verified Jody Watley Social Media Pages

About The Artist:

Jody Watley is a Best New Artist GRAMMY®-winning, multi-platinum singer, songwriter, producer, entrepreneur, and style icon. 

With a diverse discography across multiple charts with 14 entries on The Billboard Hot 100 

Here are Jody Watley’s biggest Solo Top 10 Billboard Hits, of the 14 Total Solo Entries:

Looking For A New Love, Don’t You Want Me, Some Kind Of Lover, Real Love, Friends ft. Eric B & RAKIM, Everything. 

Ranked  by Billboard in the Top 25 of Top Dance Artists of All Time, Top 60 Female Hot 100 Artists of All Time, an inductee in Women’s Songwriters Hall Of Fame, Black Music Honors Crossover Music Icon Honoree + more.

Watley has built a diverse discography spanning R&B, Pop, Dance, Hip Hop, Electronic, Jazz, and Adult Contemporary from the 80s, 90s, 2000s from mainstream to independent critically acclaimed.  

Her latest release, 2025’s Let’s Dance Vol. 1, hit #1 on U.S. iTunes Top Dance Albums in July 2025.

An award-winning songwriter (BMI Medal of Honor, Women’s Songwriters Hall of Fame). 

Jody Watley is also celebrated as a fashion and cultural trailblazer with features in GAP, l.a. Eyeworks, Harper’s Bazaar, VOGUE, Rolling Stone, and more. Widely regarded as a pioneer fusing music and style, she remains one of the architects of 21st-century Pop/R&B/Dance.

Happy 30th Anniversary- Red, Hot & Blue A Monumental First. The First Sensible Shame-Free Pop Culture Response To HIV/AIDS

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Via The Red Hot Org on Instagram

Thanks Esquire for a beautiful & impressively deep highlight reel from Red Hot’s 30 years of making music, raising awareness to fight AIDS + promote Harm Reduction!!

Rolling Stone Magazine

Jody Watley – “After You,Who” Video Still. Red Hot & Blue

I’m proud to be a part of such a monumental and important project and moment in history- there were few artists at the time willing to speak on the subject of HIV & AIDS.. even fewer was black artists. My label didn’t want me to do it because they thought my participation would give the impression that I was either gay and or had the virus. Some things are worth fighting to be a part of and for me this was one and creatively I got to do jazz!

Grammy Winning Music and Style Icon Jody Watley Joins Sheryl Lee Ralph For Divas Simply Quarantined! Fabulous In Isolation

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SAVE THE DATE ::

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 27th!!!

Grammy Award Winning Musical Icon JODY WATLEY joins SHERYL LEE RALPH for an ALL-NEW episode of DIVAS Simply Quarantined!

This intimate and uplifting conversation is not one to miss! Sunday, Sept 27th 7pm EST/4pm PST. This series supports Project Angel Food feeding 1,000’s in L.A. – Text DIVAS to 76278 to give!

Jody Watley. Happy Music Anniversary 32 to My Solo Debut.

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Happy Music Anniversary to my solo debut “Jody Watley” released on February 23, 1987! “you know it’s funny.. funny how times flies..as I watch days turn into years..” and decades – still me..keeping it new! Thanks to those who still rock and roll with me and my music in all of it’s continued incarnations beyond my debut into the NOW!

Eternal thanks to all involved who helped me execute my vision and exceed all expectations.

It’s not years of life of music – it’s the life in living life and good music which has no expiration date and continues to be discovered and appreciated.

Wattage!

New Additions To The Jody Watley Art Gallery

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Jody Watley Solo Debut Performance by Suzy Umman – 2018

Jody Watley Warhol Inspiration by Shawn West

Jody Watley pencil sketches from 1986 by Aaron Stoney King posted to Facebook January 2018.

World AIDS Day. Red Hot and Blue Looking Back

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It’s interesting to look back on this monumental and important project and remember how my label was so against my being a part of it because of the perceived notion that being a part of HIV and AIDS education and awareness was a bad thing and the mentality of what people would think especially in the Black (urban) community, which one of the reasons I really fought to be a part of this no matter what people thought- it was necessary.

#Repost Via Red, Hot Organization

#redhotandblue TV special aired in over 30 countries in #1990. #coleporter songs, which NO ONE was even thinking about covering yet, seemed to speak poignantly to the early days of the #plague #Ivegotyouundermyskin #everytimewesaygoodbye to name a few were poetic reminders of the importance of love, romance, empathy and desire, in an era when people were afraid to even touch one another. We had numerous fights w/the network and sponsors in order to be able to speak directly about #AIDS and #SafeSex. The show featured music videos of nearly every song on the album as well as PSAs and interludes that spoke powerfully to dispell the fear, stigma and hysteria around the epidemic. These amazing #motiongraphics were produced in London, this was when doing any kind of moving graphics was incredibly labor intensive and complicated. The music is #whowantstobeamillionaire by #thompsontwins – for some reason they were the only band to not have a music video in the show, so they were featured here!!

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#worldaidsday2017 #worldaidsday #neverforget #fightaids #endaids #safesex #safesexishotsex #redhot #redhotorganization #1990 #lovewins #AIDSactivism #silenceequalsdeath #actup #lgbtq

Flashback. Jody Watley Japanese Feature

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jodywatley_japan

Jody Watley. Japanese music magazine feature.

Japan has always been a strong market for me since my solo debut. I look forward to going over next month, October for something new – this time Best Hits 80’s Meets  Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra.

 

Jody Watley. Looking For A New Love.

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Top-100-Best-Dance-Songs-From-80s-Ever-Jody_Watley_-_Looking_For_A_New_Love

 

I’m so thankful to have experienced this – thankful for my blessings and continued journey. I thank all of you who continue to show me love, support my music and encourage me each day!! — On January 6, 1987, January 6. My solo debut single “Looking For A New Love” was released (a Rihanna/Jody fan just told me on Instagram and I looked it up, love social media for things like this).. Of course it was a monumental debut, my first #1 single and a touchstone in music and pop culture, not many artists get to experience this smile emoticon
Facts:
The single hit number two on the Billboard Hot 100 in May 1987 besting the chart peak of her group Shalamar Top 10 “The Second Time Around.” “Looking For A New Love” spent four weeks at number-one on the Billboard R&B chart another notable achievement. The single was kept out of the top spot of the Hot 100 by Cutting Crew’s “(I Just) Died in Your Arms” and U2’s “With or Without You”. It ranked number 16 on Billboard’s year-end chart for 1987. The single would also reach #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Play Chart.

In 1988 the song was nominated for two Soul Train Music Awards for Best R&B/Soul or Rap Music Video, and Best R&B/Soul Single, Female. She was also nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, winning the The GRAMMYs for Best New Artist.

One of the song’s key phrases became a popular saying: “Hasta la vista, baby.” It wound up on innumerable answering machines and was used by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1991 film Terminator 2: Judgment Day.

2005 Reissue
In 2005, Jody Watley re-recorded and released “Looking for a New Love” on Water Music Records in conjunction with her own Avitone label, Curvve Recordings, and Peace Bisquit. The reissued classic was remixed in various styles: house, electro, breakbeat. The newly imagined “Looking for a New Love” proved to be a historic undertaking for Watley, as it peaked at #1 on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, making her the first artist ever to take the same song to No. 1 in two decades.
Written by Andre Cymone and Jody Watley (lyrics and melody). Produced by David Z. and Andre Cymone.
Photography: Victoria Pearson / Art Direction: Jody Watley / Lynn Robb

Everlasting gratitude to Jheryl Busby, Louil Silas Jr. (RIP) and to all of the MCA Records team at that time including A.D. Washington, Ernie Singleton, Alonzo Miller, Sarah Melendez..who made it happen despite the usual obstacles along the way. I thank Jheryl for believing in me and signing me as well as giving me the freedom to be myself and make a mark – understanding what I wanted to do as an artist and writer, not just a girl..but a woman with a vision.

Always believe in yourself – no matter how many people are trying to bring and tear you down..keep on keeping on. God and the universe always has it’s way.

http://www.jodywatley.net