New Edition released its debut album 40 years ago, and as members are celebrating that anniversary, theGrio is taking a look back on their story. A lot has happened in the last four decades!
New Edition’s origins
Before there was New Edition, there were three kids growing up together in Boston and singing together in elementary school: Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins and Bobby Brown. Eventually, Ralph Tresvant and Ronnie DeVoe joined them, and the five made up the original New Edition.
Determined to use their talents to make it out of Boston, the group went to multiple talent shows before eventually catching the attention of musician and producer Maurice Starr. They hitched their wagons to Starr and went on to record “Candy Girl” after signing on to a deal that gave them an initial bonus of $500.
However, things fell apart between New Edition and Starr when the paycheck came in. The biopic “The New Edition Story” describes the shock the rising stars felt when, despite a chart-topping single and a popular tour, they got a check for only $1.87 for the group to split. They left Starr and signed with MCA, releasing the album “New Edition” in 1984.
When Bobby Brown left
The group’s next album, “All for Love,” didn’t see as much success. After that, Bobby Brown left the group to pursue a solo career. At the time, he was attracting controversy of his own. As anyone who has seen his biopic, “The Bobby Brown Story,” knows, his vices in the ‘80s were winning and causing friction within the group.
“The New Edition Story” biopic describes members’ pressure from their manager to vote Brown out, though they told a different story during a 2012 reunion performance, with Ralph Tresvant claiming Brown told him that he wanted to leave and Brown claiming that he was told he was kicked out, essentially for bad dancing.
Whatever the case, Brown went on to have his own career, and…
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