112 Bad Boy Interview

Fidel Channer finds one of P. Diddy's successful R&B groups and talks about the Bad Boy days. 112 (one-twelve) is an R&B quartet from Atlanta made up of Daron Jones, Michael Keith, Quinnes "Q" Parker and Marvin "Slim" Scandrick. They met in high school in the early 1990s and formed the group Forte, performing at local churches and talent shows until they were discovered by management duo Courtney Sills and Kevin Wales. Sills and Wales introduced the group to hip-hip producers Tim Kelley and Bob Robinson, known professionally as Tim & Bob, who helped the group record demos. Wales secured an audition for the group at Atlanta's 112 Club for Sean "Puffy" Combs, CEO of Bad Boy Records. He signed the quartet and they subsequently changed their name from Forte to 112 as a tribute to the good fortune the club had brought them. After signing with Bad Boy, 112 moved to New York to record their self-titled debut album. 112, which was primarily produced by Tim & Bob, was released in 1996 and went double platinum. It spawned the hit singles "Only You" and "Cupid," both of which peaked at No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 3 and No. 2 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart, respectively. Room 112 was released in 1998 and it quickly went gold. The following summer the group embarked on Whitney Houston's My Love Is Your Love Tour. By 2002 Room 112 was certified double platinum. 2001's Part III contains the hit "Peaches and Cream," which marked the group's first and only Grammy nomination for Best R&B Group or Duo. Despite producer Comb's absence during production due to legal reasons, the album was solid and debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. Two months later it was certified platinum.   112 split with Bad Boy Records in 2002, seeking greater creative control. They signed with Def Jam and issued Hot & Wet in 2003. Though the album was ultimately successful, it failed to make a noticeable impact compared to past albums. Pleasure & Pain, their fifth effort, was issued in 2005 and went platinum, thanks in part to the hit single "U Already Know." The album also marked 112's first album to don a parental advisory sticker. Def Jam dropped 112 shortly after the release of Pleasure & Pain and they entered a hiatus. They continued to tour while pursuing their own solo projects. Slim lent his talents to Thee 6 Mafia's "Cruzin'" and released a solo album, Love's Crazy in 2008. That same year Mike issued his debut Michael Keith. In 2010 Q announced that 112 had returned to the studio to work on new material. Daron, Michael and Q are back, but Slim's involvement with the project hasn't been confirmed. The untitled album's release date is unknown. 112 has been performing since kicking off their For the Fans tour in the summer of 2012. In June 2015 they performed during a Bad Boy Records reunion segment at the BET Awards.