With hits like “Promise” and “Let’s Get Married,” R&B group Jagged Edge experienced lots of success on Jermaine Dupri’s So So Def label in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Fans of the chart-topping group can learn all about their beginnings, romances with members of the R&B group Destiny’s Child and more Sunday night at 10 p.m. when “Unsung” returns for its 11th season with Jagged Edge. Rolling out spoke exclusively to twins Brandon and Brian Casey and Richard Wingo of Jagged Edge in advance of Sunday’s premiere.
The members of Jagged Edge met So So Def record label head Jermaine Dupri through Kandi Burruss, who was a member of So So Def Records’ group Xscape. Brandon described the first meeting with Dupri, who was playing video games when they arrived.
“I just remember Kyle [Norman] going over and picking up his remote control and shutting his TV off. Then we had his attention, at least for a moment,” he recalled. The four men didn’t think the meeting went well. “We thought we had bombed the audition,” Brian added. But a short time later, the group received a call from Burruss and the rest is history.
Jagged Edge also discussed the first album and creating their signature sound, particularly with their ballads.
“A Jagged Edge record has a way to be raw and at the same time, very polished,” Brandon said. Richard agreed, adding, “very well put!”
The group mentioned several influences with Wingo naming New Edition, Jodeci, and Boyz II Men. Brandon and Brian named R Kelly, Stevie Wonder and Lionel Richie as songwriting inspirations.
Jagged Edge developed a close friendship with the female group Destiny’s Child and two relationships grew out of it. Brian explained how the relationships developed: “We basically stayed on a tour bus with them for a year and change.”
In addition to touring together, as recording artists, the two groups experienced a lot of firsts together. He said, “The first time we got chased out of a mall, they saw it!”
In 2017, not only is Jagged Edge still touring, but they are dropping a new album to coincide with Unsung entitled “The Layover.” “We’re going to keep this train running until all the wheels fall off,” Wingo says, adding that the group loves to perform and interact with their fans.
You may wonder why only three members of the four-man group participated in the interview and that will be explained on Unsung. Tune in to TV One on Sunday, July 9 at 10pm Eastern time for Unsung Jagged Edge.
