Lemuel “LeMel” Humes is an American songwriter/composer, musician, singer, and producer. He is perhaps best-known for his longstanding songwriting and production relationship with R&B/

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

singer

Miki Howard Alicia Michelle "Miki" Howard (born September 30, 1960) is an American singer and actress who had a string of top 10 hit songs in the mid-1980s and early 1990s, including " Baby, Be Mine" (1987), " Come Share My Love" (1986) and "Love Under Ne ...

, particularly his work on her early/breakthrough albums.

Career

Humes began his recording career in the early 1980s, releasing the single "Dance So Fine" under the name Nijel in 1982. Working as a staff songwriter for Warner Brothers Music Publishing, he earned more public recognition when he wrote and produced nearly all of the tracks on

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

debut album, '' Come Share My Love'', including the top-ten R&B chart hit title track. Humes also played various keyboards and provided backing vocals throughout the album, while also arranging several songs. His other highlights on the album include a vocal duet with Howard on the song "I Can't Wait (to See You Alone)" and performing all instruments (via the "Kurzweil 250 Computer Systems") on the song "My Friend". Humes continued working with Howard, writing and producing several songs on her second album, ''

Love Confessions ''Love Confessions'' is the second studio album by American R&B singer Miki Howard, released in 1987 via Atlantic Records. It peaked at No. 145 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and No. 13 on the ''Billboard'' Top R&B Albums chart. The album's ...

'', including (again) the title track. This early success segued into work with other artists, including

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed "The Voice", she is one of the bestselling music artists of all time, with sales of over 200 million records worldwide. Houston in ...

(co-writing the album track "Where You Are" from the '' Whitney (1987)'' album),

Stephanie Mills Stephanie Dorthea Mills (born March 22, 1957) is an American singer and songwriter. She rose to stardom as "Dorothy" in the original seven-time Tony Award winning Broadway run of the musical ''The Wiz'' from 1974 to 1979. The song " Home" from t ...

(producing "Comfort of a Man" on her ''

Home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...

'' album),

The Pointer Sisters The Pointer Sisters are an American pop and R&B singing group from Oakland, California, that achieved mainstream success during the 1970s and 1980s. Their repertoire has included such diverse genres as pop, jazz, electronic music, bebop, b ...

(co-writing their final

top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...

R&B hit of the 1980s, "He Turned Me Out", featured on the

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

to the 1988 film '' Action Jackson''),

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

(writing "Let Me Take Over" on his '' My World'' album), Thelma Houston, and

Meli'sa Morgan Joyce Melissa Morgan (usually spelled Meli'sa; born December 6, 1964) is an American R&B/Soul singer–songwriter. Morgan had a string of urban contemporary hits from the mid–1980s to the mid–1990s. Most notable include her cover version of ...

. He scored his first number one R&B hit in 1989, writing and producing Stacy Lattisaw's duet with Johnny Gill, " Where Do We Go from Here". Humes also continued to work with Miki Howard throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s, returning to a prominent role on her ''

Femme Fatale A ''femme fatale'' ( or ; ), sometimes called a maneater or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype of ...

'' and '' Can't Count Me Out'' albums, the first of which included her number one R&B hit, "Ain't Nobody Like You".

Select Discography

Songs written/composed

Miki Howard

* " Come Share My Love" (writer) * " Come Back to Me Lover" (writer) * "I Wanna Be There" (writer) * "Love Confessions" (writer) * " Ain't Nobody Like You" (writer) * " Something I've Never Had" (writer)

Whitney Houston

* "Where You Are"

Stacy Lattisaw

* " Where Do We Go from Here" (duet with Johnny Gill) ''(also produced)''

The Pointer Sisters

* "He Turned Me Out"

Ray Charles

* "Let Me Take Over"

Thelma Houston

* "High"

Meli'sa Morgan

* "So Long, Goodbye"

Sweet Obsession

* "I Want to Know"

Amii Stewart

* "Stay With Me (We Can Work it Out)"

Songs/Albums produced

Miki Howard

* '' Come Share My Love'' (producer) * "

Imagination Imagination is the production or simulation of novel objects, sensations, and ideas in the mind without any immediate input of the senses. Stefan Szczelkun characterises it as the forming of experiences in one's mind, which can be re-creations ...

" (producer) * " But I Love You" (producer) * "Cigarette Ashes on the Floor" (producer) * "I've Been Through It" (producer)

Stephanie Mills

* "Comfort of a Man"

Milira

* " Three's a Crowd"

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Humes, LeMel American record producers American male songwriters Living people American male composers Year of birth missing (living people)