JS (band)
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JS was an American female R&B duo. The duo consisted of members and sisters Kim Johnson and Kandy Johnson-Isley. After releasing their debut album, ''Ice Cream'', in 2003 to subpar commercial performance, they disbanded a year later.


History

Born in
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...
,
Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...
, the Johnson sister, Kim, Kandy and Krystal co-formed JS as a
gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...
trio, singing first in church and then with touring gospel artists such as Andrae Crouch and
Shirley Caesar Shirley Ann Caesar-Williams (Birth name, née Caesar; born October 13, 1938), known professionally as Shirley Caesar, is an American Gospel music, gospel singer. Her career began in 1951, when she signed to Federal Records at the age of 12. Thro ...
.Biography
Allmusic
Krystal soon left after engaging in a relationship with
Earth, Wind & Fire Earth, Wind & Fire (abbreviated as EW&F or EWF) is an American band formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1969. Their music spans multiple genres, including jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, Latin and Afro-pop. They are among the best-selling ba ...
member
Philip Bailey Philip James Bailey (born May 8, 1951) is an American singer, songwriter and percussionist, best known as an early member and one of the two lead singers (along with group founder Maurice White) of the band Earth, Wind & Fire. Noted for his fo ...
. Now a duo, the group later appeared on television; appearances included ''
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'' and ''
The Oprah Winfrey Show ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'' is an American first-run syndicated talk show that was hosted by Oprah Winfrey. The show ran for twenty-five seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in which it broadcast 4,561 episodes. The show was taped i ...
''. In 2001, the group signed to
DreamWorks Records DreamWorks Records (often referred in copyright notices as SKG Music, LLC) was an American record label founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Mo Ostin, his son Michael Ostin and Lenny Waronker as a subsidiary of DreamWorks Pictures. The label opera ...
, a former
DreamWorks Pictures DreamWorks Pictures (also known as DreamWorks SKG and commonly referred to as DreamWorks) is an American film studio and Film distribution, distribution label of Amblin Partners. It was originally founded on October 12, 1994, as a live-action a ...
division and later a subsidiary of
Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, ...
. They later came under the management of
The Isley Brothers The Isley Brothers ( ) are an American soul group originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, that began as a vocal trio consisting of the brothers O'Kelly Isley Jr., Rudolph Isley and Ronald Isley in the 1950s. With a career spanning over seven decades, ...
lead singer
Ronald Isley Ronald Isley ( ; born May 21, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Isley is the lead singer and founding member of the family music group The Isley Brothers. Early life Born in 1941 to Sallye Bernice (née Bell) and O ...
, having appeared on the band's albums, '' Eternal'' (2001) and '' Body Kiss'' (2003). Only one-half of JS, Kim, was featured on the Isley Brothers' single " Busted" (US #113) from the latter album. It was nominated for a
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. On July 29, 2003, they released their debut and only album to date, ''Ice Cream'', which spawned the singles, "Ice Cream" (US #124) and "Love Angel". It debuted at number thirty-three on the ''Billboard'' 200. Following the album's imminent performance on ''Billboard'', JS blamed the label, DreamWorks, for its moderate commercial performance, claiming the label failed to properly promote the album and support the group. At the time, DreamWorks Records was at the verge of merging with its Universal Music counterpart,
Geffen Records Geffen Records (formerly The David Geffen Company from 1980 to 1992 and Geffen Records Inc. from 1993 to 2004) is an American record label, founded in late 1980 by David Geffen. Originally a music subsidiary of the company known as Geffen Pi ...
, which the process was completed in December 2003. After DreamWorks' absorption into Geffen, JS was soon dropped from the label. Following the 46th Annual Grammy Awards, JS quietly disbanded to focus on personal and solo careers. Kim Johnson performed background vocals for artists like
Nelly Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, and actor. He grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, and embarked on his musical career in 1993 as a member of the Midwest hip hop g ...
,
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,
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and others. Kandy Johnson later married her mentor, Ronald Isley, in 2005 after supporting him physically throughout their partnership; she performed background vocals on the Isley Brothers' '' Baby Makin' Music'', their only album released on
Def Jam Recordings Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The l ...
' Def Soul division, and Isley's solo debut, ''Mr. I'', released in late 2010. She was fully supportive of her husband following his conviction of tax evasion charges and three-year prison sentence in 2006. Johnson also gave birth to her and Isley's son, Ronald Isley, Jr., alone due to the situation. Both sisters reside in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
,
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
with Isley and their children. In 2020, the two former JS members, Kim Johnson and Kandy Johnson-Isley, reunited to formed their own duo, Kim & Kandy, after being inspired by the success of fellow sibling
girl group A girl group is a music act featuring two or more women in music, female singers who generally vocal harmony, harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense in the United States to denote the wave of American female p ...
, duo
Chloe x Halle Chloe x Halle (pronounced "Chloe and Halle") is an American alternative R&B duo consisting of sisters Chloe Bailey, Chloe and Halle Bailey. At a young age, the sisters performed in minor acting roles before traveling from their hometown of Mable ...
. Later that year, under the Kim & Kandy duo alias, they released a single called "Free" and later, a holiday music extended play, titled ''Christmas with Kim & Kandy''.


Discography

* ''Ice Cream'' (2003)Joel Whitburn, ''The Billboard Albums''. 6th edition.


References

{{authority control African-American girl groups American R&B girl groups DreamWorks Records artists Sibling musical duos