They were fresh from a hiatus from the chart-topping original "boy band" New Edition. At the suggestion of producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, members Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, and Ronnie Devoe formed Bell Biv Devoe aka BBD. The group released their debut album Poison in 1990. And although four hits emerged from the album, one song in particular mesmerized and built a fan base that started to prefer a harder sound, due to the mainstreaming of Hip Hop.
"Poison" was credited as pioneering the "new jack swing" era, combining hip-hop, funk, soul, and pop music. The album reached No.1 on Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop chart. And the title song reached No. 3 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, where it stayed for four weeks. It was certified 4x platinum by the RIAA on April 28, 1995. The music video boasts 16 million views on YouTube and of course, BBD has performed the song all over the world.
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Song Hits No.1; Becomes A Summer Anthem
"Poison" peaked at No.1 on the Hot Black Singles (now known as Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs) chart for two weeks. The song became one of the most successful singles of 1990 and was a staple on MTV and mainstream radio that summer, spending ten weeks in the Top 10. In addition, "Poison" had overseas success, going platinum in Canada. It also reached silver certification in the U.K. and hit the Dutch Top 40 in The Netherlands.
Poison: An R&B Classic
"Poison" was written by American writer/ producer Dr. Freeze, who initially had doubts about the now classic lyrics, which started as a letter to an ex-girlfriend. However, the guys went wild when they heard it and knew it would be a hit. Bell Biv Devoe's second single "Do Me!" also peaked at No.3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and No.8 in New Zealand while also charting in Australia, Canada, and the U.K. The third single "I Thought It Was Me" spent one week at No.1 on the U.S. R&B chart, and peaked at No.26 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart. "When Will I See You Smile Again," the fourth single and one of only two ballads on the album, reached No.3 on the American R&B charts.
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Bell Biv Devoe Helps Make History On Radio
The sound of the single, "Poison," was quite unlike anything in New Edition's adolescent pop-R&B tracklist. The beat was funky and the lyrics were sexually potent. The song undoubtedly started a trend. Fans were learning the signature dance moves from the "Poison" video and starting to dress like the group in overalls with one strap down. But no one anticipated the critical shift in the evolution of R&B that the single fueled. The arrangements of their songs broke the rules by pairing rapping and singing together, making rap-free radio edits difficult to achieve. Bell Biv Devoe had now helped usher hip-hop into mainstream radio rotation.