UB ReVisit: Keith Sweat Talks Catalog, Obstacles and Gerald LeVert
Time and time again, Keith Sweat has proven that he is one of today’s premier purveyors of sensuous R&B. After six #1 R&B albums, 15 top ten hits and 15 albums with of sales of over 13.5 million.
An endlessly soulful new-jack swing icon and true R&B superstar. Keith Sweat is a Harlem-born singer/songwriter known for his distinctive “whining” vocal style, co-produced 1984/1985 singles by GQ and Roberta Gilliam and issued independent singles of his own (“Lucky Seven” and “My Mind Is Made Up”), but he didn’t release his debut until November 1987.
Keith Sweat dominated the urban landscape with his 1987 triple-platinum debut “Make It Last Forever.” The album sold over three million copies, spawning the hits “I Want Her” (#1 R&B, #5 pop), “Something Just Ain’t Right” (#3 R&B), “Make It Last Forever” (#2 R&B) and “Don’t Stop Your Love” (#9 R&B).
It was followed in 1990 by I’ll Give All My Love to You, another million-seller, which featured the hits “Make You Sweat” (#1 R&B, #14 pop), “Merry Go Round” (#2 R&B), “I’ll Give All My Love to You” (#1 R&B, #7 pop) and “Your Love, Pt. 2″ (#4 R&B).
Keith Sweat‘s third album was Keep It Comin’, an R&B chart-topper at the end of 1991, whose title track was another #1 R&B hit.
Keith has maintained a devoted following with his album releases. Next was 1994‘s Get Up on It and the self-titled 1996 album release. Which featured the #1 R&B and #3 pop hit “Nobody” featuring Athena Cage.
Since then he has released the albums Still in the Game (1998), Didn’t See Me Coming (2000), Rebirth (2002), Just Me (an R&B chart-topper in 2008), Ridin’ Solo (2010), ‘Til the Morning (2011), Dress to Impress (2016) and 2018’s Playing for Keeps.
Two albums recorded with Gerald LeVert and Johnny Gill, billed as LSG (and released in 1997 and 2003), were considerably successful, and he also produced a handful of ’90s acts including Silk, Kut Klose, Ol’ Skool and Dru Hill.
For his work, Keith Sweat was honored with the “Lifetime Achievement Award” at the 2013 Soul Train Awards.
During the 2000s, he hosted a syndicated radio program called The Sweat Hotel and starred in the Centric channel’s reality program Keith Sweat’s Platinum House, in which he facilitated a turbulent Dru Hill reunion.
Sweat also released a relationship book titled “Make It Last Forever: The Do’s and the Don’ts” in 2012. In the book, Keith provides advice on how to keep a relationship fresh and exciting, including tools on everything from how to communicate needs and desires more effectively to tips for mending and reinvigorating partnerships that have gone stale.
Keith Sweat completed his first ever Las Vegas Residency which turned out to be a huge success and featured many of Keith‘s famous friends as surprise guests.
In the last ten years we’ve had the opportunity to speak with Keith Sweat twice. In this ReVisit celebrating our 15 Year Anniversary. We ReVisit our interviews with one of our absolute favorites the legendary Keith Sweat. 2011‘s 90’s R&B Interview and 2017‘s Interview celebrating his 30th Anniversary in the industry.
UB talked to Keith about his amazing catalog, his favorite songs he’s recorded and what goes into putting a Keith Sweat album together.
Keith also shares with us the biggest lesson he’s learned in the industry and the biggest obstacles he faces.
Plus he gets candid about his friendship with the late great Gerald LeVert and tells us about working with Left-Eye and Coko.
Keith also tells us what singles from the debut album, he wished were released.
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UrbanBridgez.com: What made you interested in the Las Vegas engagement?
Keith Sweat: Flamingo approached me and told me their idea for it. We came to a mutual agreement. So just the fact that they approached me and it’s something that I’ve never done before. So I figured I would take a stab at it, that’s what I’m doing at this point.
UrbanBridgez.com: “Dress to Impress” is another flawless Keith Sweat album, what goes into preparing for a new Keith Sweat album and how do you decide on the final tracklisting?
Keith Sweat: You know I do so many songs man, I just have to really listen to them over and over again. So it then becomes about which ones I won’t get tired of. If I get tired of something after listening to it for awhile. It’s not something that’s going to go on the album. If I don’t get tired of something, then I know that it is something that people will listen to over and over again. That’s how I choose what I put on the final album.
UrbanBridgez.com: What’s been the biggest obstacle as an artist for you since the late 80’s on trying to stay relevant?
Keith Sweat: I would say the music business changing the way it is. You don’t even know how many fans you have because you can’t tell by the record sales. These days people that don’t sell a lot of records, doesn’t mean you don’t have a fan base or people don’t like your music. It’s just so many other ways for people to get your music other than them buying it these days. So I think that’s one of obstacles because you can’t really determine how good you’re doing in this industry or the market place anymore.
UrbanBridgez.com: What’s been the biggest lesson you’ve learned in this industry?
Keith Sweat: I think I already knew a lot of things before I got in the industry, because I’ve always been on top of my business, you know what I’m saying. I think the biggest lesson I knew then and still know now is make sure your business is straight! Make sure you’re on top of your business game and don’t trust everybody in this game because everybody is not to be trusted! Just because you want to do business on a fair level, that doesn’t mean everybody else is going to do business on a fair level!
UrbanBridgez.com: We mentioned in our UB review that this album “Til the Morning,” is almost just as good as your debut, but in current terms. Did you set out to capture that original Keith Sweat sound with this one?
Keith Sweat: I don’t think no album can compare to my first album, no album! And I’m not being egotistical but I don’t know of anybody who can touch that first album (laughs). That’s just like the go down in history type of album, I can’t even top that first album. So no matter how many albums I do, it will never be topped! But I can come close and have songs that sound similar, I can try to top it. But realistically will I top it, nah because I was in a certain frame of mind and place. I was just so musically thirsty, that I wanted to put something great out and that was something that I came out with. I wasn’t thinking about, I got to top this the next album or the one before because I didn’t have anything out before that. So I was like what do I have to loose? Let me write what I feel, sing what I feel, do what I feel, let me just do something that just really feels good to me. It’s crazy, because what felt good to me, felt good to everybody else obviously.
UrbanBridgez.com: We’re celebrating 90’s R&B on UB & your single “Nobody” was one of the biggest R&B singles of that time, take us back to when you and Athena recorded that, did you know what a gem it was?
Keith Sweat: I didn’t know that “Nobody” was going to be as big as it was when I recorded it. It just felt good and when I was singing it to people, they were like wew that’s my joint (laughs)! What’s funny about the record is it wasn’t suppose to be a single, I went to Europe and London and performed the song and I had people crying in concert when I performed it. Then the people in London told the people here in the states, listen if y’all don’t release that “Nobody” record then you’re crazy! People going crazy over that crazy, it’s a phenomenal, people are loosing their mind. So I released it after “Twisted” and it just made the album blow up even more, I just think it set a whole other standard. I was feeling then, I gotta find a record to out do that record because I felt like I had found a record to out do the “Make It Last Forever” album, that’s how I felt then. It’s crazy how my career has taken it’s course and how things have played into my career, it’s been a great ride! For real, for real!
UrbanBridgez.com: You also worked with the late Left-Eye in the 90’s on your hit, “How Do You Like It,” can you share anything about Lisa and or recording that song that stands out?
Keith Sweat: Well Lisa “Left-Eye” Lopez when I worked with her on “How Do You Like It,” she was down with TLC and I was like I wanna do something with TLC (laughs). But she was like a real good friend of mine and I loved her to death. She came into the studio and we created a song together that people loved so yeah I miss her dearly, like I miss Gerald LeVert. Those were both good friends of mine, but life goes on and we have to move on beyond that. But they’re both here with me spiritually definitely! And they left alot of good music here behind them.
UrbanBridgez.com: You and one of my absolute favorites, the late great Gerald LeVert who we lost 10 years ago, seemed to have the best relationship. Can you tell us one of the fondest memories you have with him?
Keith Sweat: One of my fondest memories was my first time meeting him at the Apollo. He embraced me like a brother, like he had known me forever. We had that long lasting relationship every since that point from when we first met. He was one of my favorites, I remember when “Casanova” came out I was like I want to meet them. Then I came out like a year and a half later and I was able to meet one of my favorite artist of all time. So yeah we met at the Apollo and we just became close after that point.
UrbanBridgez.com: You Guys had a great musical chemistry.
Keith Sweat: Thank you!
UrbanBridgez.com: How did the duet with Coko come about for “My Valentine,” she’s one of our favorites?
Keith Sweat: Well you know I wanted to work with people who I was fans of and I am a big fan of SWV, they have great music. Same thing with Johnny, you know I worked with him on the LSG projects. So my whole thing is, I love the music people are putting out right now, but I’m stuck in a certain time zone (laughs). So I just got to do certain things that make me feel good musically! And working with Coko, Johnny and people like T-Pain and Charlie Wilson the people doing R&B, well good R&B! Those are the people that I love to work with!
UrbanBridgez.com: “Come Into My Bedroom,” “Never Had A Lover” and “Wonderful Thang,” are just a few of my favorite songs of yours not released.
Keith Sweat: Thank you!
UrbanBridgez.com: What are 3 of your favorite songs you’ve recorded that were never released as singles?
Keith Sweat: Oh man, you said that I never released? Wow, that’s going into a lot of album cuts (both laugh). It’s kind of hard too because I don’t remember what was released.
UrbanBridgez.com: All them gems you got, that makes sense.
Keith Sweat: Yeah I’ve done 12 albums to date, not to mention other peoples stuff. So it’s kind of hard to remember the songs that could have been singles. On the first album I don’t think Right & A Wrong Way was a single.
UrbanBridgez.com: No and it should have been.
Keith Sweat: Right, I wanted a lot of those released from Make It Last Forever but I think they only put out Something Just Ain’t Right and I Want Her. The rest of them joints was album cuts. Like How Deep Is Your Love, was a album cut. But they still ended up being hits for me.
UrbanBridgez.com: “Make It Last Forever” turns 30 this year, when you went into record that album what were your goals as a new artist?
Keith Sweat: To make it do what it’s doing right now, Make it last forever (laughs). Those were my goals, I was just speaking it into existence. They always say speak what you want into existence. So when I said make it last forever, I kind of hit the head right on the nail. Pretty much because I’ve been doing it every since then.
UrbanBridgez.com: Were you surprised by the immediate success of “I Want Her?”
Keith Sweat: Most definitely, because honestly I wanted it to be another single as the lead. I thought it should have been Don’t Stop Your Love. Now that I look back, hey every song on that album was hits. I’m happy it had the success because it opened the door for every other song that was on that album.
UrbanBridgez.com: From your catalog, what are your top 5 favorite songs you’ve recorded?
Keith Sweat: “Make It Last Forever,” “How Deep is Your Love,” “I’ll Give All My Love To You,” “Nobody,” what else and “Don’t Stop Your Love!”
UrbanBridgez.com: What’s one of your best memories from being back on the road on one of the many big tours you were apart of back in the day?
Keith Sweat: Best memories, girls throwing their bras at me on stage (all laugh)! Hey that’s what happens, they throw their bras at me and I be like, yo this isn’t your real size (laughs).
UrbanBridgez.com: But why does that have to be the best memory (laughs)?
Keith Sweat: Well it’s not the best, but it’s just fun and makes me laugh. I just had to say that, but to be honest with you. My best memory of being on stage, is when I got my first big record and I was able to do Madison Square Garden. I think that’s my best, because I use to always go there to see other people perform, watch the Knicks play but I never thought I would be performing at the Garden. That wasn’t anything that I even thought about, so when I did I was like man I’m doing Madison Square Garden! I just never thought, that’s when I knew I had hit the big time baby (laughs)!
UrbanBridgez.com: Take me back to this bra thing, what goes through your head when you see a bra fly across the stage (laughs)?
Keith Sweat: That I’m making good music, when I see a bra hit the stage! I’m like my music must be touching a lot of women (laughs)!
UrbanBridgez.com: What made you want to do the reality show with Dru Hill?
Keith Sweat: Well honestly what made me want to do the reality show with Dru Hill is I was executive producer and I created it. So it was more like entrepreneurship and something else to do, to show people I could wear another hat. So that was something that I knew about, groups that don’t make it because of their different personalities and different things they have going on within themselves. So it made me want to do something to show people that I’m not just one-sided, I don’t have a one track mind I can do more than one thing. And hopefully be successful at it!
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