December 06, 2005 @ 1:18 pm

Bobby Valentino Disturbs Tha Peace

by: Kevin R. Scott

The group of Atlanta, G.A. teens, known for their mature sound, belted out the popular hit “Blackberry Molasses,” and gave many the hopes that the next iteration of New Edition had made its way to airwaves. Unfortunately, after a few years of disconnect, Mista disbanded (which B.V. credits to a combination of the group member’s ages and their not being totally united as a group. As a member of the DTP family, Bobby in many ways plays the same role Ashanti played in Murder Inc. and Olivia plays in G-Unit: he is the R&B singer in a mostly hip hop “family”. It’s a placeholder that gets more than it’s fair share of scrutiny but it is this type of hip hop heavy alliance that may prove to be one of the saviors of R&B. Still, Bobby plays his position well. With a heavy dose of new-artist-success on his hands, Bobby believes that he is better off as a member of a family than as a member of a group, an intuition confirmed by the success of “Slow Down” and “Give Me a Chance” featuring Ludacris, singles from the chart topping self titled album, Bobby Valentino. “Right now I am in control of my own destiny, where as before someone else made all the decisions.” left VIBE: The Ludacris presents… Disturbing Tha Peace compilation features Ludacris, Jamie Foxx, Redman, Field Mob, Shawnna and Ghostface. How did you make your mark on there? Bobby Valentino: I have a song on there called “Table Dance”. It’s about the strip clubs in Atlanta. I put that on a song so people can live how I live. Telling his own story and singing of his own life experiences is key for Bobby. Recently he played himself on UPN’s One on One… And on the subject of acting, if given the opportunity to portray someone else in the story of their life, i.e. Jaime Foxx as Ray, he says he’d probably decline. “It’s only my story I can tell.” And seemingly everyone has a story to tell. Lately the number of male R&B singers to come on to the scene has grown. From Chris Brown to Omarion, a former tour mate, there are so many young brothers pitching hit singles these days that they’ve almost completely extinct the idea of the boy band as a whole, at least for now it seems. Bobby declares that the key to discovering longevity among the competition is reinvention and making sure his sound develops international appeal. In a recent trip abroad, Bobby admits that the overwhelming response from his UK fans created moments that belong in a reality special. Insisting that he remains grounded, Bobby looks forward to the continuation of his own story slated to unfold on his next album tentatively titled Special Occasion. “Every song is gonna be a special occasion,” explains B.V. “Whether it’s about that special someone or even if it’s going to the club, it’s gonna be all about the different special occasions in life.” If his track record as the lone male R&B singer of Disturbing Tha Peace is any indicator, then his next album promises many such occasions to celebrate. Read more vibe.com online exclusives.

 

Article tags: Bobby Valentino, Disturbing Tha Peace, Ludacris 

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