ArtistInfo

Valerie Victoria

voc,
Singer of R&B/Soul, Electronic and Hip-Hop/Rap
A.k.a. Valerie Victoria McIntosh

Is a singer/songwriter, producer, and actress. Her first band Madame X debuted on Atlantic Records signed by Sylvia Rhône in 1986. Madame X’s first single placed #4 on the Billboard R&B Charts and #10 Billboard on the Billboard Dance Charts in 1987. Further releases from the album made the Billboard charts as well including, I’m Weak and I Want Your Body. In 1994 Valerie joined The Platters after being hand picked by the founding member Herb Reed. She toured with the group extensively internationally. In 2012 Victoria appears on The Platters new release titled, Back To Basics recorded in Boston in front of a studio audience. Previously, in 2000, Valerie Victoria appeared on Rhino Records release Doowop 50 as a member of the legendary multi-platinum and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group, The Platter. Doowop 50 is part of a series of live concerts produced by TJ Lubinsky filmed for PBS, that became multi-platinum awarded releases, later distributed on Time Life Records in VHS, DVD and CD. Valerie Victoria continues to write and perform music. Outside of music Victoria is a real estate investor and has various enterprises with musician and producer David Wood in Cape Cod MA, where they opened a popular Cigar Club in called Puff The Magic®. Madame X Bio: Biography Madame X Girl Group celebrates Girl Groups, Innovative Artists and the Group Madame X. Madame X released “Just That Type of Girl“, their first single from the self titled album Madame X. “Just That Type of Girl”, climbed the dance and R&B Charts to #4 Billboard while winning numerous musical awards. The group’s producer, Bernadette Cooper from the Solar/MCA group Klymaxx was recruiting for a three girl group. The group was to be much like Vanity 6 with some the elements of the Klymaxx sound heard on such hits as “The Men All Pause” and “I Miss You”. The first Madame X members, Iris Parker, Valerie Victoria were Los Angeles and New York underground club scene icons. They brought with them the influence of Hip-Hop, Rap, their bold personas and mysticism to the group. Iris Parker, Valerie Victoria and Alisa Randolph were all especially drawn to fashion and grew up musical families contributing to their chic image and unique sound. Parker, the niece of legendary jazz saxophonist, Jackie McLean and Charlie Parker's protégé, cut her musical teeth on Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald. She was also heavily influenced by Cory Day, Teena Marie and Sade. Iris moved to Los Angeles from New York City leaving her cushy 7th Avenue fashion career behind to pursue music. Parker was armed and ready with a demo she had recorded with producer, Vassal Benford when she met Cooper in Los Angeles. Valerie was discovered at an audition held at Solar Records. She was brought in by a beautiful model and fashion executive, Ramona Burr that was the real second member of Madame X. Ramona had moved to LA from Toronto Canada after winning a contest for an ad campaign hosted by Anheuser-Busch. Her time in Madame X was brief. Valerie Victoria had studied music with her cousin Robert McFerrin a soloist for the Metropolitan Opera and had studied dance from an early age. She had been appearing in sitcoms and small movie roles when she began to focus on her musical ambitions. For Madame X, Victoria fused her classical music and theater roots with her love for alternative contemporary artist like, Grace Jones, Missing Persons and Blondie. Alisa had been singing R&B covers and jazz music in Bourbon Street clubs in New Orleans. In addition she was the winner of the famous WILD New Orleans talent contest. Randolph described herself as a balladeer and was captivated by artists like, Stephanie Mills, Peabo Bryson and Earth Wind and Fire. She was selected after a series of auditions by Iris, Valerie and Bernadette for her powerful voice and beauty to become the third member. The first round of auditions had landed singer, N'dea Davenport in the spot but N'dea opted out with a conflicting commitment to another group, The Brand New Heavies. A second round of auditions with all new singers put Alisa on Bernadette's and Madame X's short list. . Another essential element in the group’s sound and style is their shared love for the music of artist like Prince, P Funk, Sly and The Family Stone, Grace Jones, Missing Persons, Madonna and artists that had strong images with large scale production shows. The Madame X members along with their producer shaped the group's design and direction. Much time and discussion was made about the importance creating a legacy of intelligence, revisiting old glamour, nontraditional beauty and innovation. A name was chosen late in the game. The group had gone through a few names, The Secretaries, The Sexataries, and Confidential. Reportedly, one night while visiting Bernadette Cooper's home to brainstorm for the group's name, Iris Parker saw a novel titled, “Madame X” on a shelf. All at once everyone agreed “Madame X” would be the name. Several elements made the difference in Madame X's arrival on the scene. Bernadette had a wealth of knowledge having founded, the group Klymaxx. Dick Griffey founder of Solar Records had pushed her in to a production position as her mentor. She had learned the recipe for success after years of producing not just Klymaxx but several other hit makers, not to mention, her flare for risqué fashion. She had been a fashion force in her band, Klymaxx. Iris Parker, knowing every aspect of developing and marketing fashion images and press was an invaluable resource for the group. Her jazz styled vocals gave Madame X an ethereal hipness. Making people larger than life was not new to Valerie who worked for a talent manager a number of years had learned essential elements of branding in entertainment. Lastly, one of the most important part of the group's soul was Alisa. Randolph was a disciplined artists that challenged the members and the producer musically. She was pure music. Madame X's initial meetings with the Atlantic records A&R officials were considered ambitious. In the 80's record company's R&B departments were not accustomed to putting out artists comparable to Madonna, especially not right out of the box. There were many perceived limitations some real and some imagined for artists signed through R&B divisions. Sylvia Rhone, Atlantic Records A&R, expressed wanting Madame X to be more inline with persona of The Supremes yet she recognized the potential of the project. Naturally, there were many offers of co-production from friends such as, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis as well as LA Reid and Babyface however Bernadette Cooper wanted to retain control over the musical direction of the group. She feared the other producers would not understand the grand course plotted out for Madame X. Eventually, LA Reid, Babyface and Pebbles would organize their own three member girl group patterned after Madame X when denied an invitation to collaborate. Subsequently, their production chose similar images and a similar sound for their girl group, now known as TLC, originally managed by Pebbles. Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis were currently producing Janet Jackson and numerous name artists. Prior to signing to Atlantic, Madame X immediately received recording contract offers with Solar Records and MCA Records. Dick Griffey founder of Solar Records wanted Madame X to sign to his label while MCA record executive, Louil Silas urged Madame X to sign directly with MCA Records. After a meeting with recording scout, Merlin Bobb, it was Silva Rhone, a newly appointed Atlantic Records A&R executive that finally signed Madame X to a seven album, five year recording agreement through Slap Me One Productions. The deal put together partly by Ron Sweeney the then manager of Bernadette Cooper and Klymaxx. Madame X was to be the number one priority group for the newly resurrected R&B division on Atlantic Records along with label-mates Levert and The System. Before recording a second album, the group appointed a manager. The group's manager, Cassandra Mills pushed for a change in the direction of the group which was the cause of much inner turmoil. The new vision was also to be reminiscent of The Supremes visually and a more of an urban appeal musically. Cassandra wanted the group to have a stronger R&B sound to create a base audience for Madame X as a foundation. Having managed Stephanie Mills for a number of years, she had an established strategy for artist development. Cultivating a die hard R&B fan base enabled the Mills artists to flourish in the concert circuit without current radio hits further ensuring their longevity. Mills campaigned Sylvia Rhone to bring Alisa, the strongest R&B singer forward, to sing more leads. Cassandra also urged the group to select more urban radio friendly tracks. Madame X members Iris and Valerie along with producer Bernadette Cooper desired to have a group with a universal sound and fan base which included music from all divisions exemplified in the songs "Cherries In The Snow" and "Madame X". Black artist were not always able to crossover, especially then; therefore, Atlantic Records was taking a risk in allowing or continuing to feature the group as Pop Artists. Cassandra would later be instrumental in the vibrant careers of many more artist such as Jade, that fit the mold she designed for Madame X. She later headed Giant Records Talent Division to develop many musical acts. Parallel artists to Madame X like TLC, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj and Janet Jackson are etched in history and are now considered mainstream. Sylvia Rhone recently tweeted, "Madame X changed the game for girl groups". After leaving Atlantic Records Rhone, was appointed president of Motown Records and executive vice president of Universal Records. Madame X recording days were short lived only recording two albums. Selections featuring Alisa Randolph from the second Madame X album were released as a solo album on Atlantic Records for Randolph, as the group broke up as a result of internal struggles. One by one the members dropped out after failure to maintain control over the group's original vision. Before disbanding, Madame X completed a national promotional tour making numerous radio and television appearances including Show Time at The Apollo and Soul Train. Although, filled with beautiful songs and epic vocal performances from Alisa the Alisa Randolph album mildly charted. Atlantic Records' marketing department were rumored to have not given the Alisa Randolph project the efforts that it deserved. Iris Parker soon found a recording option at Elecktra Records followed by an option to record for Chrysalis Records. Neither recording situations produced chart hits. Member, Valerie Victoria returned to acting after briefly being courted to sign to Epic Records and later by MJJ Productions by Michael Jackson however neither company committed to the project. To fill the Madame X slot on the Atlantic Records label, Sylvia Rhone signed En Vogue who went on to have great success recordings on Atlantic Records. The music and image of Madame X was freshly different. The Madame X video debut was ground-breaking, inspiring the artistic styling of R&B music videos, imagery and sound of the day. Following up “Just That Type of Girl”, Madame X released the singles, “I Wonder” and “I Want Your Body” as well as the title tracks for motion pictures such as “Action Jackson” starring Sharon Stone and Vanity. Madame X’s songs continue to be played and sampled, most famously on “Keep It In The Closet” by Michael Jackson. The Platters Bio: Artist Biography by Cub Koda With classics such as "The Great Pretender," "Only You," and their rendition of "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes," the Platters were one of the preeminent doo-wop groups of the rock & roll era. Under the guidance of manager and producer Buck Ram, the Platters churned out hit after hit during the 1950s, bridging the gap between more traditional vocal-group stylings and the popular R&B grooves of the early '50s. Their sound was unique, marked by lead singer Tony Williams' powerful vocals and the feminine touch of singer Zola Taylor. Although competing versions of the Platters confused the public for many years, original founding member Herb Reed eventually solidified his rights to the name and the group continued recording and performing in the 2010s. The Platters started out in 1952 as a Los Angeles-based doo wop group who made a few records for Federal, a subsidiary of Cincinnati's King Records. What changed their fortunes boils down to one very important name: their mentor, manager, producer, songwriter, and vocal coach, Buck Ram. Ram took a standard doo wop vocal group and turned them into stars -- one of the most enduring and lucrative groups of all time. By 1954, Ram was already running a talent agency in Los Angeles, writing and arranging for publisher Mills Music, managing the Three Suns -- a pop group with some success -- and working with his protégés, the Penguins. The Platters seemed like a good addition to his stable. After getting them out of their Federal contract, Ram placed them with the burgeoning national independent label Mercury Records (at the same time he brought over the Penguins following their success with "Earth Angel"), automatically getting them into pop markets through the label's distribution contacts alone. Then Ram started honing in on the group's strengths and weaknesses. The first thing he did was put the lead-vocal status squarely on the shoulders of lead tenor Tony Williams. Williams' emoting power was turned up full blast with the group (now augmented with Zola Taylor from Shirley Gunter & the Queens) working as very well-structured vocal support framing his every note. With Ram's pop songwriting classics as their musical palette, the group quickly became a pop and R&B success, eventually earning the distinction of being the first black act of the era to top the pop charts. Considered the most romantic of all the doo wop groups (that is, the ultimate in "make out music"), hit after hit came tumbling forth in a seemingly effortless manner: "Only You," "The Great Pretender," "My Prayer," "Twilight Time," "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes," "Harbor Lights," all of them establishing the Platters as the classiest of all. In 1961, Williams struck out on his own. By the decade's end, the group had disbanded, with various members starting up their own version of the Platters. Decades of competing versions ensued, until original member Herb Reed finally won a series of court cases. Reed, who died in 2012, restarted the group and patterned them on the original, with members including Wayne Miller, Valerie Victoria, Frank Pizarro, and Cheo Bourne, plus music director Michael Larson. In 2015, the only group authorized to perform as the Platters released Back to Basics Live! on the You Dig It label. The album included a pair of Grammy Hall of Fame songs "Only You (And You Alone)" and "The Great Pretender." Also included was a bonus track, the new Platters' recording of Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA" (lead singer Pizarro was a first responder at the World Trade Center in New York City on September 11, 2001).

Genres

• R&B/Soul
• Electronic
• Hip-Hop/Rap

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