P.M. Dawn: Американдық хип-хоп тобының тарихы

American hip hop group

P. M. Dawn is an American hip hop and R&B act that formed in 1988 by the brothers Attrell Cordes (known by his stage name Prince Be, sometimes credited as Prince Be the Nocturnal) and Jarrett Cordes (known as Eternal or DJ Minutemix) in Jersey City, New Jersey. They earned significant crossover success in the early 1990s with music that merged hip hop, older soul, and more pop oriented urban R&B. After recording their debut single "Ode to a Forgetful Mind" in 1988, P. M. Dawn released their first album Of the Heart, of the Soul and of the Cross: The Utopian Experience in 1991 to critical acclaim. It achieved immediate commercial success because of its single "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss". Their 1993 follow up The Bliss Album ? (Vibrations of Love and Anger and the Ponderance of Life and Existence) was also praised by critics and featured the hit singles "I'd Die Without You" and "Looking Through Patient Eyes". P. M. Dawn continued to receive strong reviews with their subsequent albums Jesus Wept (1995) and Dearest Christian, I'm So Very Sorry for Bringing You Here. Love, Dad (1998), which sold poorly. They first approached Tommy Boy Records, the rap music subsidiary of Warner Brothers, with their demo, but they were told that they were too much like alternative hip hoppers De La Soul, and not hardcore or ghetto, and were turned away. Eventually, Warlock, an independent record label, issued a debut single, "Ode to a Forgetful Mind", in 1989, but it went unnoticed. The record label that released the single in the United Kingdom, Gee Street Records, found greater success. Gee Street mixed and marketed the song so that it earned considerable attention from music reviewers, and P. M. Dawn found themselves courted not just by Gee Street's head, Jon Baker, but also by most of the major UK record labels. Gee Street brought the brothers to London in 1990 to record tracks for an album; however, the label found itself facing bankruptcy during the recording. The entire Gee Street operation, along with P. M. Dawn's recording contract, was sold to the highest bidder, Island Records. Island issued a few more singles in the United Kingdom before releasing their debut album, Of the Heart, of the Soul and of the Cross: The Utopian Experience.

Of the Heart, of the Soul and of the Cross featured the international hit "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss", which sampled the Spandau Ballet song "True", and featured a cameo by Spandau Ballet singer Tony Hadley in the music video of the song. Defending his actions to USA Todays James T. Jones IV, KRS One remarked, "I answered his question. 'A teacher of what?' I'm a teacher of respect." In 1992, P. M. Dawn appeared on the Red Hot Organization's compilation CD Red Hot + Dance, contributing the Richie Rich Mix of "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss". The album, featuring George Michael and Madonna among others, was meant to raise money and awareness in support of the AIDS epidemic. During February 12 of that same year, P. M. Dawn was nominated for the BRIT Awards and won Best International Newcomer.

Before releasing their follow up album, The Bliss Album ? (Vibrations of Love and Anger and the Ponderance of Life and Existence), P. M. Dawn contributed the single "I'd Die Without You" to the 1992 Eddie Murphy comedy Boomerang and its soundtrack. This #3 pop hit was also included on The Bliss Album ?, as was the Billboard #6 pop hit "Looking Through Patient Eyes". Though Island Records won the lawsuit, the song was removed from subsequent releases of The Bliss Album and is no longer available for purchase in their publishing catalog.

P. M. Dawn contributed a cover of "You Got Me Floatin'" to the 1993 compilation album Stone Free: A Tribute to Jimi Hendrix. Artists ranging from Pat Metheny to Eric Clapton to Ice T's Body Count were included. They also remixed Beautiful People's "If 60's Was 90's". Their 1995 album Jesus Wept was unable to attain the success of their first two albums. The album's highest charting single was "Downtown Venus", which contained a sample of Deep Purple's "Hush", and reached #48 on the Billboard chart. The charges were dropped due to lack of evidence. In 1996, P. M. Dawn contributed "Non Fiction Burning" to the AIDS benefit album Red Hot + Rio produced by the Red Hot Organization. Amid trademark and artistic criticism, Doc. G continues to perform as P. M. Dawn. On June 17, 2016, Prince Be died from kidney disease, caused by complications of diabetes, at the age of 46 at a hospital in Neptune City, New Jersey. On April 6, 2018, Doc. G hired music producer K R. O. K. as the new member of P. M. Dawn.

On April 3, 2022, one of the Unsung documentary episode, highlighting the story of P. M. Dawn, premiered on TV One.