It’s Not Always Uphill After That Grammy

Posted by casey jones in Features, Music on February 9, 2009 | 5 responses

While watching the Grammys Sunday night I saw two kinds of emotions:

Bored - from the “been there done that” artists who act like winning so much isn’t a big deal
Elated - from the newbies who truly are excited to be recognized as the best in their genre

That got me to thinking about these neophytes. They’re on top of the world - money flowing, posse growing, and an ego high as can be. This life is going to rock, right? Not necessarily. Let’s take a look at Grammy winners from the 90’s who were unable to turn their early success into lasting music careers.

Milli Vanilli

They own the record for fastest tumble from the top. You know their story - quickly rose to fame in late 80’s and early 90’s, were outed for lip syncing, had their Grammy taken away.

In 1998, member Rob Pilatus died of a drug overdose. The remaining half of the duo, Fab Morvan, is a DJ, singer, and consultant to the movie version of Milli Vanilli’s story.

Bobby Brown

Bobby Brown made a name for himself in the 80’s as the outspoken member of the R&B group New Edition. Like any group’s shining star, he ditched them for a solo career, which led to a number of hits, including a Grammy in 1990 for the song “Every Little Step.” His second album had moderate success, led by the lyrical gem “Humpin’ Around.” Then he put on his roller blades and started downhill from Danny Tanner’s house (with wife Whitney Houston). Like a true self-loving dumbass, he demanded 100% creative control for his third album, rejecting help from legends such as R. Kelly, Teddy Riley, Jimmy Jam, and Terry Lewis. The album didn’t even crack the Billboard Top 50.

Since the glory days, Bobby has done a lot to keep his name in the press:

Beat his wife
DUI
Divorced by wife
Had a heart attack but said he didn’t
Had a bunch of kids, one of which was on the MTV show Rock the Cradle
Starred in any reality show that would have him

Hammer

“Too Legit to Quit” and “U Can’t Touch This”, don’t those titles just take you back? The latter won Hammer (then known as MC Hammer) a Grammy, fame, fortune, and icon status. He had his own dolls, lunchboxes, and even a cartoon (Hammerman). What led to his infamous tumble from the top? I think I’ve pinpointed it. In his 1994 single “Pumps and a Bump“, he thought it’d be a good idea to wear a speedo and flaunt his boner, showing the world what Hammer Time really means.

After years of failed albums, Hammer has now focused his efforts to the Internet. He co-founded the YouTube of dance videos, DanceJam, and is very active on Twitter. He will also always be available to sell out or make fun of himself, appearing in commercials for Lays, Hallmark, Purell, Lysol, Nationwide, Citibank, and Cash4Gold.

Sir Mix-a-Lot

He somehow won a Grammy for “Baby Got Back”:

Then went back to irrelevancy.

All-4-One

This R&B quartet dominated the pop charts in the mid-90’s with songs “I Can Love You Like That” and the Grammy winning “I Swear.”

Even after winning a Grammy, people still thought all of their songs were by Boyz II Men. That sucks. They never recovered.

Paula Cole

Paula Cole won the Grammy for Best New Artist in 1997, thanks to the hit singles “Where Have All The Cowboys Gone” and “I Don’t Want To Wait” (yes the Dawson’s Creek theme song). Then she decided to accept her Grammy while flaunting her armpit hair, and she never again had a hit song.

Lauryn Hill

Arguably one of the most talented artist of the decade, Hill started out as the female member of the supergroup The Fugees. In 1998 she launched her solo career with the album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, which won 5 Grammy Awards. After that, she became one of those snobby-hippy-on-a-different-level-than-mainstream-music crybabies and disappeared to make babies with Bob Marley’s son Rohan.

She’s resurfaced some in the past decade, including a brief reunion with The Fugees. Unfortunately that was short-lived, as she was often late and requested that bandmates call her “Ms. Hill” or “Empress”. When asked if he’d work with Hill again, Pras said “you will have a better chance of seeing Osama Bin Laden and George W. Bush in Starbucks having a latte, discussing foreign policies…she’s that far out there.” Sad story.