Shannon

Biography

Singer Shannon hit gold with the trendsetting, pulsating dance classic "Let the Music Play" and other similar-sounding hits in the mid-'80s. Born Brenda Shannon Greene in Washington, D.C. in 1958, she grew up in Brooklyn and while at college, joined the New York Jazz Ensemble as a singer.

While a member, she met drummer Lenny White and sang with Brownstone, which led to some recording. One single, 1983's "Let the Music Play," was issued on the New York-based dance label Emergency Records as a 12" single with Shannon listed as the artist. Produced by Mark Liggett and Chris Barbosa, the track's upfront heavy, staccato beats and synth bass marked it as an electro single, The record became a monster club hit, pumped its way up to the pop Top Ten, and sold a million copies. Her debut album titled Let the Music Play was issued in February 1984 and went gold, peaking at number 32 pop in March 1984. Shannon followed that up with the Top Ten R&B hit "Give Me Tonight" and "My Heart's Divided."

Do You Wanna Get Away was the title of her second Mirage album, issued in May 1985. The title track single hit number 13 R&B in spring 1985. Her third album Love Goes All the Way was released on Atlantic in 1986, with the singles "Dancin," "Criminal," and "Prove Me Right." Shannon's career was remarkably short-lived, however, due in part to the closing of Emergency Records, some litigation surrounding "Let the Music Play," the decline of dance-oriented radio stations, the loss of club airtime on mainstream radio stations, and the inevitable "Let the Music Play" sound-alike clones that surfaced. Nevertheless, Shannon appeared on a 1999 segment of VH1's Where Are They Now, vowing to return to the top of the charts; the following spring she released the album The Best Is Yet to Come.