You may not remember the name Adina Howard (or maybe you do), but you, if you were around in the mid-90s', chances are you had the G-funk-influenced R&B “Freak Like Me” blaring through your speakers.
On Sunday (March 10), the raunchy singer, whose music and image was heavily influenced by Madonna, was profiled on TVOne’s Unsung.
Howard, a Michigan-native, hit the big time in 1995 when her debut album Do You Wanna Ride? went Gold with its lead single “Freak Like Me” going platinum peaking at No. 2 on the pop and R&B charts. She would spend much of ‘95 and ‘96 touring the country in promotion of her album. However, as fast her success came, it tumbled down just as quickly.
While working on her second album, Adina started messing around with Wanya Morris (of Boyz II Men fame) who was going out with Brandy. Brandy and Adina were both signed to the same record label at the time (Adina was on EastWest -- the sister label to Atlantic).
“Two young ladies, a lot of their egos get in the way and were kind of going through it about a guy,” Adina recalls. Eventually, the feud between Adina and the former Moesha star was brought to the attention of the label head Sylvia Rhone. Rhone supposedly advised Adina to shift her focus on her sophomore release rather than her on-going love triangle.
Adina had also gone on a New York radio station to address the feud after the media caught wind of it and have some “choice words” for Sylvia and Brandy. And it was because of this issue, Adina’s second album Welcome to Fantasy Island was shelved indefinitely.
Not too long after the second album’s first single “(Freak) And U Know It” was released to minor success, the sultry diva was released from her record contract.
In a recent interview Urban Bridgez, the singer had nothing but positive words for her former labelmate saying “You know, I don’t have any thoughts on Brandy.”
“But I will say this; I think she is a very talented young woman. I’ve always loved her voice, and the past is exactly that.”, she continued.
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