Burruss entered professional music in 1992 as a singer in the successful vocal group Xscape. She sang lead on their hits “Just Kickin’ It” and “My Little Secret”, displaying a versatile contralto voice flexible enough to sing above soprano range.
Burruss also wrote some of Xscape’s early hits, including “Feels So Good” and “Can’t Hang”. When the group disbanded in 1999, Burruss continued as a songwriter and soloist. She has been credited with the discovery of Columbia recording artists Jagged Edge.
In 2000, Burruss’s song “No Scrubs”, performed by TLC, won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Song. She also made history in 2000 as the first woman ever to win the ASCAP “Rhythm & Soul Songwriter of the Year” award. She has continued to write for a number of pop and R&B artists, including significant contributions to Destiny’s Child’s “The Writing’s on the Wall” (including “Bills, Bills, Bills” and “Bug-a-Boo”) which sold 13 million copies.[citation needed] Burruss has written for *NSYNC, Mariah Carey, Boyz II Men, Faith Evans, Whitney Houston, Pink, and Alicia Keys. Producer Kevin “Shekspere” Briggs has been an important long-term collaborator.
In 2000 Burruss signed with Sony Records as Kandi, releasing her first soloist single, “Don’t Think I’m Not,” in the summer of that year. The song peaked at #32 in R&B, and performed even better at pop radio (peaking at #12 on the Top 40 Mainstream chart) and the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at #24. Her debut album, Hey Kandi… peaked at #72 on the Billboard Hot 200 and sold reasonably well in its first few months on the chart. Her second single, “Cheatin’ on Me”, was an underground hit and featured a remix by rapper 50 cent. In 2006 she returned to a recording career with her as-yet untitled second album which will be released through choreographer Devyne Stephens’ record label Upfront Records and BME Recordings.
More Camden Listings MORE
African political philosophy
This course is an introduction to African political philosophy.Over nine sessions we will engage with the discourse and…
Pete Rock
One of the most legendary figures in hip-hop history, Pete Rock returns to the capital for his biggest UK show on…
Nasty C
South African multi-platinum music sensation, Nasty C, has generated over 1 billion streams globally. Hailing from Durban,…
BLK Odyssy
BLK ODYSSY’s music is pushed by liberation, diving into his personal history as a Black musician and the…
Art in ancient and medieval Sahara
In this course we shall explore the Ancient and Medieval history of the Sahara and the Sahel, its…
The life and times of Ignatius Sancho: slave, composer, man of letters, grocer and first Black British voter
Explore the life of the 18th century black Londoner, Ignatius Sancho. Orphaned on a slave ship bound for…
Ethiopia: Guerrilla Insurgency and Italian Colonization, 1936-1941
This course is a historical reconstruction of Ethiopia’s guerrilla insurgency, its actors and their motivation, peculiarity, and/or commonness…
Miles Davis: from bebop to hip-hop
An in-depth exploration of the music, life and times of this frequently innovative, often controversial but always influential…