(continued)
In the spring of 2001, 112 released their third album, simply titled, 'PART III'.
"This [album] is like a rebirth," Slim comments. "This [album] signifies the growth from boys to men," Mike adds.
In this album, the group did most of the work, they wrote most of the songs's lyrics and co-produced it. 112 themselves wrote 3/4 of the album and Daron who has also been producing for many other artists, such as Pink, Usher and the Notorious B.I.G produced half of 'PART III', including their chart-topping single, "It's Over Now", which samples the bassline of Grandmaster Flash's old school "White Lines" and Mobb Deep's "Quiet Storm". In the remix of "It's Over Now", Prodigy of Mobb Deep is also featured, contributing a verse to the hit track. Here's some trivia: "It's Over Now" is based on a real life experience by one of the members of the group, how after coming back from tour, he finds "numbers in her pocket".
On this album, you wont only hear Slim's voice; instead, you get a share of all the members' individual vocal talents.
In addition, other hitmakers such as R. Kelly, Puff Daddy and Mario Winans, have also contributed to the production of their third release and guests featured on the album include Twista. This album expresses a variety of emotions, which the members might have gone through from their own experiences.
The second single is an "Anywhere"-inspired song, "Peaches and Cream", which Mike says is about "pleasing your woman, but you have to use your imagination. It's kind of like D'Angelo's 'Brown Sugar,' where he was talking about one thing but made you think he was talking about something else."
Other tracks include: "Dance With Me", a club joint; "Missing You", which shows off their soulful vocal abilities and "Player", which redefines the meaning of what a "player" is to them. 112 has surely matured and grown and they've survived the game so far and after three albums, there are no signs of their downfall.
In the Spring of 2002, after their contract with Bad Boy was over, 112 decided to leave Bad Boy Entertainment and make a transition to Def Jam/Def Soul for a better outlook.
The following months ended in court disputes as Sean "P. Diddy" Combs struggled to keep Bad Boy's first R&B act on his label.
"It just was time for 112 to go to the next level," Mike said of why they wanted to leave. "We really couldn't do that being on Bad Boy."
The quartet argued that when they had music out at the same time as P. Diddy, the label's attention would rarely be on 112 and that P. Diddy mainly put the spotlight only for himself. They claimed to have done everything Bad Boy asked of them — including learning choreography, undergoing media training, losing weight, writing and producing music — but were still treated like "stepchildren" in the Bad Boy family. 112 felt that Bad Boy did not fully promote them to their worth and thought that moving on to another label would give them a better future in their music career. By July 2002, the decision was settled and made final: 112 is officially part of the Def Jam/Def Soul roster.
As fans await the arrival of their highly-anticipated fourth album, "Hot & Wet", Daron states "This album reunites a lot of the hit elements. Plus now without the stress of the past, we're a lot looser. We're not afraid to say and do what we want to do. That's why a lot of stuff on the album is real musical. We have the support, the freedom, the confidence and the unity to go all the way."
Not only are these men vocallistically talented, but they are also intrumentally gifted. Daron plays keyboard and programs music; Q is the drummer and and also plays the keyboard; Slim strings it with the violin, cello, bass and viola and Mike plays the keyboard.
They also write some of their songs. These guys are extremely talented, don't you think??
Their bonding and all that time they have been spending time together has also made them best friends:
"It's also strengthened our friendships," says Q. "I grew up with these guys and now we've been through almost everything together. We're more than a group. We're a family."
"The things we all have in common," Mike remarks, "is that we're all best friends. We all know each other's families and we all love music."
"No matter how things add up, 1 and 1 and 2 equals four," adds Q.
-bio written by webmistress.
(sources found in credits)