Kenneth Brian "Babyface" Edmonds (born April 10, 1958), is an American R&B and pop singer, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist, record producer, film producer, and entrepreneur.

Early career and personal life

Edmonds, who is the fifth of six brothers (Kevon Edmonds also had a solo album), attended North Central High School in Indianapolis, Indiana and as a shy youth, wrote songs to express his emotions. Edmonds later played with funk megastar Bootsy Collins, who tagged him "Babyface" while he was still a teen, and the nickname has stuck with him throughout his life. He also played in the groups Manchild (which had a 1977 hit "Especially for You" with band member Daryl Simmons), then in the light-funk and R&B group The Deele (which also included Antonio "L.A." Reid, with whom he would later form a successful writing and producing partnership). One of his first major credits as a songwriter for outside artists came when he co-wrote the tune "Slow Jam" for the R&B band Midnight Star in 1983. The tune appeared on Midnight Star's double-platinum No Parking on the Dance Floor album, and while it never hit the charts, the song has since become a quiet storm staple and a semi-classic of the genre. Meanwhile, Babyface remained in The Deele until 1988, when both he and Reid left the group.

Commercial success

In the late 1980s, he was responsible for contributing to the creation of new jack swing and was responsible for writing music for the likes of Bobby Brown, Karyn White, Pebbles and Paula Abdul. In 1989, Edmonds co-founded LaFace Records with Reid. Two of the label's first artists Toni Braxton and TLC achieved massive success. Braxton's eponymous 1993 debut album went on to sell over eight-million copies, and earned her a Grammy Award as the year's best new artist in 1994. Meanwhile, TLC's two albums on LaFace — 1992's Ooooooohhh.... On the TLC Tip and 1994's CrazySexyCool — combined to sell more than 15 million copies in the U.S., and CrazySexyCool won the 1996 Grammy Award for Best R&B album.

Babyface was also instrumental in forming the popular late-90s R&B group, Az Yet.

Edmonds is also behind some of the biggest successes in contemporary music. “I'm Your Baby Tonight”, produced for Whitney Houston, is his first #1 hit in the US. He also wrote and produced Boyz II Men's "End of the Road" and "I'll Make Love To You", both of which established records for the longest stay at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. He co-wrote, co-produced, and provided backing vocals on Madonna's 1995 7 week-#1 hit "Take a Bow", he shared billing with Eric Clapton on the chart-topping Grammy winner "Change the World" from the Phenomenon soundtrack. He also wrote and produced the #1 hit "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" for Whitney Houston as well as the rest of the critically acclaimed 10 million selling Waiting to Exhale soundtrack in 1995, which spawned additional hits for Houston, Brandy and Mary J.Blige. Additionally, he has produced and written music for many artists including Diana Ross,Sheena Easton,Toni Braxton, Michael Jackson, Paula Abdul, Pebbles,Tevin Campbell ,Bobby Brown, Whitney Houston, Brandy, Mary J.Blige, Tamia, Janet Jackson, Shola Ama, 3T, Sisqo, Dru Hill, Fall Out Boy,Céline Dion, Katharine McPhee, Mariah Carey, Vanessa L. Williams, En Vogue, Eric Clapton, Madonna, Aretha Franklin, Japanese singer Ken Hirai, Pink, Marc Nelson and Phil Collins among others, and he has received an amazing three consecutive Grammy Awards for Producer of the Year, in 1995–1997.