Truly a man of all musical seasons, Chicago-based producer / remixer / songwriter / DJ, and now four-time Grammy Nominee Steve "Silk" Hurley has more than proven in his 15-year plus career that he is a musical force to be reckoned with. His Grammy Nomination in January of last year for his remix of Brandy's "What About Us" is just another testament to his longevity as a producer, and yet another confirmation that "The Remix King" is here to stay. Having spanned the sometimes-limiting borders of contemporary Black music, moving freely from his Club/House music roots to his R&B/Funk roots, his musical scope as a producer has thus far remained unrivaled.
Spending his childhood as a devout radio listener & worshipping musical giants from The Jackson 5 to Parliament, he developed not only a love of music, but also a keen sense of melody. Initially developing a strong reputation early on in his career as one of Chicago's hottest DJ's, "Silk" was known for his signature mixing skills and diverse mixing style. It was through exercising this creative expression that he eventually released his first single entitled "Music Is The Key", which soared to the ..9 position on the Billboard Dance Chart, establishing him as one of the pioneers of "House Music" and validating him as a producer. He quickly intensified his credentials as a producer and artist when his group, J.M. Silk, premiered on the RCA Records label and astonished the industry with a string of ..1 dance hits, including "Jack Your Body", which was ..1 on the U.K. National Chart for 2 weeks, a feat which at that time, was accomplished only by the Beetles.
Since then, Hurley's productions and remixes have catapulted him to the forefront as one of the hottest talents today. In fact, his ability to musically embellish a song and take it to new dimensions has earned him the well-deserved title as one of the nation's top remixers. This is evident in some of his most prized works, including: Michael Jackson's "Jam" and "Remember The Time", Prince's "Gett Off", Janet Jackson's "Runaway", Mary J. Blige's "Let No Man Put Asunder", Crystal Waters' "Makin' Happy", Mint Condition's "You Send Me Swingin'", Sounds Of Blackness' "I Believe", Madonna's "Take A Bow", and Boyz II Men's "I'll Make Love You", to name just a few. Steve's recent remixes include Jennifer Lopez's "Aint It Funny", Bob Marley's "Soul Shakedown Party", Yolanda Adams' "Open My Heart", & Melanie B's (Scary Spice formerly of The Spice Girls) "Tell Me", and more recently, the Grammy-Nominated remix of Brandy's "What About Us", Kelly Rowland's "Can't Nobody". Silk and his hot new production team, The People's Choice, most recently finished urban and dance remixes on R. Kelly's ..1 hit "Thoia Thoing", that were released in October of 2003.
"Silk's" passion for music does not end, however, with remixes. His freestyle creativity expands to that of a notably outstanding songwriter / producer, penning most of his chart-topping hits. Hurley has had a pivotal hand in the success of many artists with his writing & production on such projects as CeCe Peniston's "We Got a Love Thang" (Top 20 Pop, Top 10 U.K. National Chart) "Keep On Walkin' & "I'm Not Over You"(Gold & Top 10 R&B), Kym Sims' "Too Blind To See It" (Gold, Top 10 U.K. National Chart), Ann Nesby's "Can I Get A Witness" (Top 10 U.K. National Chart) & "Hold On", Chantay Savage's "Betch'all Never Find" (Top 10 R&B), Tene Williams' "Give Him A Love He Can Feel" (Top 10 R&B), and Tanya Blount's "I'm Gonna Make you Mine" (Top 40 R&B Chart). His highly acclaimed production of Chantay Savage's "I Will Survive" (Gold, ..2 Billboard R&B Chart) was one of the biggest records of 1996. Steve recently finished production & writing for Ann Nesby's second album. His production of "Lovin' Is Really My Game", her first single, recently reached the ..1 position on Billboard’s Dance Chart. Also on the horizon is his co-writing and production effort on Rahsaan Patterson's forthcoming Album. His most recent project is “Oprah’s Pop Star Challenge” album, on Epic/Sony Records. Silk produced the entire album, which was released and launched on the Oprah Show on March 30th, 2004. He also recently inked a deal with Harpo to provide music for the Oprah Show as well.
Silk added another dimension to his creative repertoire by producing 2 songs for the movie and soundtrack, "To Wong Foo", on which he was afforded the honor of working with one of his idols, Chaka Khan. The song, "Free Yourself", which became the feature track from the movie, was the result of this truly awe-inspiring collaboration. Recently, Steve co-wrote & produced a song for Donnell Jones entitled "I'll Go" for the "Love & Basketball" movie soundtrack.
Today, Steve "Silk" Hurley proudly sits at the helm of his own Production & Remix Company, SilkMix.Com, which handles the hot new producer/remixers "The People's Choice", as well as Steve "Silk" Hurley himself. He also heads his record label, Silk Entertainment. The label has attained international success with several of its releases. The debut release entitled "The Word is Love" by Voices of Life featuring Sharon Pass, was an international hit, (..15 Italian National Chart, ..25 U.K. National Chart) selling over 2 million copies. Upcoming releases include The Voices of Life Compilation (featuring Ann Nesby, MeLi'sa Morgan, Chance, CeCe Peniston, Gordon Chambers, Sharon Pass, Bob Marley, and gospel sensation Vernessa Mitchell, among others) and several of Silk's DJ Mix CD's. Silk was also recently elected as President of the Chicago Chapter of NARAS (The Grammy Organization).
On the business end, Silk Entertainment, Inc. has recently acquired the catalog from the following record labels: ID Records, Echotron Records, and DJ World Records. These labels were the source of some of Steve "Silk" Hurley's biggest hits from 1987 to 1993. Some of the artists in the catalog include Kym Sims, Chantay Savage, Donell Rush, Body To Body, Jamie Principle, and the work of one of the hottest Production/Remix teams ever, ID Productions. From 1988 to 1993, this team produced and wrote several hits, and remixed over a hundred..1 Dance Records for everyone imaginable, including Ten City, CeCe Peniston, Simply Red, Michael Jackson & Prince. This team consisted of Steve "Silk" Hurley, Maurice Joshua, E-Smoove, and M. Doc, to name a few. Look for re-releases and remixed versions of the ID, Echotron & DJ World Classics in the near future.
Staying loyal to his passion as a DJ, "Silk " occasionally takes time out of his hectic production schedule to showcase his talents on the turntables. In 1998, Silk appeared at BET's Soundstage, on BET's "Planet Groove" TV Show as a guest DJ, and at several other venues worldwide. His "OLD SKOOL / NEW SKOOL REMIX" can still be heard every Tuesday and Thursday on the Nationally Syndicated "Tom Joyner Morning Show", which is broadcast on 128 stations in the US. Joyner & "Silk" have also released Volume 1 & 2 of "The Old Skool Mix CD" on Rhino Records. Volume 1 has sold over 125,000 copies in the US to date, and Volume 2 has enjoyed much success as well.
Steve "Silk" Hurley has managed to parlay his love of music into a career as a producer and remixer, and in the process, has garnered more than a few impressive accolades. He received ASCAP Writer's Awards for "Keep on Walkin", "Too Blind To See It" and "I'm Not Over You". Further, Billboard Magazine recognized him as one of the top producers for 1994, which was an honor he shared with L.A. & Babyface, R. Kelly, Teddy Riley and Jam & Lewis. "Silk" has also received the British Charity Awards-U.K. "Remixer of The Year" Award and the Winter Music Conference "Remixer of The Year" Award among others. Without a doubt, however, the most prestigious honor ever bestowed upon him has been his 4 Grammy Nominations in the last 5 years (Remixer Of The Year Category in 1999 & 2000 / Best Remixed Recording in 2002 & 2003). Hurley notes, "To be honored by my peers with four Nominations is the pinnacle of the dream".
STEVE you threw the Grand Father of all House Parties last night!! If words could decribe.. Then I would put them to use...But unfortunately there are none... I love Farley & the hot mix five..BUT they will have to come w/ everything they've got & more to even touch what you did last night... Peace & Blessings!!
