You remember The Boys, right? Their songs “Dial My Heart” and “Crazy” flooded the airwaves in the late 80s and early 90s. Signed to Motown Records, the quartet featured brothers Khiry, Hakeem, Tajh, and Bilal Abdulsamad, and they were marketed as the generation’s new version of the Jacksons. They were cute, talented, and charismatic, but after delivering three albums and a string of hits, they disappeared from mainstream music.
So what happened to The Boys? Were they dropped from the label or did they leave the American music scene on a quest for a deeper purpose in life? Let’s find out.
The early days
This story starts back in 1985. The brothers, who were born in Compton and raised in Carson, California, were looking to raise money to buy their dad a Father’s Day present. Khiry told World Radio History they went to Venice Beach and sang on the boardwalk. They made $69, and their dad was so proud of how they earned the money that he took them out to dinner and paid for it himself.
According to an interview with Ebony magazine, they enjoyed performing so much, they began singing on the boardwalk every Saturday and Sunday. As their popularity increased, so did their earnings, and after two years of being street performers, the brothers appeared on a junior version of the show Star Search.
By this point, they decided they wanted to be professional singers, so they took voice lessons and recorded a demo. They also formed an entertainment company called The Boys Party-Time Affair. They signed with a Beverly Hills agency that booked them to perform at birthday parties for rich celebrity kids.
Believing in their sons’ dreams of becoming superstars, their parents, Jabari and Angela knew they needed to do whatever they could to protect their children. So they enrolled in a four-week Entertaining Management course at a Los Angeles trade school so they could manage their sons’ careers. The course taught them the ends and outs of the industry, and the information they obtained was more valuable than they realized.
Signing to Motown
Their parents began shopping around their demo, and after three weeks, The Boys had three offers on the table. In the end, they signed with Jheryl Busby of MCA. When Jheryl signed with Motown, he took The Boys with him.
Motown was anxious to cash in on the boy band formula that made groups like the Jackson 5 and New Edition so successful. So they assembled an award-winning team of writers and producers, including L.A. Reid and Babyface, to help create The Boys’ debut album. Their parents, who were always by their side, signed on as the executive producers, but things were falling apart at home.
Things at home were strained
According to The Boys’ segment on Unsung, they revealed their dad was always stern and a strong disciplinarian. Eventually, his dad developed a dependency to substances which facilitated the breakdown of their parent’s marriage. One day, while their dad was away from home, The Boys and their mother packed up everything and left. Their dad remained as their manager, though, and The Boys continue to describe him as one of the most influential people who helped guide their careers.
The label realized The Boys weren’t just typical children. They had more knowledge and experience than a lot of adults in the industry. The Boys wrote their own songs. They also knew how to produce and mix their own music, choreograph their own dance moves, and produce their own music videos. Motown clearly hit the jackpot by signing the brothers, and they couldn’t wait to share their music with the world.
Inside the studio
But there was one person who was going through a tough time during their studio sessions. Khiry told the L.A. Times he was 13 when they started recording, and his voice changed during the process. Since he couldn’t hit the high notes that he was scheduled to sing certain parts on songs like “Lucky Charm” and “A Little Romance,” his parts were given to his younger brother, Hakeem, who was 11 at the time. Khiry said, “I had a lot of potential. Then boom! My voice went down. My range got shorter and shorter.”
The Boys split up lead-singing duties on the rest of their songs to prevent one brother from becoming a bigger star. And Khiry said it helped to keep jealousy under control. He added, “If we didn’t compromise, things would be a mess.”
Debut success
Messages from The Boys was released in October 1988. Songs like “Dial My Heart,” “Lucky Charm,” and “A Little Romance” helped the album fly to the top of the charts. Hakeem also received a writing credit on the song “Personality.” The album was certified platinum and the group took home an Image Award.
At the time of their album’s release, The Boys ranged in age from 9 to 15 years old, and their popularity was increasing thanks to the push from Motown’s marketing department.
Hakeem told the L.A. Times that fans would try to rip off their clothes during performances. And during an appearance at a Dallas record store, a group of fans messed up their limo by writing phone numbers all over it. During an appearance at a Hawthorne mall, they expected 500 people to show up but thousands of fans showed up instead. Hakeem said the crowd got so out of hand they had to cancel the show. He said, “It was scary. I get afraid of getting hurt. The fans don’t mean any harm, but it can get dangerous.”
While Hakeem didn’t care as much about the attention from all the young girls, Khiry was loving it. He told The Times that back when he was in school, the girls used to reject him, but after he became a celebrity, they all liked him.
Their parents kept them grounded
Thankfully, The Boys were surrounded by those who genuinely cared about them. They traveled with their entire immediate family, an academic tutor, and their next-door neighbor Juan, whom they hired as their bodyguard. Their parents’ main goal was to keep them in check. Their mom told Ebony magazine, “I travel with them because I know that it is ultimately my responsibility to make sure they keep their feet on the ground and that they say their prayers.”
Their parents were involved in every single business deal, which ruffled a few feathers in the industry. Their dad told Jet magazine, “People don’t like to cut the deals with us because we have their best interest at heart. They can’t cut deals under the table with us.”
Their parents’ knowledge helped The Boys secure hosting gigs on radio talk shows, they appeared in music videos for Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson, recorded a song with Earth, Wind & Fire, and made numerous guest appearances on television shows. They also performed across the U.S. and Europe. During their downtime, they attended their gymnastics practices at Compton College and karate classes.
As for their personal goals, the young boys were actively working toward their dreams. Khiry had hopes of becoming a film director, so he opened his own production company called Young Einstein. He also produced and managed music for other young entertainers in their neighborhood.
Hakeem doubled as the group’s sound engineer, songwriter, and choreographer. He also wanted to get more involved in acting since he had already appeared in projects like Ernest Goes to Camp, Wildcats, and Diff’rent Strokes. Tahj had also snagged a few roles, including a part in the TV show St. Elsewhere, while Bilal had dreams of becoming the president of the United States.
Outsmarting the label
The Boys returned in 1990 with a self-titled album. Their song “Crazy,” which was co-written by all four brothers and mixed by Hakeem, reached #1 on the Billboard chart. Pepsi even featured the song in one of their commercials, which we assume was a very profitable deal for them.
Their dad was always about his business, and sources report he established a 1-900 number for fans to talk to The Boys for just $2.50 a minute. The chat line was reportedly a success, and The Boys were able to keep all the profits because their dad had outsmarted the record label.
During the management course he and his wife took at the start of The Boys’ career, their dad was taught how to retain all merchandising rights. That valuable information meant Motown had to keep its sticky paws off The Boys’ lucrative side ventures.
Unsurprisingly, Motown wanted to replace The Boys’ parents as their managers and hire a new management team for the group. However, the parents refused to step down and remained in control of their sons’ careers. The Boys continued on with building their empire, they even starred in their own self-titled TV show.
Done with The Boys
Their 1992 album The Saga Continues showcased a more mature sound. It also signaled the end of The Boys’ hype. The album peaked at number 191 on the Billboard 200, and sources report the group blamed their label for poor promotion.
The Boys were falling deeper and deeper into the pits of fame. They were young, successful, and had more money than they knew what to do with. In order to keep them grounded their mom sent them to live with their dad in Georgia.
In 1993, The Boys’ recording contract expired. Motown was ready to re-sign them to a six-year deal with a generous upfront advance. The label also offered them their own label, called HAK Records, which was already up and running with a couple of artists for The Boys to manage. But in the end, the brothers decided to step away from the limelight to do some self-reflection, and their parents respected their decision.
Life away from mainstream music
So what happened to The Boys after they decided to step away from the industry? Hakeem told Jet magazine they transitioned into being vegan, and that lifestyle change made them gravitate towards like-minded people who were largely a part of the Afrocentric cultural community in southwest Atlanta. Hakeem added that those new experiences inspired them to embrace their African roots and prompted them to pack up and move to Gambia — a small West African country on the Atlantic coast.
They disconnected from western society and began performing West African-inspired music under the name Suns of Light. They also launched a label called Sun Light Music and began producing songs for the artists on their label. Hakeem also worked with Akon on his song, “Mama Africa.”
During their time away from mainstream music, they worked on solo music and created their own style of music called Boombalax. Tajh also wrote a book about African spirituality and metaphysics.
What’s next for The Boys?
Even though they’re spread all across the globe, Khiry told Jet magazine the four brothers are still as tight as ever. They all have children, and whenever they’re all together it’s like a big family reunion, full of laughter and non-stop jokes. The brothers are still very close and they hold onto the memories of their time as Hollywood superstars. Khiry said, “It’s such a beautiful thing that we’re all in this together – spiritually and mentally.”
As of 2015, they were working on a new album. They released a song in 2018 called “Always 4 Ever.” But as of this video, we’re still waiting for the entire album to drop. Until they bless us with new music, we still have their old songs we can groove to, like “Dial My Heart,” which Billboard called one of the greatest boy band songs of all time.
The Boys remind us of a time when life was carefree, fun, and easy when music was lighthearted and whimsical, and artists possessed real talent. We really miss those days, how about you?
Are you surprised by what happened to The Boys?
The boys were my favorites and still my favorites even today lm so glad to learn that they they are still together and doing well.
Up this day they’re still my favorite regardless of their situation I wish them all the best