As a teen in Baltimore, there’s some things I couldn’t avoid during the late-’90s: chicken boxes, the term “ya’da mean”, and Dru Hill on the radio. DH were the hometown reps on the R&B scene, and our stations definitely went hard in support of them once they came out. But it wasn’t just here; they were scoring hits all across the board, one after another.
When I first saw their video for “Tell Me” in ’96, I remember thinking “they sound like Jodeci Jr., and this lead nigga has blond hair.” For a while, I just thought they were some knockoff-type group, no different than the other ones that were popping up around that time. Of course, I ended up being wrong when they rolled back around with “In My Bed” (and the So So Def remix), “Never Make A Promise”, and “5 Steps”. Through those songs and the others on their debut album, I grew to really like them as a group. Before I knew it, I was on the bus stop with my headphones on, singing off-key to “We’re Not Making Love No More”.
At that point, Jodeci was long-gone, and others from the earlier ’90s were barely hanging on. I don’t wanna say it like it happened by default, but Dru Hill was at the forefront as those groups fell to the wayside. They did it on their own merit, though: the vocals were on point, the songs were good, the stage performances were right. They consistently made hits, to the point where even the songs without videos got radio play, like “Beauty” and their cover of The Dells’ “The Love We Had” from their Enter The Dru album. By ’99, Dru Hill went from singing at showcases around B-More to shutting shit down.
But of course… no group is great unless there’s one member that ends up flying solo. There’s always a point where either fans, people in the industry, or the artists themselves decide that one member is the standout, and thus, should strike out on their own. Naturally, it happened with Dru and the lead singer, SisQo. Granted, he was a standout member from the get-go, from his image to his vocals. Still, when there was an announcement that he was about to drop a solo “side project”, the first thing that popped in my head was “OK, Dru Hill splits up in 5…4…3…”
To SisQo’s credit, he didn’t get all David Ruffin wit’ it like the shit was all about him. But whenever someone makes solo moves while remaining with the group, that’s always a sign of the end. I could be wrong, but I don’t think a group has ever taken a break at the expense of one member, then gone back to normal- not even families like DeBarge and The Jacksons. After SisQo dropped the Unleash The Dragon album and particularly “The Thong Song”, he was legitimately a pop star in his own right. Justifiably, he probably thought it was the beginning of a great solo career- surely anybody that can sing about drawers and have an international hit would feel the same.
Then, as the story always goes, the planned Dru Hill follow-up became the SisQo follow-up. Woody left the group in pursuit of a gospel career in ’99, Nokio began producing, and Jazz went off to try his hand at a solo career. Lo and behold, it turns out that SisQo’s solo career wasn’t etched in stone after all. His follow up, Return of Dragon dropped in ’01 and bricked… in a real way. So after a year or two of disarray, Dru Hill got back together as a group and added Scola, a solo artist from B-More who had a local hit called “Let’s Get Personal” back in ’96.
In keeping with yet another trend that occurs when groups split up, the 2002 “reunion” Dru World Order just didn’t do it for them. I don’t even think the support here was the same anymore. Dru Hill weren’t the same group they once were and it showed in their music. From there, DH went largely unseen and unheard until last year, when they reunited only to end up squaring off on the 92Q Big Phat Morning Show. They’ve since reunited as the original four and have an album dropping independently later this year. Not to be pessimistic, but from the sound of things, the glory days have passed for sure.
That aside, Dru Hill’s run between ’96-’99 speaks for itself. They were batting .1000 for almost three years straight, and were one of the last great R&B quartets to come along. Some days, I still sing (off-key) to their hits, remembering how much of a big deal they were. People everywhere liked their music, but Baltimore was in love with it, and rightfully so.
“Tell Me” (1996)
“Never Make A Promise” (1996)
“We’re Not Making Love No More” (1997)
“How Deep Is Your Love” (feat. Redman) (1998)
“These Are The Times” (1998)
-D!
Posted by Danj! 
