Biography
  Let's Ride | Funny How Time Flies | Darlin' Darlin' Baby | Emotionally Yours | Heartbreaker | Stairway to Heaven | I Love Music | Love Train | Survival | Family Reunion | Message In The Music | Serious Hold On Me | For The Love | Loving You  

In late 1950's, EDDIE LEVERT, WALTER WILLIAMS, Bill Isles, Bobby Massey, and WILLIAM POWELL
...were five Ohio high school students who called themselves The Emeralds. They later became the Triumphs, then the Mascots. In the early 1960's, they met and became managed by famed deejay Eddie O'Jay, for whom they became named. In fall of 1963, The O'Jays [their temporary name at the time] received their first charted single "Lonely Drifter."

Climbing Aboard The Love Train
By the late 1960's, The O'Jays consisted of Eddie Levert, Walter Williams, and William Powell. Although they had garnered some recognition, with local and regional hits, it took them approximately 16 years to land their "break" in the business. It was their early 1970's hit "Back Stabbers, that broke ground. Noted Philadelphia writers Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff continued to work their magic, and produced the group's successful hits "Love Train", "Give The People What They Want", "For The Love of Money", and "Living For The Weekend". The mid 1970s gave way to a new musical genre and a change in membership. William Powell died a few years after taking a hiatus from the group due to illness. The late Powell was replaced by Sammy Stain. But even with the onset of disco, and a new member, The O'Jays were unstoppable. Their hits such as "I Love Music", "Family Reunion", "Message In the Music" and "Stairway to Heaven" are just a fraction of the hits which are still the group's signatures.
Becoming Forever Ours
As the group moved into the early 1980's, they still continue to produce chart toppers. Hits such as "Forever Mine", "Brandy", "Use Ta Be My Girl", and "Loving You" retained their existing fan base, a small miracle since many groups had been swallowed up by the rise and fall of disco. However, unlike many, as the 1980's progressed the O'Jays embraced for a plethora of new fans. This was in part due to Gerald Levert, Eddie Levert's son who was on the musical horizon as well with his own trio Levert. The younger Levert's compositions such as the romantic "Let Me Touch You", and the uptempo "Have You Had Your Love Today" cushioned the trio for 1990s. The group's 1991 "Emotionally Yours", kept them on the playing field with the hit "Don't Let Me Down" But this decade would bring forth uncertainity and yet another change in personnel.
For The Love...
In 1992, Sammy Strain left the group after turning in a two year notice. Strain returned to his group Little Anthony and the Imperials. Shortly before Strain's departure, the O'Jays had ended their association with Gamble and Huff and were recording at EMI Records. Nathaniel Best became the new guy, but his tenure was brief. So brief in fact, he only recorded one project as a "Jay", the 1993 release "Heartbreaker".

With Best gone, Levert and Williams, were literally a duo. But newcomer Eric Nolan Grant proved to be just what the doctor ordered. Grant, who was a member of the Deltones, joined the group circa 1995. His youthful, energetic, and eager persona help to rekindle the O'Jays magic. Their 1997 release of "Love You To Tears" hurled the trio back to superstar status. The O'Jays were once again in full swing, headlining venues across the nation. The group's latest project "For The Love", on MCA Records, is latest studio project.  They trio debuted in the movie "Fighting Temptations", and was recently awarded honorary doctor of arts degrees by Shaw University. After over four decades in the business, this musical institution shows no signs of retiring. Luckily for their plethora of fans, they still love music.