Carolyn Griffey

Carolyn Griffey is an American soul vocalist, and member of the soul funk group Shalamar. She is the daughter of Carrie Lucas and SOLAR Records boss Dick Griffey,^[1] who worked with Don Cornelius in the television program, Soul Train.

Griffey grew up around The Whispers, Shalamar, Midnight Star, Dynasty, Michael Jackson, Marvin Gaye and James Brown, who all appeared on Soul Train or who were signed to SOLAR Records.^{[citation needed]}.

In 1990, she was signed to SOLAR Records as part of the dance-pop duo called Absolute.^[2] This group released one album, For All Seasons, in 1990. Their singles included: "Cheap Shot", "Gotta Lambada" and "This Moment In Time" (both from the film soundtrack of Lambada).^{[citation needed]}

She has been the lead female vocalist of Shalamar since 2001. She appeared on ITV's Hit Me, Baby, One More Time in 2005,^[3] and has toured the world with Howard Hewett and Jeffrey Daniels.^{[citation needed]}

She also sings with Andraé Crouch and his gospel choir, who are known for their work on Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror".^{[citation needed]}

In October 2009, Griffey performed with Hewett and Daniels in Shalamar at London's O2 Arena.^{[citation needed]} This prompted a return to touring in the UK, in April 2010. They were an annual feature at London's O2 Arena every December since 2010. In 2014. Griffey appeared with Howard Hewett and Jeffrey Daniels for two Shalamar concerts at the Manchester Ritz and London O2.^[4][5]

In 2018 Carolyn Griffey, Carrie Lucas, Lucas Griffey and Chinese music promoter Jessie Tsang relaunched the Solar Records and Soul Train Records in the UK. The relaunch was covered in the UK magazine Soul Survivors.^[6] Jessie Tsang is CEO with Sonia Damney as Vice President. Carolyn Griffey along with Carrie Lucas also own trade mark rights to Shalamar in the UK and Europe.^[7] In 2022 Carolyn Griffey and Carrie Lucas participated with US cable channel TV One for a special episode of the Unsung TV series on Dick Griffey and Solar Records. The episode aired on November 6 2022.^[8]

References

1. "Mixmag is 40: An interview with our first ever cover star, Shalamar". Mixmag. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
2. "'Absolute' goes for stardom". News.google.com. January 17, 1991.
3. "Carolyn Griffey on IMDb". IMDb.
4. "Shalamar announce April dates plus special guests". Blues and Soul Magazine.
5. "Shalamar, Kenny Thomas and Steve Brookstein". Swindon Borough Council Website News. Archived from the original on February 17, 2010. Retrieved April 15, 2010.
6. "Issue 77 The JA Edition for Aug & Sept 2018". The Soul Survivors Magazine.
7. "Carolyn Lucas Griffey".
8. "Unsung - TV One". February 12, 2024.