Early life and career
Born to a deeply religious family in St. Louis, Missouri, Angela began singing in church. She did not initially aspire to a career in music, studying architecture at Howard University, singing only to earn extra money. She continued to sing in church while at Howard as well as with gospel legend Richard Smallwood. By 1977, Angela had changed her major to music education, and recorded a demo. She shopped it to various record labels with no success but, through a personal introduction furnished by respected industry veteran, Wayne K. Garfield, the demo was heard by New York disc jockey Gary Byrd, who made the call that landed Angela a spot in Stevie Wonder's backing vocal group, Wonderlove. Becoming Wonder's protegé, she learned a great deal about writing and arranging songs. While in Los Angeles with Wonder, Angela met singer René Moore; the two became a couple (eventually marrying), and began writing songs together. René & Angela released their self-titled debut album in 1980, followed by Wall to Wall in 1982 and Rise in 1983. During this period they had two moderate hit singles, "I Love You More" and "My First Love".
A Street Called Desire and meeting Ron Isley
During Rene & Angela's early years, they were asked to produce songs for Janet Jackson's 1982 self-titled debut album, Janet Jackson. One of the songs, "Young Love", became Jackson's first top ten R&B hit reaching number six on the chart. They also wrote exclusively for Stephanie Mills, who forged a close friendship with Winbush (their "I Have Learned to Respect the Power of Love", gave Mills her first-ever #1 R&B single, in 1985). Winbush would later write another Mills number one R&B hit with "Something in the Way You Make Me Feel". Between that, Rene & Angela decided to branch out and find a bigger fan base signing with Mercury Records in 1984. They released their breakthrough album, A Street Called Desire the following year. Among the hit singles included on the album was their first R&B number one with the dance single, "Save Your Love (For #1)", which included guest vocals from rapper Kurtis Blow, making it besides Chaka Khan's "I Feel For You", one of the first songs to prominently feature a rapper. Other hit singles included "I'll Be Good", the mostly Winbush-led "Your Smile" was another number one hit while the subsequent "You Don't Have to Cry", hit number two in the beginning of 1986. Eventually A Street Called Desire sold over a million copies going platinum but on the brink of their greatest success, tensions between Winbush and Moore had grown and by the end of the album's promotion, the duo split both personally and professionally. Moore would continue to find success as a songwriter, most notably for Michael Jackson, but he would never again find success as a singer as Winbush was often the main draw of their singles.
In 1987, Winbush was introduced to future husband Ronald Isley, lead singer of the influential Isley Brothers after Benny Medina had agreed to ask Winbush to be involved with the Isleys' next record when Isley proposed plans to work with Winbush on a future project. Producing, writing and arranging the Isleys' Smooth Sailin' album, Winbush helped the group, now including just Ronald and Rudolph (eldest brother O'Kelly had passed away the previous year), score a top 10 R&B hit with the title track.
Sharp and subsequent follow-ups
In turn, Isley opted to manage Winbush and he helped in the process of releasing her debut solo album, Sharp, which was also released in 1987. The album included the huge hit, "Angel", which stayed at number one on the R&B chart for two weeks in 1987 and showcasing her five and a half octave range. Other hits include the dance track, "Run to Me", "C'est Toi (It's You)" and the Ron Isley duet, "Hello Beloved". In 1988, she wrote and produced two tracks for Sheena Easton's gold album "The Lover In Me". They were "Without You" and "Fire and Rain", both of which showcased Easton's lower range and surprisingly soulful vocals. In 1989, Winbush released her follow-up to Sharp with It's the Real Thing. The title track reached number two on the R&B chart while subsequent hits "No More Tears" and "Lay Your Troubles Down" continued Winbush's top 40 success on the R&B charts where she was now a fixture on despite failed attempts to cross her over to pop audiences. On June 26, 1993 Winbush and longtime manager/collaborator/lover Ronald Isley, who is thirteen years Angela's senior, married. A year later Winbush released her third self-titled solo album, which included the huge R&B hit, "Treat U Rite". Produced by Chuckii Booker, the song peaked at number six on the R&B chart making it Winbush's ninth top ten R&B hit altogether in her career. In 1996, Winbush was featured on the Isley Brothers' hit "Floatin' On Your Love", which was essentially a duet between Winbush and Ron Isley. The song was later remixed by Sean "Puffy" Combs and featured guest vocals from Lil' Kim and the group 112 in backgrounds. The video for it showcased Winbush serenading Isley's Mr. Biggs character. Winbush continued to collaborate with the Isley Brothers until 2001's Eternal, where afterwards, their marriage had cooled off. In 2002, Winbush and Isley quietly divorced. In 2003, Winbush made news when it was found out she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Eventually after a successful surgery, the cancer was in remission and Winbush returned to perform on the road.
Legacy and influence
Since starting out with Rene & Angela, Winbush has played an influence on various R&B and hip-hop acts. In the latter genre, Winbush has heard her music being sampled by acts such as The Notorious B.I.G. (who featured her and Jay-Z on his Rene & Angela-sampled "I Love You More" for the song "I Love the Dough"), Foxy Brown (who sampled her "I'll Be Good" for her 1997 top ten hit, "I'll Be") and singer Avant re-recorded the Rene & Angela ballad, "My First Love", with singer Keke Wyatt in 2000. In appreciation during Avant's performance of the song on BET's 106 & Park, in 2001, Winbush surprised the audience by singing alongside Avant on the song. As a singer, Winbush influenced the likes of Syleena Johnson and Chante Moore. Winbush and former partner Rene Moore also shared the distinction for being one of the first R&B acts to prominently feature a rap act in a R&B song sharing that distinction with Chaka Khan and funk band Cameo. Winbush also carries the distinction of being one of the few female artists to find success as a songwriter, arranger, producer and session musician (Winbush also is an avid musician playing piano and keyboards).
Treat U Rite
Angela Winbush Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Your letting it run away
So tell me
Have I ever dissed you
And if i did it was
Because you deserved it
I would never leave you
Untill then i'm gonna love you
And stick by you
You don't have to worry
You know
I'm gonna treat you right
(Gonna treat you right)
You know
I'm gonna treat you right
Treat you right
(Gonna treat you right)
You know
I'm gonna treat you right (oh, no)
You know
I'm gonna treat you right (baby)
(Ooh, i'm gonna treat you right, ooh)
I see a little tention
You know
It's written all over your face
Boy, a little affection
I'll give it to you
Any time and any place
You don't have to worry
You know
I'll be right there for you
All i want
Is a little in return
So honey, won't you show me
That you love me too
You know
I'm gonna treat you right
(Gonna treat you right)
You know
I'm gonna treat you right
Treat you right
(Gonna treat you right)
You know
I'm gonna treat you right (oh, no)
You know
I'm gonna treat you right (baby)
(Ooh, i'm gonna treat you right, ooh)
In the song "Treat U Rite" by Angela Winbush, the singer is assuring her partner that she will always treat him right and be there for him. She acknowledges his insecurities and assures him that she has never disrespected him, and any time she has, it was because he deserved it. She promises to never leave him unless he gives her a reason to, and to always love him and stand by his side.
The lyrics suggest that there may be some tension between the couple, but Winbush offers to give him affection and love any time and any place. She simply wants a little bit of love in return to know that her efforts are appreciated. The lyrics demonstrate Winbush's commitment to her partner and her desire to make their relationship work.
Line by Line Meaning
Your imagination it seems
It appears that your imagination is running wild
Your letting it run away
You are allowing your imagination to take control
So tell me
Please share with me
Have I ever dissed you
Have I ever disrespected you
And if i did it was
And if I did in fact disrespect you
Because you deserved it
It was because you had done something to warrant it
I would never leave you
I will never abandon you
Unless you gave me a reason to
Except if you give me cause to do so
Untill then i'm gonna love you
Until then, I will love you
And stick by you
And remain loyal to you
You don't have to worry
You have no reason to feel anxious
You know
You are aware
I'm gonna treat you right
I am going to treat you with respect and love
(Gonna treat you right)
(I am going to treat you with respect and love)
You know
You are aware
Treat you right
To treat you with the love and respect you deserve
(Gonna treat you right)
(I am going to treat you with respect and love)
You know
You are aware
I'm gonna treat you right (oh, no)
I am going to treat you with respect and love (oh, no)
You know
You are aware
I'm gonna treat you right (baby)
I am going to treat you with respect and love, baby
(Ooh, i'm gonna treat you right, ooh)
(I am going to treat you with respect and love, ooh)
I see a little tention
I can sense some stress or anxiety
You know
You are aware
It's written all over your face
It is evident from the way you look
Boy, a little affection
Darling, a small amount of love and attention
I'll give it to you
I will provide it for you
Any time and any place
Whenever and wherever you need it
All i want
The only thing I desire
Is a little in return
Is a small amount reciprocated
So honey, won't you show me
So, darling, can you display for me
That you love me too
That you also love me
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@emjay604
I'm convinced the 90's was the peak of human civilization
@kennyhumble3699
You cute 😉
@blakebarberi4828
👌👌👌No lies told.
@kikikai7860
That you right~
@Papi_Oso
😂😂😂💯
@BassMecca312
Say it again👊💙
@francisibok474
Who's here in September, 2023? No suprises this joint sounds like Chuckii Booker's "Games". He wrote and produced this for Ms. Winbush. Awesome jam.
@user-pj3pi4rv9u
Here in 2024. I didn't treat him right. WTF
@spencerclarke2289
@@user-pj3pi4rv9uVery important fact great information I can feel and hear his energy what a great combination AI can't duplicate what the real GOD has for you some call it the universe❤
@V4Now
The 90s was the last "Great" decade of music, I love the 2000s but the 90s was just special. 🙏🏾