I used to Sing with the guys in 112
Posted on Wednesday, February 21, 2007 @ 10:09:25 PST by infidelguy
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I was sitting here singing and I realized that I have so many chapters of my life that I haven't written about or told many people about. Many of you probably don't know this.. but I used to sing with Forte'. They are now called 112. I have no idea what they have been up to lately. I talk to Mike now and again, but he's always losing my number. I miss my "brothers". Mike, Daron, Quinnes, Aldon and Marvin. The original group was just 3 of us.. then we added Marvin for his high falsetto and Al for Bass. When Marvin's mom started using her son as a way to jerk us around.. we brought Quinnes in because we thought Slim (Marvin) wasn't going to be around much longer. When Marvin's mom saw the replacement move we were pulling, she quickly changed her attitude. If all the original members stayed together, there would have been six of us.
From left to right: Aldon Lagon, Reginald Finley, Michael Keith, Daron Jones and Marvin Scandrick
THE UNOFFICIAL STORY:
This is the unofficial story about the rise of 112, as told by Reginald Finley Sr, but it's the truth. I was in high school when I met our first members. Mike and Daron were only in the 8th grade when we first met. I was in the 11th. Mike's cousin, Edwin, introduced us. Edwin was a long time friend of mine from the Polar Rock community where I grew up... located in the heart of South Atlanta. Edwin saw that I had a passion and a knack for vocal music so he told me about his cousin Mike and his friend Daron.
We hit it right off! We quickly became the best of friends. I created the name of the group, FORTE'. Which was an acronym meaning, "Forever On Route To Excellence". Edwin started arranging places we could perform; churches, small venues, parties.. then soon came talent shows. We were quickly becoming a recognized name out there.
We met our Bass man, Aldon Lagon, at a local McDonalds. His voice was so deep. We were like, "Hey man.. can you sing?!" We brought Aldon in. See pic on right, first on left.
Marvin S. joined us later, whom we met at school. At this time. I was in the 12th, Slim and Aldon were in the 11th and Mike and Daron were in the 9th. The high school we attended was Walter F. George High, now called South Atlanta High.
We ended up with a road manager (Marlin) and a vocal coach (Marvin's cousin Leslie) We performed at Underground Atlanta and at all of the biggest talent shows in Atlanta. We won either first, 1st, 2nd or 3rd place at every Talent Show! You can see an early interview with us here on youtube. We met Mucho from Basic Black and worked on a few songs with them. Didn't last very long.
When my brother Danny died, they were there for me. At his funeral, I sang "It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday" while they backed me up.
An exciting moment for us is when we met Claude McKnight from Take6 and he sat with us for a little while after we performed at a night club.We were all so very ecstatic about meeting him. You see... Take 6 and Commissioned were our favorite a capella groups at the time. We actually practiced hundreds of hours to get a harmony sound close to theirs.
After a while the complex harmonies took it's toll on Aldon, who at the time had difficulty, as well as I, keeping pitch. Neither Mike, Aldon or I had any formal music training. This put us at a disadvantage. Daron has perfect pitch and Marvin was simply gifted to say the least.
We voted to have Aldon leave the group. I was afraid that I would be next as I was having just as much trouble as Al. And Daron didn't play around. If you were off.. he'd tell you! Aldon is still involved in music today and now has a better ear than I.
The Military:
Yes, I am a US Army Veteran. I left the group and eventually joined the Military.
Why did I join the military you may ask? Well.. my life prior wasn't all roses. I was going to college and working a job while still doing music. However.. as the group matured. They also began to find other interests. They just didn't seem to be as dedicated and focused as we once were.
My mother convinced me that the group wasn't really ever going to get anywhere and since I was only a mediocre singer anyway, we'd never make it. Ignoring her, I dropped out of college hoping to glue the group back together. I knew we, as a group, had what it took to make it.
Eventually, my hand was forced. Because of the groups lack of seriousness, at that particular time, and my mom's lack of confidence in me and the group (mostly thanks to Slim's mom) I eventually joined the Army. I was pressured to join when my mom informed me that I could no longer live under her roof and NOT be in school.
And so it begins:
While on leave in 1994, I performed with them one last time at a High School talent show. This is when the road to stardom really began. We met a Kevin Wells of Worldwide Entertainment. Kevin, is a longtime friend of P. Diddy (then Sean Puffy Combs). Kevin had a few people that he wanted us to perform for, but unfortunately, I had to fly back to Germany as I was under government contract with the US Army. Quinnes "Q" didn't sing with us at this talent show but he continued with the group after I left. Kevin still liked the sound without me and he eventually introduced them to Puffy. The rest is history.
112 as you know them
REGRETS?
No, I have no regrets. Life is full of change. Every decision one makes can prevent them from discovering something contrary and different, yet at the same time.. there is always new experiences no matter where you turn. And that's life. I have my beautiful children and a career that I built from the ground up.
Do I regret? No.. but I sure do wonder. I wonder what my life would have been like if I stayed.
One day, while talking to Mike at a local Barbershop, he confided in me that they all looked up at me as the leader of the group. I never knew this. Little did Mike know, I always felt expendable. They were much more talented than I. Mike's eyes glossed over and he glanced away, Not wanting me to see how hurt he was that I "abandoned them". Even though they are successful R&B artists, that hurt stills remains.
Well, that's my story. Please feel free to spread the word about this little piece of 112 history.
TO MY BROTHERS:
Well guys. I didn't want to leave. I was hurting too. Your brother is still here for you. I still love my original music family. Call me anytime.
UPDATE: 12/24/2011 - Reggie and D. Jones finally reunited after 18 years at Justin's near downtown Atlanta.
keywords: 112 truth, 112 history, Forte, forte', daron jones, michael keith, quinnes parker, marvin scandrick, vocalist, concert, facts, aldon lagon, original 112, pics, one-twelve, early 112, beginning
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