CLICK HERE to view Mint Condition’s In Studio Jam.
They are the last band standing.
Minneapolis-based band Mint Condition now has the distinction of being R&B music’s only relevant self-contained band in a world that was once dominated with the likes of The Gap Band, The Bar-Kays, Earth, Wind and Fire and other legendary groups.
Luckily, Mint Condition is back with a new album, “7,” that is on par with the great music that’s already made them an important part of R&B history. If you love music, support it, and check out the latest from the group, obviously still living up to their name.
BORN: In Minneapolis, Minnesota in the late 80s with original group members Jeffrey Allen, Stokley Williams, Homer O’Dell, Ricky Kinchen and Lawrence Waddell. Keri Lewis, now Toni Braxton’s ex-husband, left the group years ago.
BIG BREAK: They were discovered by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis at the legendary First Avenue nightclub in Minneapolis, a place quite familiar to Prince fans, as the music scenes in “Purple Rain” were filmed there.
BACK STORY: Everyone but Kinchen attended St. Paul Central High in St. Paul, Minnesota. There, the group met and learned how to record as part of the high school’s music program and would run into each other in church or playing for other groups. Williams and O’Dell officially formed the group that became Mint Condition.
RESUME: Two platinum albums, one gold album, one gold single (“What Kind of Man Would I Be?), two number-one Billboard R&B singles.
FUN FACT: This year marks Mint Condition’s 20th year in the music business. The band has accomplished more than musical excellence, though – Allen has earned a master’s degree in criminal justice, and Waddell was working on a master’s in Physics.
