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Joi Gilliam is a native of Nashville, Tennessee and she has been based in Atlanta, GA for almost two decades. Her 1994 debut, The Pendulum Vibe was executive produced by Dallas Austin and critically acclaimed. Madonna heard the album and used it as inspiration for Bedtime Stories and she also helped Gilliam become the first Black model in a major Calvin Klein print ad campaign. “Sunshine And The Rain,” “I Found My Niche” and “Freedom” were the singles from the album. Mario Van Pebbles had “Freedom” remade for the ‘Panther” soundtrack. In 1997 Austin and Gilliam collaborated again on The Amoeba Cleansing Syndrome. Fishbone became the backing band for the project and the record company rejected the first single, “I Believe” because it was not a song aimed for the confines of radio. “Ghetto Superstar” with her then-husband Big Gipp, became the new single a year later. Rowdy Records dissolved but the album became hot on the bootleg circuit and gave Joi more artistic credibility. “Magic In Your Eyes” is from the soundtrack to the ’96 film “Fled.” Joi was handpicked by Raphael Saadiq to replace Dawn Robinson in the Lucy Pearl lineup in 2000. Star Kitty’s Revenge was her third album and it’s mostly known for the song “Lick” that was used on “xXx” soundtrack. “Missing You” was the lead single produced by Austin who she had not worked with since doing background work on TLC’s “Silly Ho.” She independently released Tennessee Slim Is The Bomb in 2006 and the single “I’m So Famous” went viral. As of 2011 Joi is prepping new music with the collective HOTHEAVY&BAD formed by her partner Devon Lee.
