DJ Cassidy presented his Pass The Mic show in conjunction with the Soul Train Awards last night. This edition paid tribute to some of his musical heroes from the ’80s. A section of some of the era’s greatest artists joined him remotely to sing along with his DJing of their song. Jody Watley, Deniece Williams, Morris Day and Jerome Benton of the Time, Shannon, George Clinton, Evelyn “Champagne” King, Alicia Myers, Chaka Khan, Lisa Lisa, Melvin Riley of Ready For The World, Shelia E., Larry Blackmon and Willie Morris of Cameo and El DeBarge all participated and sang one of their classic songs. 

[youtube id=”3u16LsqBhis”]El DeBarge stepped outside his role in DeBarge when Motown released his first solo album in 1986. He was the leader of his family’s musical group and they had reached the height of their success by the time of El’s album. “Someone” was played heavily on Quiet Storm radio and was the third charting single from the album. The summertime feeling of the song was accessible to any admirer of romantic music. DeBarge fans were happy to hear from El but the underrated album lacked his writing skills that were responsible for the hit songs in his family’s group. The lack of promotion stopped the project from gaining more ground but “Who’s Johnny” and “Love Always” were the other two songs from the album to make Billboard’s charts. El DeBarge has five solo albums and made a great comeback in 2010 with Second Chance. Chico DeBarge, El’s younger brother, announced a reunion and new music with his family on Good Morning Washington. 

Kanye West was the musical guest on SNL tonight and he performed “High Lights” and “Ultra Light Beams” from The Life of Pablo. He surprised everyone when he brought Kelly Price, Young Thug, The Dream and El DeBarge to sing on “High Lights.” The surprise caught so many people off-guard that DeBarge started trending on Twitter.

[youtube id=”hehCGnxEJKs”]

[youtube id=”dnkLjEuISXQ”]

El DeBarge appeared on The Arsenio Hall Show last night and gave the audience two of his family’s classic hits, “Time Will Reveal” and “I Like It” proving that after more than two decades he still has it. He ended the show with “How Can You Love Me” from his Second Chance album and “All This Love.”