Smooth (singer)

Juanita Stokes, currently known as Needa S. (formerly Smooth), is an American singer and rapper.^[1]

Smooth
Birth name	Juanita Stokes
Also known as	MC Smooth, Needa S.
Origin	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres	Hip hop, R&B
Occupation(s)	Rapper, singer
Years active	1984–present
Labels	Crush Music, Jive, Perspective

Career

Stokes began her career as MC Smooth, signing a record deal with the independent label Crush Music in 1990. She released her debut single "Smooth & Legit" that year, which peaked at #11 on the U.S. Rap chart. Her debut album Smooth & Legit followed on April 27, 1990 (peaking at #72 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart) and was produced by her brother Chris Stokes and Arabian Prince. Two singles "You Gotta Be Real" and "Where is the Money?" followed but did not garner much airplay. Three years later, she signed a major label deal with Jive Records and began work on her sophomore album, dropping the MC from her moniker. Her first single under the new deal, "Female Mac" garnered some airplay, and it was soon followed by the release of her second album You Been Played on August 24, 1993, which peaked at #77 on the R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart. The title track was released as the set's follow-up single. Soon after, she began work on her third studio album, releasing the first single "Mind Blowin'" in 1995. The single became her breakthrough hit, hitting #7 on the Rap chart, #31 on R&B, and #75 on the Billboard Hot 100 (her first entry on that chart). Her self-titled third album was released on August 1, 1995, peaking at #35 on the R&B/Hip Hop albums chart and #17 on the Heatseekers chart. Four more singles would be released from the project: "Blowin' Up My Pager" "It's Summertime" "Love Groove" and "Undercover Lover" of which the latter three garnered her success in the UK.

Later that year, she collaborated with the R&B group Immature on their single "We Got It" which was released as a single in 1996 and became a hit, peaking at #37 on the Hot 100 and #11 on the R&B chart. She would later collaborate with them again on the song "Watch Me Do My Thing". She released a stand-alone single, "Love & Happiness" which had some airplay on the R&B stations.

In 1997, Smooth moved to Perspective Records, a joint venture with A&M Records and reintroduced herself as a R&B singer with alternative influences. She released her first single under the label, "Strawberries" that year, which became her biggest hit to date, peaking at #17 on R&B and #49 on the Hot 100. Her fourth album, Reality was released on March 10, 1998. It would peak at #48 on the R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart and #32 on the Heatseekers. One more single, "He Thinks She Don't Know" was released.

In 2003, she rebranded herself once again, under the Needa S moniker. Two singles "Sensitive" and "Baby's Mama" were released, but her fifth studio album What? was eventually shelved.

In 2013, it was announced she has joined the upcoming BET reality series Hip Hop Sisters which will focus on six female rappers' lives and their attempts to relaunch their careers. Other rappers confirmed to appear are MC Lyte, Lady of Rage, Monie Love, Lil Mama, and Yo-Yo.^[2]

Personal life

She has two daughters: Earanequa Carter, born in 1990; and Jaysa Charles, born in 2001.^[3][4]

Albums

Studio albums

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions and certifications

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
		US R&B /HH [5]	US Heat. [6]	UK R&B [7]
Smooth & Legit	Released: April 27, 1990 Label: Crush Music Formats: CD, cassette	72	—	—
You Been Played	Released: August 24, 1993 Label: Jive Formats: CD, cassette, streaming	77	—	—
Smooth	Released: August 1, 1995 Label: Jive Formats: CD, LP, cassette, digital download, streaming	35	17	18
Reality	Released: March 10, 1998 Label: Perspective Formats: CD, cassette, streaming	48	32	—
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Unreleased albums

• What? (2003)

Singles

As lead artist

List of singles with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name

Title	Year	Peak chart positions						Album
		US [8]	US R&B [9]	US Rap [10]	UK [7]	UK Dance [7]	UK R&B [7]
"Smooth & Legit"	1990	—	—	11	—	—	—	Smooth & Legit
"You Gotta Be Real"[a][11]		—	—	—	—	—	—
"Where Is The Money"[a][12]	1991	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Female Mac"	1993	—	—	47	—	—	—	You Been Played
"You Been Played"		—[b]	54	—	—	—	—	Menace II Society Soundtrack and You Been Played
"Mind Blowin'"	1995	75	31	7	36	14	7	Smooth
"It's Summertime (Let It Get Into You)"		—	—	—	46	20	8
"Love Groove (Groove With You)"	1996	—	—	—	46	22	10
"Undercover Lover"		—	—	—	41	29	4
"Love & Happiness"		—[c]	66	—	—	—	—	Non-album single
"Strawberries"	1998	49	17	—	82	—	18	Reality
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Featured singles

List of singles as featured artist, with selected chart positions showing year released and album name

Title	Year	Peak chart positions						Album
		US [8]	US R&B [9]	NZ [14]	UK [7]	UK Dance [7]	UK R&B [7]
"We Got It" (Immature featuring Smooth)	1996	37	11	27	26	16	5	All That Soundtrack and We Got It
"Watch Me Do My Thing" (Immature featuring Smooth and Ed from Good Burgers)		32	16	—	—	—	—	All That Soundtrack
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Promotional singles

List of singles, showing year released and album name

Title	Year	Album
"Blowin' Up My Pager"[15]	1995	Smooth
"He Thinks She Don't Know"[16]	1998	Reality
"Virginity" (TG4 featuring Smooth)[17]	2002	Non-album singles
"Sensitive" (featuring Da Brat & Jhené Aiko)[d][18]	2003
"Zoom"	2004

Notes

1. Published as "MC Smooth"
2. "You Been Played" did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 15 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100.^[13]
3. "Love & Happiness" did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 20 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100.^[13]
4. Published as "Needa-S"

References

1. "A&M reinforces R&B efforts in deal with Shaquille O'Neal Label". Billboard. February 14, 1998. p. 104. Retrieved May 7, 2011.
2. "@VIBEVixen» BET Announces 'Hip Hop Sisters' and Jeanette Jenkins Reality Series » Madison Lafayette". Vibevixen.com. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014. Retrieved August 11, 2014.
3. "Twitter / Earanequa: Me & my beautiful Mommy". twitter.com. Archived from the original on June 16, 2013. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
4. "Earanequa Carter – About – Google". January 7, 2013. Retrieved August 11, 2014.
5. "Smooth Chart History". Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
6. "Aesop Rock – Chart History: Top Heatseekers". Billboard. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
7. "Smooth – UK Charts". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
8. "Smooth- US Hot 100". billboard.com. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
9. "Smooth – US R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". billboard.com. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
10. "Smooth – US Hot Rap Songs". billboard.com. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
11. You Gotta Be Real (track listing). Crush Music. 1990. A 899-6.
12. Where Is The Money (track listing). Crush Music. 1990. A 10021.
13. "Bubbling Under Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
14. "MC Lyte Chart History (Recorded Music NZ)". Retrieved September 9, 2020.
15. Blowin' Up My Pager (track listing). Jive/TNT Recordings. 1995. JDJ-42325-2.
16. He Thinks She Don't Know (track listing). Perspective Records. 1998. PSCDP 00692.
17. Virginity (track listing). A&M Records/T.U.G. Entertainment. 2002. AMRR 10795-1.
18. Sensitive (track listing). Universal Records. 2003. UNIR 20941-1.

External links

• Needa S. MySpace page