Tevin Campbell has been on our radar since the late 80s and early 90s when he first appeared on the Prince-produced song, “Round and Round.”
Campbell, with his sweet voice and smooth R&B vocals, was going to be the next Michael Jackson, or at least Chris Brown before Chris Brown was a thing. But then he just disappeared. So, can we talk about what happened to Tevin Campbell?
How It All Began
Tevin Campbell emerged on the music scene as a teenager under the guidance of two well-known artists: Prince and Quincy Jones.
He was a teenage prodigy from Texas who many believed would be the next MJ. Although the comparison to the then-king of Pop was flattering, it put a lot of pressure on the young pop star.
“I just kind of wanted to be me, you know?” he said to People Magazine in a 2022 interview.
Campbell was signed to Warner Bros. back in 1991 and two years later released his second album “I’m Ready,” which was an immediate hit with R&B fans.
Songs like “Can We Talk” and “I’m Ready” turned Campbell into a teenage heartthrob.
The song, which was supposed to be given to his then-rival Usher, is still popular today. Campbell didn’t realize at the time how much of an impact the song would have.
“I had no idea at the time, like when I was 15 or 16 recording this song that it would have that impact,” says Campbell. “I was just a kid singing in the studio.”
Yet despite all his success, Campbell was hiding a secret, a secret he wouldn’t talk about until the last few years concerning his sexuality.
Tevin Campbell Comes Out
Even though he was comfortable with his sexuality, or at least appeared to be, he knew some of the music industry, including fans, would not be.
“I didn’t hide anything about me. I didn’t try to act a certain way or anything,” says Campbell. But also, he notes of that era in the industry, “You just couldn’t be [gay] back then.”
As he got older, he decided to come and take his journal, discovering who he was, which took him away from the music industry.
He ended up on Broadway, which was where he was finally able to live his best life as an openly gay man.
“Being around people who were like me, LGBTQ+ people that were living normal lives and had partners. I had never seen that,” he says. “That was a great time in my life.”
Tevin Campbell Present Day
Nowadays, Campbell is single and working on new music and is even touring again. Campbell started to make a comeback a few years ago when he appeared on the show “Queen Sugar,” which then led to fans wondering where he had been all these years.
It seems that a new generation of fans has also rediscovered his music, which is good news. With timeless hits, a comeback is always possible for the singer and with new fans gravitating from social media, and older fans who haven’t forgotten his sweet sounds, the opportunities are endless.
Image Credit: Paras Griffin / Contributor | Getty Images
