How Babyface Got His Nickname
The music industry – perhaps even more than other forms of entertainment – can be wildly fickle. However, some artists continue to endure for decades on end, leaving a massive impact on the business. Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds is certainly one such person, having worked with talents such as Whitney Houston and Madonna. But even Edmonds’ most devoted fans might not realize how he got the nickname Babyface.
Babyface released his first studio album in 1986
Although Edmonds is perhaps best known for his role as producer on so many others’ hit songs, he also has a successful recording career himself. In 1986, he released his first studio album, Lovers, under the stage name Babyface. And a few years later, he landed his first top 10 hit with “It’s No Crime” from his second album, 1989’s Tender Lover.
Other hits – including “When Can I See You,” “Everytime I Close My Eyes,” and “This Is for the Lover In You” – followed. Overall, Babyface has released nine solo albums in his career. And in 2014, he collaborated with Toni Braxton on a Grammy-winning duet album titled Love, Marriage & Divorce. He had produced Braxton’s music, signing her to his LaFace Records in the 1990s.
How Babyface got his famous nickname
According to Indy Star, Edmonds got the nickname Babyface from another famous musician. He revealed in multiple interviews that funk legend Bootsy Collins started calling him Babyface when he played in his band during the 1980s. Naturally, the nickname derived from Edmonds’ youthful appearance, which he largely retains now even at age 63.
“Suddenly, at the end of the show, I had girls coming up asking where Babyface was,” Edmonds told the Cincinnati Enquirer in 2014. “They never asked where Kenny Edmonds was.” So when the time came to release his first studio album a few years later, Edmonds embraced the nickname and became professionally known as Babyface from that day forward. And it stuck.
The R&B icon performed at the 2022 BET Awards
Babyface joined an epic list of performers at the 2022 BET Awards. The Grammy-winning star went on stage with Ella Mai and Roddy Ricch in a highly anticipated performance. Mai headlined, joined by Ricch on their song “How” and then Babyface on their collaboration, “Keeps on Fallin,’” The former track is on Mai’s Heart on My Sleeve album, which the latter just released in June 2022.
Per BET.com, other performers included Chance the Rapper and Joey Badass, Chlöe, Doechii, Fireboy DML, Givēon, Jack Harlow, Kirk Franklin and Maverick City Music, Latto, Lil Wayne, Lizzo, and Muni Long. Gogo and OGI performed on the BET Amplified Stage and Capella Grey, Pheelz, Saucy Santana, and Victoria Monet delivered pre-show performances.
