Key Takeaways
- Jodeci realized they were breaking big when Washington, D.C., fans rushed the stage, stole K-Ci and Mr. Dalvin’s shoes, and nearly flipped their van during a chaotic 40-minute escape.
- The group credits D.C. with launching its rise as Forever My Lady topped Billboard’s R&B albums chart, went triple platinum, and produced hits including “Come and Talk to Me” and “Stay.”
- Jodeci will celebrate the album’s 35th anniversary with an expanded edition and a 35-city U.S. tour running from Oct. 24 in San Francisco through Dec. 19 in Charlotte.
Jodeci knew something had changed when fans in Washington, D.C., nearly flipped their van over and took their shoes.
As the R&B group celebrates the 35th anniversary of its landmark debut album, Forever My Lady, K-Ci Hailey and Mr. Dalvin looked back at the chaotic early performance that convinced them Jodeci was becoming something much bigger. The Charlotte natives told People that D.C. was the first city where the fans’ reaction made their newfound fame impossible to ignore.
“D.C. is when we knew. It was so crazy,” Dalvin recalled. “We got on the stage, and after maybe 10, 15 minutes of being on stage, they rushed the stage. We tried to get to the car, and that’s when they almost turned our van over. They took my shoes off my feet, had me up in the air.”
K-Ci didn't make it out with his footwear, either. “They took my shoes, too,” he said. “It was scary, man.”
According to K-Ci, the group was performing at an outdoor event connected to Donnie Simpson and BET when the crowd descended on them. What should have been a short trip from the stage to their vehicle became a roughly 40-minute ordeal, with fans even grabbing items from inside the van.
Dalvin eventually found the humor in the chaos. “I knew we either made it or we was getting robbed,” he joked. “One of the two.”
For Jodeci, the wild encounter also became an early indication that Forever My Lady was connecting. Released in May 1991, the album reached No. 1 on Billboard's Top R&B Albums chart and eventually went triple platinum in the U.S. Songs including “Come and Talk to Me,” “Stay,” and the title track helped establish Jodeci as one of the decade’s defining R&B groups.
K-Ci still credits Washington with helping turn that momentum into something bigger.
“That’s when we found out, ‘Yo, I think we onto something, y’all. I think this is going to be big,’” he said. “That was it. We give much props and thanks to Washington, D.C., because they are the ones that broke Jodeci. They did that.”
Thirty-five years later, the group is returning to the road with the same album at the center of the celebration. Jodeci announced a 36-date U.S. tour behind Forever My Lady, beginning Oct. 24 in San Francisco and running through Dec. 20, when the group closes the trek in its hometown of Charlotte.
An expanded 35th-anniversary edition of the album was also released this summer with five bonus tracks, including a previously unreleased a cappella version of “Stay.”
And after three decades of crowds, records and more than 20 million albums sold worldwide, performing for those fans remains the point.
“Being out there with the fans and performing, that’s our thing right there,” K-Ci said. “Getting to see our fans and people that’s been loving us and even people that don’t even know Jodeci, just coming out, just hanging out to see what that’s all about, is a good time.”
JODECI FOREVER MY LADY TOUR DATES
Oct. 24 — The Masonic — San Francisco, CA
Oct. 25 — YouTube Theatre — Inglewood, CA
Oct. 27 — Toyota Arena — Ontario, CA
Oct. 29 — The Magnolia — El Cajon, CA
Oct. 30 — Arizona Financial Theatre — Phoenix, AZ
Oct. 31 — Palms Casino — Las Vegas, NV
Nov. 4 — Stifel Theatre — St. Louis, MO
Nov. 6 — Fox Theatre — Detroit, MI
Nov. 7 — Arie Crown Theater — Chicago, IL
Nov. 8 — Murat Theatre at Old National Centre — Indianapolis, IN
Nov. 10 — The Andrew J. Brady Music Center — Cincinnati, OH
Nov. 11 — Citizens Live at The Wylie — Pittsburgh, PA
Nov. 12 — MGM National Harbor — Oxon Hill, MD
Nov. 14 — KeyBank State Theatre at Playhouse Square — Cleveland, OH
Nov. 15 — Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Bristol — Bristol, VA
Nov. 18 — Loew’s Jersey Theatre — Jersey City, NJ
Nov. 19 — Parx Casino — Bensalem, PA
Nov. 20 — The Paramount Baltimore — Baltimore, MD
Nov. 22 — The Louisville Palace — Louisville, KY
Nov. 24 — Orpheum Theatre — Memphis, TN
Nov. 27 — WinStar World Casino and Resort — Thackerville, OK
Nov. 28 — Riverwind Casino — Norman, OK
Nov. 29 — Arena Theater — Houston, TX
Dec. 1 — Simmons Bank Arena — North Little Rock, AR
Dec. 2 — Saenger Theatre — New Orleans, LA
Dec. 3 — BJCC Concert Hall — Birmingham, AL
Dec. 5 — Lake Charles Event Center — Lake Charles, LA
Dec. 6 — Saenger Theatre — Mobile, AL
Dec. 8 — Johnny Mercer Theater — Savannah, GA
Dec. 10 — The Truth — Nashville, TN
Dec. 11 — Township Auditorium — Columbia, SC
Dec. 13 — Duke Energy Center for the Arts — St. Petersburg, FL
Dec. 15 — Florida Theatre — Jacksonville, FL
Dec. 16 — The Fillmore Miami Beach — Miami, FL
Dec. 19 — Ovens Auditorium — Charlotte, NC
Dec. 20 — Ovens Auditorium — Charlotte, NC
