It received a Grammy Nomination for Best R&B Album and was considered one of the year’s best albums by Rolling Stone, Time, and USA Today.Ī year after the release of his debut Maxwell put out his EP “MTV Unplugged (Maxwell EP)”. The album was also a huge critical achievement for Maxwell. 36 on the Billboard 200 ( it stayed on the latter for a total of 78 weeks). 8 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and No. The album did not initially catch on with the general public however, it exploded a couple of months after its release. Though the album was completed in 1995 its release was delayed until 1996 as many execs doubted its potential to enter the mainstream. That same year he worked with renowned guitarist Wah Wah and songwriter Leon Ware (collaborator of Marvin Gaye) to complete his studio debut “Maxwell’s Urban Hang Suite”. Maxwell generated quite the buzz around New York and in 1994 he was signed to Columbia Records. Maxwell’s early sound largely incorporated the sound of jheri curl soul, an offshoot of 80s R&B that focused on a balanced combination of computerized and live instrumentation. Despite his peers expectations Maxwell excelled as a solo artist and was making circuits around New York City’s club scene in 1991.

During high school Maxwell’s classmates perceived him to be shy and awkward and it came as a surprise to them that he would venture into a career as a musician. Influenced by the likes of Prince, Marvin Gaye, and Stevie Wonder, Maxwell started to write his own music (the first of his renderings were composed on a cheap Casio keyboard a friend gave him).

Still in his childhood Maxwell joined the choir of his Baptist church however, he did not seriously pursue a career in music until he was 17. Needless to say the experience had a huge impact on the young child and left him clinging to the Christian faith for support. When Maxwell was only 3 years old he lost his father in a plane crash. He used his middle name as a stage moniker, hiding his full name from the public as a means to preserve his family’s privacy. Maxwell was born Gerald Maxwell Rivera in Brooklyn, New York, US on.

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