Michelle Ayers

' Michelle Ayers '
Born	1965 New Jersey, United States
Nationality	American
Occupation	Singer, songwriter
Years active	1988-present
Website
https://iammichelleayers.live/

Michelle Ayers, born as Michell Bennett also known as Michell Shantain Bennett-Ayers. She is a talented American Singer-Songwriter and Radio/TV host, born and raised in Newark, New Jersey. She was born into a Pentecostal church background with her father and uncle being pastors. Michelle was first introduced to the music scene by her boyfriend who was in a singing group.

Career

Michelle Ayers is a Professional Recording Artist, and the owner of Allisay Financial Services Insurance Agency. She started her career in 1988 with "Another Lover", which hit the Billboard charts 2 weeks after its release. She is known for her dance hits such as "Share My Love", and "Joy" and her biggest hit "Respect", which was remixed by David Morales.

Michelle grew up in the Pentecostal church (her father and an uncle were both pastors), but she had a boyfriend who was in a singing group and he introduced her, and her soaring, soulful, gospel-trained voice to Meekaeel Muhammad’s recording studio and Kevin Hedge was his engineer. Hedge had her record a “reference track,” which is a vocal recording so that the “actual” artist who will ultimately record/release it would understand the movement and melodies of the song.

Hedge loved Michelle so much that he promised the 17-year singer that he would surely record with her one day. That day didn’t happen for another 4 years. But when Ayers walked into a Jersey diner in East Orange, where she was living at the time, to find Hedge, along with Josh Milan and Chris Herbert, who was now the successful R&B group BLAZE, she screamed with excitement. She almost fanned out, excited to see the successful trio breaking bread in her hometown. But Hedge quickly asked her point blank “ARE YOU READY?” She was dumbfounded that he remembered his promise. “We were in the studio recording 2 weeks later.” That kept promise gave birth to a #1 smash hit on the dance charts, the powerful “ANOTHER LOVER,” written by the members of Blaze.

Michelle Ayers would go on to record such anthems as “RESPECT,” which sizzled into the Top 5 and was remixed by the music maestro David Morales, as deejays around the globe took to spinning Michelle’s powerhouse vocals over tracks from Europe and throughout Asia, and “SHARE MY LOVE” soon followed and Michelle Ayers and her rousing vocals could be heard at clubs around the globe. But Michelle would realize the greatest levels of success when she came home to tens of thousands of people at renowned music festivals, including Newark’s Unity Festival in Weequahic Park, where she shared the stage with such giants as R&B supergroup GUY, soul icons The Manhattans, R&B/dance superstar Evelyn “Champagne” King and the re-emerging rock - and -roller who would soon become The Queen of Rock & Roll Tina Turner. “I remember meeting Teena Marie, on stage at the Unity Festival. We became such great friends and were in each other’s lives until she left this earth. She was just amazing. Power House Singer Jocelyn Brown once stepped in to cover me when I had a family emergency and couldn’t record a track hold a very special place in my heart.” Ayers lists Aretha Franklin, Natalie Cole, and Kim Burrell as influences as well and her dynamic voice is indeed in great company.

Michelle Ayers was excited to have an amazing career, as hits like “THAT’S LIFE” and “JOY” (a track she did with BIG MOSES with her as a featured vocalist) all kept her busy. As Michelle was expanding her repertoire to include more R&B stylings and doing intimate shows, she was offered a solo deal with Mercury Records but didn’t take it because she was preparing for the birth of her third child and shifting her priorities. “I had moved away from the city and moved to the Poconos, only to have to travel from NYC back up into the mountains. It was going too fast. It was moving too fast and I loved it too much. I felt like I was simply pulled away. I lost the passion but I think it was about God keeping me separated. I heard the Lord say about a year or so ago that ‘if you had stayed, you wouldn’t be here today.’” Maturity and a true love of the music spoke to Michelle’s heart and then “FAST STEPPIN” came to her, but it wasn’t instant. When she first heard an initial track, it didn’t hit. “I told Ace Mungin that he needed to send me something else. And when he sent this track, I just wanted to step. I wanted to dance. The uptempo soon-to-be classic has formidable credits, with producers Derrick Ricky Nelson and Ace Mungin of Acebeat Music. The Original Mix and Master is by Shawn "Morpheus" Waters. The Wood Floor Underground/House Mix was by Derrick Ricky Nelson and Ace Mungin. Shawn "Morpheus" Waters, a previous member of the Legendary Force MDs, did the original mix of the song and helped to master it and even supported Michelle by helping with vocal arrangements for the track. The planets are aligning for “FAST STEPPIN’.”

Discography

Singles

• "Another Lover" (1988)
• "Respect" (1992)
• "Share My Love" (1992)
• "That's Life" (1997)
• "Fast Steppin'" (2022)
• "Acebeat Steppin' Mix" (2022)

External Links

• Michelle Ayers Official Website
• Michelle Ayers Instagram
• Michelle Ayers Facebook
• Michelle Ayers Twitter
• Michelle Ayers Spotify
• Michelle Ayers Apple Music
• Michelle Ayers Soundcloud