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🎤 Kenny Lattimore: The Song That Changed His Life 🎤 | Sway In The Morning
Join us on Sway In The Morning for an exclusive and heartfelt interview with the legendary Kenny Lattimore as he shares the inspiring story behind the song that transformed his life. From his angelic voice that first captured attention in 1996 to his continued influence in the music industry, this episode is packed with emotional anecdotes, touching tributes, and a deep dive into Lattimore's illustrious career.
Discover how the hit song "For You" played a pivotal role during challenging times of love and heartbreak, and enjoy insights into the artist's journey from humble beginnings to becoming a modern-day soul man. With special mentions of iconic figures like Patty LaBelle, Lauryn Hill, and Michael Jordan, this video is a treasure trove for music aficionados.
Don't miss out on this extraordinary conversation! Subscribe to Sway's Universe for more exclusive interviews and behind-the-scenes content with your favorite artists. Follow us on social media and stay tuned for more inspiring stories and incredible music moments.
#KennyLattimore #SwayInTheMorning #SwaysUniverse #ForYou #SoulMusic #ExclusiveInterview
#KennyLattimoreSingingCareer #KennyLattimoreInfluence #KennyLattimore #KennyLattimoreInterview #KennyLattimoreStory
CHAPTERS:
0:00 - Kenny Lattimore’s Angelic Voice
1:33 - Kenny Lattimore’s Early Career & The Influence of Music Executives
6:44 - Kenny Lattimore’s Howard University Experience & The Beginning of His Solo Career
11:17 - Kenny Lattimore’s Friendship With Michael Jordan
17:45 - Kenny Lattimore Singing Opera
20:38 - Kenny Lattimore Performs “For You”
21:18 - Outro
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:00
this next guest um um strictly and I I
0:05
have no stories other than the man's
0:08
voice has been Angelic goodness since I
0:12
first heard him in
0:13
1996 working on 106 Kel radio oh wow
0:18
dorm morning
0:19
drive where there was a song that he
0:22
sang that I did not believe he actually
0:24
held the
0:28
note I used to see the dude on the video
0:31
is he holding that note is they punched
0:34
that note in the song was for you which
0:36
turned out to be one of my favorite
0:38
songs of all time that song sat with me
0:41
um at times when I went through you know
0:44
some crucial times um dealing with love
0:47
and heartbreak in the mid 90s and that
0:51
song applied to every situation because
0:55
it made me feel good fact to hear this
0:58
man sing
1:00
um and from that point on I've always
1:03
followed his career yeah and we had the
1:06
opportunity Heather said hey what do you
1:09
think of Kenny Latimore coming to sing
1:11
for Patty Lael yesterday U to celebrate
1:13
her birthday I said we can't get Kenny
1:16
Latimore he did he did say that HB what
1:21
are you talking about how we going get K
1:23
lore ask me how I feel about Luther we
1:25
could probably get him too if you want
1:27
to he bring him from the heavens and and
1:29
Heather was able to make it and I want
1:31
to say to this man he's sitting with us
1:33
right now we never got a chance to hang
1:35
out yeah uh I feel like I'm known you
1:38
since 1996 come on S uh because of that
1:41
song man you know and um watching your
1:44
career man and for you to come in and do
1:46
that your demeanor is so inviting and
1:49
warm wow yes this is a man who's put out
1:52
I don't know how many albums since
1:54
1996 lived his life on tour practically
1:59
you know married a couple of times now
2:01
this man got kids he's got a whole life
2:03
grown grown grown grown and the nicest
2:06
person you want to meet wow blessings
2:09
with all of these accolades Kenny
2:11
lore Kenny finally a way in the morning
2:16
that's what's
2:18
up thank you man is here man yo and you
2:23
you're from the DC area I'm from DC yeah
2:25
it's it's great to be in a room of
2:26
Kindred Spirits wow I mean we just
2:29
finished talking to susette Uzi Williams
2:31
that's a whole different thing I I I
2:34
want to say that uh early in my
2:37
career uh because this is all this will
2:39
all be continuous right yes early in my
2:42
career I met Uzi who was a tremendous
2:45
influence because of her spirit when you
2:49
have artists we're very sensitive
2:51
artists are very sensitive and to trust
2:54
an executive uh with different aspects
2:57
of your life because you know she didn't
2:59
know anything anything about publishing
3:01
as young black artists we didn't know
3:03
anything about publishing she sat me
3:05
down to teach me publishing this is
3:07
money that you have here writing Nur
3:10
nurturing me as a writer different
3:12
things that happened way before for you
3:14
this is where it began with the heart of
3:16
this woman and we became friends yep
3:20
it's this kind of spirit that has
3:23
allowed me to have a career and to be
3:26
who I am which is a man who's at peace a
3:29
I don't have no reason to tear down
3:31
nobody you know or or um or fight
3:34
against the industry some people come in
3:35
they they get Jaded by the business of
3:38
the industry they don't want to sing
3:39
anymore I don't want to sing no more
3:40
because they didn't do my album this way
3:41
and they
3:42
didn't but she was one to remind me
3:45
about the music the power of the music
3:47
just like what you said to me who would
3:49
have known that a song that I would put
3:51
out would touch you who you were starred
3:53
to me somewhere in in a in a distance
3:56
you know I was I don't know if I'll ever
3:57
be in a room with sway I mean of course
3:59
we we were through the years but that's
4:01
what music does it brings us all
4:03
together it has that kind of power yeah
4:05
manam man Kenny lore man I'm
4:07
looking at you like I don't believe I'm
4:09
still looking at
4:10
you man Kenny lore man see I love the
4:14
story before the story oh yeah you know
4:16
what I mean and you telling me about the
4:18
story Su reminds me yeah congratul conat
4:22
congratulations to laen Hill yes who's
4:24
always treated me so well and encouraged
4:26
me through the years and um Sue has made
4:29
sure that we've reconnected at various
4:31
times we connected the Hollywood Bowl
4:33
nice too long ago and Lauren just looked
4:34
at me like oh my God you know I'm
4:36
looking at her like oh my God but you
4:38
know it's wonderful to see her influence
4:41
uh you know I think of artists like
4:43
Jasmine Sullivan who she I mean you know
4:45
amazing other artists that she's
4:46
influenced through the you can hear the
4:49
the flavor the the relevance the um just
4:53
the Brilliance that she represented and
4:56
uh for me I learned that I had to blaze
4:58
a trail that was my own mhm that even
5:01
though I could be right in the room and
5:04
and Commissioner Gordon they allow me to
5:07
go and I would sit behind the soundboard
5:09
with LA people don't know this wow when
5:11
I would go to the concert I was
5:13
privileged enough to sit with
5:14
Commissioner Gordon as he mixed those
5:17
shows H so when she came out singing and
5:20
I I don't know I say this all the time
5:22
I'll never forget she would sing his
5:24
eyes on the sparrow right and then she
5:26
would come out jogging to xfactor
5:30
really it's moments like that for me as
5:31
an artist that I remember that and
5:34
sometimes I just go I'm getting ready to
5:35
come out like Lauren Hill came out you
5:37
think creatively like that because I
5:39
remember the impact that it had on me
5:41
watching her just take the stage that's
5:43
one of the most powerful moments when
5:45
people first see you live and I just
5:48
wanted to tell Uzi that on radio live in
5:52
front of everybody how much I love you
5:54
and I thank you yes Uzi because there's
5:57
so many I could go on and on and on
5:59
about the things that you exposed me to
6:01
the times when I was down down down down
6:03
on my face flat and she's like come to
6:05
the house Y come to the house I don't
6:09
care if I have to sit in the in the room
6:10
and cry uh uh up in in in Kanani's room
6:14
or whatever I had to do aides room I uh
6:17
it was that kind kind of sanctuary
6:20
Sanctuary that's a great word for it her
6:22
home she opened up to be a sanctuary to
6:25
artists like myself yeah yes I love you
6:28
for that wow man Kenny lar go ahead you
6:31
can tell him you love I'm she said it
6:33
already you you just trying to hide your
6:36
tears for you
6:40
[Music]
6:44
noop what's the story before
6:47
the what's the story before the story I
6:50
know you graduated from actually I
6:52
didn't okay let let me explain my Howard
6:54
University I am Howard Alam I went to
6:56
school for architecture and planning at
6:57
Howard University oh wow uh I got a
7:00
record deal in my first year and with
7:03
who epic I was with a band that you'll
7:06
never hear about but they were called
7:08
Mannequin man and we were produced by
7:10
Charlie Wilson and Ronnie Wilson of The
7:11
Gap B Charlie Wilson so we go back love
7:15
you s into the 80s okay and uh after
7:19
that interesting enough I that didn't
7:22
work out I went over to do a deal with a
7:23
guy named Merlin Bob and Sylvia rone
7:26
Timmy regisford at East West records
7:30
east west east west
7:32
record so I started that that didn't
7:34
quite work out and I was tired I was I
7:37
was one I didn't get completely jaded
7:38
but I thought to myself okay God if I'm
7:41
G try this one more time you know I
7:43
really got to that stage in my life
7:44
where I was like I'm gonna try this one
7:45
more time if it's not your will I don't
7:48
I'm not going to do this I'm going to do
7:50
church ministry I'm G to do youth
7:51
ministry I'm a sing in church because a
7:53
lot of times we think that um when we
7:55
have a creative gift that it has to be a
7:57
star thing and it has to be in front of
7:59
the world doesn't we have to begin to
8:01
when I speak to young kids cuz I do a
8:02
lot of mentoring and speaking I try to
8:05
tell them embrace the fact that you have
8:06
the gift and know that you can use it on
8:10
any
8:11
platform use it where wherever you can
8:14
because it's going to get the same
8:15
result it may not get it you know
8:17
fiscally a certain way but you're going
8:18
to get the same result and you'll be
8:20
satisfied so I had gotten to the point
8:22
where I was like done but I'm going to
8:24
try this one more project I'm going to
8:27
do a solo project I had been in group
8:29
thinking that that was going to help me
8:31
get there faster it did not I was wrong
8:34
and uh mean groups were pretty big Pro
8:36
um prominent back then yeah absolutely I
8:38
remember yeah so when I did uh finally
8:41
do that I came out of Howard it's a a
8:44
little more complicated story my mother
8:45
was an educator at Howard as well and
8:47
she was my manager she was my rock she
8:49
passed of cancer oh all of these
8:52
Dynamics were going on and I was trying
8:53
to figure out who I was you know who I
8:56
was as a man who I was as an artist did
8:58
I really want this
9:00
and um I moved to New York I felt like
9:02
God told me to move to New York your
9:04
producers there I left everything moved
9:06
to New York and met this guy named
9:08
Darren Jenkins he just this is the fast
9:11
story but just produced this song on a
9:12
new cat named
9:15
Joe Had song called I'm in Love by Joe
9:18
so I was like just like you said why
9:20
would Kenny L come that's I was like why
9:22
would why would you know uh this amazing
9:27
producer Jay dibs do my demo why you
9:30
know and it was almost like just shut up
9:32
Kenny shut up and just go with it you
9:34
know so I went and uh sat and did a
9:37
meeting with him and really the rest is
9:39
history for you was on that demo oh my
9:41
god um another song where did love go
9:43
that made the album was on the demo a
9:44
lot a lot of the the tunes were there um
9:47
but I just had to keep developing and
9:49
figuring out who I was as an artist
9:51
which what Sue was talking about was the
9:53
hardest thing particularly on your first
9:56
artist what aspect of me do I showcase I
9:59
come from classical music actually so
10:01
you I've got classical jazz R&B all kind
10:04
of stuff mixed in and if you come see me
10:07
live go see Kenny lore go to Kenny
10:08
lore.com find her where I am Kenny
10:10
lore.com hold on man we got to get make
10:12
sure we do that Kenny lore.com that was
10:16
a plot twist for the classical music
10:18
yeah absolutely I came from that my
10:19
mother discovered I could sing when I
10:21
was 12 I started singing first the
10:23
American song book like uh I Left My
10:25
Heart in San Francisco
10:31
and eventually it developed into doing
10:33
classical and all which broke me out of
10:37
a severe shyness actually I was
10:39
extremely extreme you probably can still
10:41
see it I know usually people that are
10:43
shy doesn't completely go away but music
10:45
gave
10:46
me uh
10:48
purpose and it gave me this place where
10:52
I was comfortable uh being expressed
10:54
feeling like I had something to say and
10:56
uh so it broke me out of a lot of the
10:58
the par ization that I felt um
11:01
paralyzation that's the music business
11:04
does that to hell yeah cuz they telling
11:06
you how they want you to sound
11:07
absolutely how they want you to look yep
11:10
they'll even pick out your clothes yeah
11:12
and it's a head trip and then you got to
11:13
go out and sell it and you're like okay
11:15
am I going to really sell this so and
11:17
and you know I had come from so much
11:18
from classical from gospel from and I
11:21
always wanted to be an artist that could
11:22
sing all of it authentically where you
11:25
never said he should have never touched
11:27
that song you know oh oh he can do that
11:28
too the only one that I haven't done
11:31
fully is the classical again uh I've
11:35
done some jazz stuff I sang with Nancy
11:37
Wilson on her last Grammy awardwinning
11:40
project I've done some Gospel Projects
11:42
that were number one I've done a lot of
11:44
but I'm going to do uh Disney Hall in in
11:47
uh Los Angeles and I'm going to do the
11:48
Kennedy Center both this year okay and
11:52
you'll hear me sing something classical
11:54
you know full classical song
11:56
congratulations no you know what's crazy
11:58
now you know what's crazy about this if
12:00
I would have asked you to do that they
12:01
would have yelled at me and said you
12:03
making a cuz you want to sing with the
12:06
people and that's the thing we want to
12:08
avoid that part well let's see what he
12:10
sings I might not know the Italian well
12:12
when I went to um when I was in school
12:14
one of my professors taught me a little
12:16
German song I'll sing a little bit of it
12:18
okay but it is what I generally let
12:20
people know um I went out for being a
12:23
Maryland distinguished scholar because I
12:24
ended High School in the state of
12:25
Maryland and she brought me into a room
12:28
and was extremely nervous but I began to
12:31
sing for the
12:34
[Music]
12:37
[Laughter]
12:39
[Music]
12:50
board and I got the scholarship wait a
12:54
minute I think we got a hyen up in
12:59
W was that what just happened can he
13:05
go what is the
13:08
transformation I won't complain even
13:10
though my heart is breaking my my my uh
13:12
I won't complain so I told S I had two
13:14
questions and and and and every time
13:16
you're in town I do my best me and Sue
13:18
to come see you I saw you sing in in
13:22
Spanish before Oh yeah and I was like
13:25
how does he know how to do that I've
13:28
never seen the jour thing I didn't even
13:30
know I'm still trying to look I fix my
13:33
hand girl so no for real that has to be
13:39
fixed but I didn't know how how you do
13:42
that so you had have to answer that
13:44
question and secondly there was a viral
13:46
moment with you with Michael Jordan in
13:48
the last dance and Michael's like
13:50
Kenny's a good friend of mine how the
13:52
hell did you meet Michael Jordan like
13:54
when did this friendship cuz you were
13:56
probably there at that too soon yeah
13:58
because he there's this moment when
14:00
Mike's on the bus with the headphones
14:01
like I'm listening to Kenny lore Kenny's
14:03
a good friend of mine I was like who
14:05
says that Mike come on K you never told
14:09
me that part we was in Jamaica together
14:11
Kenny talk to me K holding out K hold
14:15
well on the on the language thing when
14:17
you when you are in studying classical
14:19
music you learn more phonetics of
14:21
various languages I sang in about nine
14:22
different languages and you go in it and
14:25
they'll say you know the why is this
14:26
sound in English or this is what it is
14:28
in Spanish this is what it is in italan
14:30
the you know certain letters and all and
14:31
you begin to study that along with it um
14:34
so you so I don't speak all of these
14:36
languages but you learn how to
14:37
phonetically go in and understand oh I
14:39
did that wrong this is Italian oh no no
14:41
that's French or what have you and you
14:43
make the adjustments but um it's funny
14:45
because I never did talk about the
14:47
Michael Jordan thing let's go all the
14:48
way back to the beginning okay do y'all
14:50
remember when the cologne came out
14:52
Michael Jordan colog whoa my
14:56
toror I remember that got a call if it
15:00
was probably like in '98
15:02
9798 and uh the song never too busy he
15:06
wanted to use in the television
15:08
commercial and um I was like oh my gosh
15:12
I'm getting ready to be you know I'm
15:13
gonna have this song in this commercial
15:14
it's incredible but in the world of
15:17
publishing I think that oh well I didn't
15:20
write never too busy okay so the writers
15:23
Publishing Company of never too busy
15:25
turned it down damn what an idiot wow
15:28
but I think that what was happening was
15:31
anything that was associated with the
15:32
name Michael Jordan dollars money money
15:34
money huge money but it was like no this
15:37
is a startup cologne over here this is
15:39
not Michael Jordan personally asking me
15:42
to do something out of his bank account
15:44
this is a business and this is a
15:46
businessman so I missed the opportunity
15:48
and honestly I thought well that was the
15:50
end of that wow you know I'll never
15:52
probably never see him again but I got a
15:53
call later on and his team at Nike
15:57
called and asked me if I would sing here
15:59
New York I think it was at a hotel or
16:01
something down downtown and they said
16:03
well he's launching the Jordan brand
16:05
whatever the shoes were at that moment
16:07
and they want you to come in and sing
16:09
and when I went in the first time
16:11
because I would sing for him and his
16:12
wife and different different you know
16:14
events through the years he just was
16:17
like oh my God I love this album this
16:20
this Kenny Lum and I I thought to myself
16:22
oh yeah okay you want me to sing for you
16:24
and all that and this is when I really
16:25
knew Michael Jordan was a fan he says no
16:27
it's a particular song it's called
16:29
forever so when you started naming album
16:31
Cuts yeah that was deep in the album and
16:34
I actually had with me Barry Eastman who
16:36
produced for you was with me at the
16:39
event and Barry said oh I remember that
16:41
song and he was like yo if you could
16:44
just sing this song to me and my boy
16:46
Omar
16:48
Rashad Rashad God like just they they
16:52
moved everybody out for a minute and
16:53
they said we want you to come he he just
16:55
said I want you to sing this one song
16:57
and I stood there and I was like I'm
16:58
sitting here singing forever from
17:00
Michael Jordan it just went from there
17:02
and it just it just kept
17:04
going yeah w wow what a great moment in
17:07
the final dance cuz I was like did he
17:09
just say Kenny it it was great for you
17:12
Kenny and I'm always so happy for you
17:14
and your spirit is amazing all of like
17:17
like sway said earlier like we just here
17:19
to give you flowers like we just want to
17:21
we just want you to know like we love
17:24
you like we love you all this extra
17:26
stuff you giv us is just crazy we just
17:29
here to tell you where we love you hey
17:31
tank and Jay Valentine y'all need them
17:33
on the show you ain't did that yet we
17:35
did oh y did do that t that's my buddy
17:38
he's from the DMV too take that back
17:40
hopefully we'll be doing some other
17:41
stuff together okay well I know this is
17:43
about love uh but now I'm upset um
17:47
because of the fact that I did not know
17:48
you could sing opera um and I love the
17:52
genre of Opera um and I'm very
17:54
disappointed in you
17:56
now we did not know that of you um do
18:00
you have any interest of
18:02
pursuing Opera in a very serious way
18:05
could we ever get a album
18:08
EP we see you doing some special at the
18:11
Met when I when I do Disney and I do um
18:15
Kennedy Center we're going to see how it
18:18
resonates if it resonates with the
18:20
audience um I would love to I've been in
18:22
Nashville with working with an orchestra
18:25
and I did some new versions of for you
18:27
never too busy with Orchestra if you can
18:28
imagine did some jazz some Duke
18:29
Ellington all of that but I haven't done
18:31
the classical piece I know what song I'm
18:33
going to do I got it in my head I know
18:36
we're going to start doing the
18:36
arrangement so that we can perform it
18:38
for Disney and for Kennedy Center but if
18:41
that resonates I would love to do it
18:42
classical is having a moment is having a
18:45
surgeons right now and there's a new
18:47
multi-generational crowd now that's
18:49
starting to head to the met my first
18:52
opera was German David Vagner nice oh my
18:57
God Kenny man um I don't know you you
19:01
have to come back yes
19:03
pleas you have to come back your story
19:06
needs to be heard more and more and more
19:09
uh you have very live like a singing a
19:11
performance with us how we used to do in
19:13
the studios over there that's true man
19:15
come back and do that man performance I
19:17
remember reading something about you
19:19
that I want to say in the a I don't
19:22
know what's in that cup but they called
19:24
you a a Moder day Soul Man soul man New
19:27
York Times York Times it was the New
19:29
York Times I a modern day Soul Man Kenny
19:32
Latimore yeah I get it I think it was
19:34
from the just the live performances I'm
19:36
very animated on stage and and and
19:40
dramatic and uh they enjoyed seeing all
19:42
of that doway I would love to do
19:46
Broadway I feel I would love to do
19:47
Broadway and having the influence of
19:49
classical and all that bringing some of
19:51
the tones of what I sing to a piece
19:54
would be a lot of fun this what we got
19:55
to do Kenny we got to wrap it up I hate
19:57
to do this man um can I shout out to my
20:00
my wife who you all know is Judge Faith
20:02
Faith I love your show you and Mattis
20:06
yeah my son my son KJ and baby Skyler
20:08
you all see on social media too they're
20:10
amazing what's next for you Kenny lore
20:13
um really it is going to be that that
20:15
piece I'm I'm going to put this together
20:16
the the classical and the Jazz and all
20:18
that so if anybody's in New York or DC
20:21
and you hear the about the show again
20:23
kenmore.com come and check it out
20:25
because that's where it's like you're
20:26
the barometer it's about how we connect
20:28
this music connects to the people Kenny
20:30
lore.com y'all follow him what an
20:33
amazing week we've had to all the guests
20:36
Patty Lael on down wow Round of Applause
20:39
for the week come on all right Kenny
20:40
lore thank you for coming by love you
20:43
family love you back can you give me a
20:44
little bit of for you for you I'd give a
20:48
lifetime of
20:51
stability anything you want of
20:55
[Music]
20:57
me no nothing is
21:00
impossible cuz this life is no good
21:03
alone since we've become one I made a
21:09
change and everything I do now makes
21:13
sense or Roads End and all I
21:19
do is
21:21
for
21:24
[Music]
21:25
you
21:27
yeah wa done we
21:30
out yeah see you in 2025 DB take us away
21:33
man we going into that mix
#Arts & Entertainment