Troop

Troop originated as a teenage ensemble that captured a $1000 prize on the nationally televised program Puttin' on the Hits through their dance moves and lip-synching performance of New Edition's "Cool It Now." The five members from Pasadena, California—Rodney Benford, John Harreld, Allen McNeil, Steve Russell, and Reggie Warren—secured a contract with Atlantic afterward, after which their self-titled debut album yielded the 1988 LeVert-produced single "Mamacita," which climbed to number two on Billboard's Hot Soul Singles chart. Attitude, their 1989 follow-up, delivered a pair of Hot Soul Singles chart-toppers, one of them the Chuckii Booker collaboration "Spread My Wings," and received RIAA gold certification. The 1992 release Deepa marked an artistic advance and included another Hot Soul number one with the Deele cover "Sweet November," after which the group operated independently on two additional albums issued before the decade closed. Several years of inactivity followed, interrupted only by sporadic recordings and tours. They returned with the 2013 single "Forever." Outside the group, Russell achieved the greatest industry prominence as a member of the songwriting and production collective the Underdogs.