In the nineties, the sexy all girl group, En Vogue, dominated the charts with their signature style and four part harmony sound. The seven-time Grammy-nominated R&B group took the music industry by storm and drove the fellas wild back in the day…especially when they rocked those spandex dresses in their “Hold On” debut video. The group was comprised of four beautiful ladies: Cindy Herron, Dawn Robinson, Maxine Jones and Terry Ellis. Unfortunately they disbanded at one point, however, two of the original members are on tour and Dawn is not one of them.
Her Personal Battles:
Life has not been easy for Dawn. She’s experienced many highs and lows in her musical career. Dawn departed from the group in 2000 and joined the group, Lucy Pearl, with Raphael Saddiq . She only recorded one album with Lucy Pearl, then she eventually recorded a solo record. Fans were then excited when Dawn revealed to Essence magazine in 2009 that all 4 original members of En Vogue had worked out their differences and were back together again. But lo and behold, the reunion didn’t last long. In 2010, Dawn left En Vogue for the final time, due to poor management and compensation of work, according to her account. Sadly, just as her career was in shambles so was her personal life.
Dawn was once married to Andre Allen, but they divorced in 2007, after 5 years of marriage. We also learned, on the show, that Dawn discovered she was incapable of having children by conventional means. In 2013, Dawn was devastated at the loss of her father.
Here’s Why She Left En Vogue
In speaking with Black Doctor, she explained why she really left the group, despite being labeled as the trouble maker:
“I’ve told people for years that each member of En Vogue made two pennies a piece. We garnered millions of dollars for the label, but we did not make a million dollars a piece. There is a huge problem with that, so yes I was extremely difficult… I stood up for what was right when I saw wrong, and because I did, and because I was alone, it made it look like I was the problem.”
“I was just telling my girlfriend the other day that when slavery was abolished, many slaves didn’t want to leave the plantations because the master would give them food and shelter and they were afraid to leave. The same kind of mentality exists today where people don’t leave their current situation because they are afraid. It’s scary to go out there and say enough is enough! It’s scary to fight the record company because they’re huge and have money. I am a trouble maker! We deserve so much more. When we first got together in 1989 there was no information out there for us. There were very few books and minimal information about how to run your business. You just had to depend on your attorney to give you the right information. You’re learning lessons as you go along, and you’re paying the price with your career.”
Still Standing:
Despite the ups and downs she experienced, Dawn persevered and is now volunteering at local schools, still singing in the states, and abroad. Not only is Dawn loving life by continuing to perform and doing what she does best, she still has the body of a woman in her 20’s. She maintains her figure and voice by continually to drink a lot of water, aerobics routines, and light weight lifting.
Not wanting future artists to endure what she went through, Dawn has an important message for anyone who is interested in the music business:
“I would tell someone who is interested in the industry to look through their contract with a fine toothed comb. They’re not going to force you to sign it until you’re ready to sign it, so you should take your time and go through it. There’s all kinds of information on the internet, and there’s plenty of books out now so you can find the information for yourself instead of asking your attorney and getting charged more money. If you’re a group, stick together and listen to each other before you listen to outside forces. Communication is key.”
