CARL THOMAS
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CARL THOMAS

| INDIE | AFTRA

| INDIE | AFTRA
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"Carl Thomas Is "So Much Better""

Carl Thomas Is "So Much Better"
By Ivory M. Jones, BET.com

Posted May 14, 2007 -- Shortly after releasing his sophomore album, Let’s Talk About It, Bad Boy crooner Carl Thomas seemingly disappeared.

Rumors swirled that he fell out with Bad Boy label head, Sean “Diddy” Combs, but Thomas tells BET.com that it was something far deeper that kept him away. “My brother Duranthany was murdered on Halloween Night in 2004," he says. "I really didn’t have anything to say as far as R&B and music,” he explains. “It was really hard going through that at that time.”


Thomas says it was the gentle pushing from friend and producer Mike City that helped pull him out of his creative rut. “He really got me back on my feet as far as getting back into the studio.

He helped me to realize that I had something to say again,” he recalls. After reuniting with City, Thomas is now ready to release his third album, So Much Better on Thom Tunes/Unsung Entertainment.

While he’s no longer signed to Bad Boy, Thomas says things ended amicably with Combs. “I never had any personal problems with Puff. I just felt like I was really pacified there. We started to bump heads creatively in the studio and I didn’t want those differences to reflect itself in the music,” he says.

Thomas’ album, So Much Better, is due in stores June 5.

- By Ivory M. Jones, BET.com


"Carl Thomas Returns After Brother's Death"

09/11/07
09:36:02, Categories: Music News

Carl Thomas Returns After Brother's Death

R&B star Carl Thomas is staging a comeback after taking two years away from the limelight to morn the death of his only brother.

The singer's sibling was the victim of a drive-by shooting in Illinois on Halloween night in 2004, and the tragedy left Thomas devastated. He was promoting his new album, Let's Talk About It, at the time - but the death brought his life to a standstill.

Thomas says, "I put the microphone completely down and I just wasn't interested in listening anymore to anybody. I didn't really have a voice and I really didn't have anything to say and I think I stayed in my pyjamas for about a year."

Thomas is now staging a comeback with new album So Much Better.

(This news article provided by World Entertainment News Network)
- This news article provided by World Entertainment News Network


"MIKE CITY AND JHERYL BUSBY JOIN FORCES TO RELEASE CARL THOMAS’ NEW CD “SO MUCH BETTER”"




MIKE CITY AND JHERYL BUSBY JOIN FORCES TO RELEASE CARL THOMAS’ NEW CD “SO MUCH BETTER”

1st SINGLE “2 PIECES”
#1 MOST ADDED AT URBAN AC RADIO

“SO MUCH BETTER” DUE IN STORES THIS SUMMER


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 22, 2007

Chicago native and platinum-selling R&B star, Carl Thomas gave us R&B music that was reminiscent of the golden days of Marvin Gaye, Sam Cooke, and Otis Redding but with a modern day edge. Who could forget the cinematic Emotional released in 2000 that made any serious R&B crooner step up their game. Now he’s back and under the tutelage of the legendary music man Jheryl Busby’s Umbrella Recordings and Hit maker Mike City’s Unsung Entertainment for a one-off deal with his new soulful disc So Much Better set for release in the summer of 2007.

The new single from So Much Better, “2 Pieces,” is already having success at radio as the #1 most added single at Urban AC. On “2 Pieces” Thomas expresses raw intensity on the track with sweet lyrics about the woman he loves. “Baby I can’t take the thought of losing you/cause I know that it would break, break my heart in 2 pieces.”

In addition to releasing the new disc on his label, Unsung Entertainment’s Mike City is the producer that gave us Carl Thomas’ stellar hits “I Wish” and “You Ain’t Right” from Emotional and has produced seven songs on So Much Better. Other producers on the disc include: Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis with Big Jim Wright, Bryan Michael Cox, and up and coming producing team, Pitch Black. Guest features include: Brandy, Dave Hollister, and Lalah Hathaway.

“In addition to being collaborators, Carl and I are long-time friends. We decided that while he was in between deals we would do an album together which would be released on my Unsung Entertainment label. Thanks to Carl and Mr. Busby, who gave us the one-off deal, on his Umbrella Recordings imprint, I am able to launch my label with a major star,” states Mike City.

On So Much Better, Carl Thomas keeps it sweet, but with an edge of street on “Another You” which serves as an aural testimonial to the object of his desire.

The melodic and hypnotic sounds of “Something About You,” sounds like nothing else currently blaring from the radio. Featuring vocals from Brandy, “Something About You” is a timeless song that embraces the best of pop and soul.

Umbrella Recordings’ first release was on five decade diva Patti Labelle where she released her first gospel album, The Gospel According to Patti Labelle which has been in the Top 5 on Billboard’s “Top Gospel Albums” chart for 14 weeks and held the number one spot for 10 weeks.

“To have Carl Thomas as our second release is truly a blessing.” says Busby, “He is the ultimate male soul singer of the day and we are very pleased that he decided to help his friend and do a one off deal with us. I am certain that this record will help to further cultivate his career and solidify his growth for his next deal.”

For the latest news on Carl Thomas be sure to check out his myspace page www.myspace.com/carlthomasfanpage

For more information, interviews and press kits on Carl Thomas and So Much Better please contact Tremedia: Tresa Sanders or Kelly Jackson @ 845.623.2325 or email respectively @ tre@tre-media.net and tremedia3@optonline.net.




- KOENT


Discography

2007 So Much Better
2004 Let's Talk About It [Bonus Track]
2004 Let's Talk About It
2000 Emotional

BOOKINGS:
Knockout Entertainment
MIKE B (AGENT)
Ph: 704-778-0088
Fax: 704-676-4833
Email: knockout_entertainment@yahoo.com
Blackberry: mikebee@mycingular.blackberry.net

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Bio

Carl Thomas Bio

For a soul singer coming from the midwestern city of Chicago, there is grand heritage that already exists. From the gutbucket blues of Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf to the buttery soul of Curtis Mayfield and Donny Hathaway, the musical metropolis has long been a foundation of genius. Yet, instead of being intimidated into submission, R&B sensation Carl Thomas has used his vocal and songwriting skills to scale the wailing walls of the city’s considerable rhythmic legacy.

While not much was known about the suave singer when he first signed to Bad Boy Records in the late 90’s, Carl Thomas was without a doubt as cool as the winds blowing in his native city. Standing tall as a basketball player and always impeccably dressed, he brought an acute understanding of old soul to his new music. From the dazzling 2000 debut Emotional (released on former label Bad Boy Records) to his latest disc So Much Better, the talented singer/songwriter has proven himself as an artist in the truest sense of the word.

“My only real responsibility is to the music,” Carl confesses. “I’m aware that I have to uphold a certain tradition and integrity in the music, but I also have to stay sincere to myself. I believe people who love soul music can feel when you’re not being real.” In the wrong hands, “realness” can become cliché of booty songs and artificial toughness, but one listen to Carl Thomas’ sexy singing and one realizes he isn’t having any of that.

“What comes from the heart reaches the heart,” Carl says poetically. “In other words, when I’m writing songs I try to capture scenarios that are true. There is a complexity to relationships that many songwriters miss that I try to relate; we all have a lot of drama in our lives and that is what I’m attempting to express on So Much Better.”

Opening the disc with the melodic hypnotic of “Something About You,” a laidback groove infused track that sways like a summer wind, it is obvious that Carl Thomas is back with a winner. Produced by Mike City, who has been one of Carl’s boys since his debut, “Something About You” is a blissful song of infatuation that sounds like nothing else currently blaring from the radio. Featuring vocals from Brandy, “Something About You” is a timeless song that embraces the best of pop and soul in a seamless song.

“My style has always been like a pot of gumbo,” Carl jokes. “From gospel and soul to Steely Dan and early ‘80s MTV music, it’s all a part of who I am.” Recording in Los Angeles, the former Bad Boy soul man was also pleased that Brandy was in the studio that same afternoon. Though the song should not be perceived as a duet in the traditional sense, Brandy’s sensual sound adds a layer of femininity to the song that enhances its beauty. “I’ve usually shied away from doing duets, because being an artist who performs live so much, I never wanted to have to depend on others. But, when Brandy got on this song, I just knew it was going to be amazing.”

Keeping it sweet, but with an edge of street, the single “Another You” serves as an aural testimonial to the object of his desire. With mackadelic lyrics (“I’d much rather be all by myself if I couldn’t be with you”) that would make any sexy mama respond, Carl has no problem spreading charm like butter. “Before I give the audience something different, I needed to remind them why they loved me in the first place,” Carl says.

Although Carl Thomas’ masterwork Emotional was a critical and sales success, life has not always been a simple path for the thirty-four-year old singer. After releasing the follow-up Lets Talk About It in 2004, tragedy struck home when Carl’s oldest brother was killed the same year. The youngest of five children, Carl remembers, “With the death of my brother Randy, I kind of lost my voice. I had found the truth in my brother, and now he was gone. After that, my feelings towards the world changed.”

Murdered randomly on Halloween night (2004) by gang members joy riding though the windy city, Carl’s brother was a respected correction officer and minister. Slumping into a depression that blocked him as a writer and performer, Carl says, “I knew that I had no control over the death of my brother, but I wanted to be able to at least control my own career. I love Bad Boy and Puffy, but it became more about how I want to be perceived as an artist. I didn’t know how long it would take for me to reemerge, but when it happened I wanted the situation to be different.”

Citing Mike City as the catalyst for his comeback, the producer proved himself to be a true friend when the singer needed one. Like a beacon of blazing light during Carl’s time of darkness, Thomas remembers, “Mike would call my mother and make sure everything was going all right. I was really low, but he and I would have long conversations about music, about the things that we loved to listen to; he also encouraged me to go back into the studio if only for myself. I didn’t really trust many