HI-FIVE
THE
KISSING
GAME
The Hi-Five journey has not been without heartache and pain. In 2007 the members tragically lost Tony Thompson. However, his memory is forever embedded in the ears of old school R&B. As the 1990's lead singer of the quintet Hi-Five, his vocal maturity was easily recognizable through his soft soulful tones and quick high pitches.
One would think that a group of young boys from Waco, Texas could not possibly know much about love and romance, much less have young girls screaming about it. But take one listen to "The Kissig Game" and not only will your mind change, but so will your view of young love.
While many have conceded that Hi-Five was definitely mature beyond their years, one thing can constatnly be said...Their music will always be relevant.
Just as Hi-Five released their 1990 self-titled album, tragedy struck. One of the groups singers, Toriano Easley (age 17) was sent to prison and was replaced with Treston Irby. Then in 1993, Roderick “Pooh” Clark was permanently paralyzed in a near fatal car accident. As things seemed to be on the rise for Hi-Five with new music and each member also taking on other projects, tragedy would soon find itself back in the lives of Hi-Five. In 2011, Treston Irby of the group was shot five times after performing at a night club and made a successful recovery. With their ever growing bond and strength the members rallied around one another and vowed to keep moving forward. But once again, tragedy would rear its head - this time it would be former member Russell Neal who at the time of his alleged incident was not a member of Hi-Five.
As these five extremely mature men continue to walk a blessed path...they are constantly reminded of how fragile life is as well as the music life.
growth.maturity.love
HI- FIVE (cont.)
BLAQUELINE: I listened to the song "Different Kiss" from your recently released EP titled Hi-Five The EP and it truly plays on the heels of commitment and emotions. Tell your fans the story behind the song.
HI-FIVE: We wanted to show growth, maturity and love and bring love back to R&B music. R&B has diminished over the years and people are asking for what we are bringing, which is love back into the music and lyrically taking you there. Different Kiss is one of those songs that the lady feels that she has been around too long and we (men) are still doing the same thing.
BLAQUELINE: I am going to give you a verse from Different Kiss and I want you to tell me what it means - "I had my fun now I'm through with it, don't want to feed you broken promises, don't want to see you go because I will lose it. When you find what we have you hold on.
HI-FIVE: When you grow and things are changing in your relationship, you try to do it right or better. Sometimes it takes another person to help you see things that you wouldn't normally see without them. You want to make that change, give them a "Different Kiss" this time.
As I switched gears, I asked the gentlement to tell us how they would like Tony Thompson to be remembered, since the public has formed their own perception of him and his untimely death.
HI-FIVE (Marcus Sanders): I would like him to be remembered for the good and great things he did in life. Everyone has issues and if any of us were perfect, why would we be here? While we had our ups and downs, he was a real friend and we loved each other through it all.
TRESTON IRBY I want him to be remembered as the voice of "The Kissing Game." We are human and so was Tony...