| BORN; 5th JULY 1973 | CHINESE SIGN; WATER OX |
| STAR SIGN; CANCER | MOON SIGN; GEMINI | VENUS SIGN; LEO | MARS SIGN; ARIES|

With a sound as sultry as a summer afternoon, Joe gracefully wraps his voice around the smooth, R&B melodies on his Jive debut release "All That I Am." From the playfully seductive "Good Girls," and the sweet "I Want To Know" Joe's answer to Whitney Houston's "Shoop Shoop" from "Waiting To Exhale" to the heartbreaking beauty of "You Should Have Told Me You've Got A Man," Joe generates sparks of emotional electricity, through both his words and music. "I want to bring out more romance in R&B," he says. "I love to write songs with sweet melodies; songs that are going to be sketched into a person's mind in pure feelings. "Joe's lyrics reveal a man who's searching for answers to the most essential romantic questions; particularly one who's trying to understand a female's point of view. "I love women and appreciate the role they play in my life," he says. "I'm trying to broaden the music's perspective on love and relationships, to bring some idealism and fantasy to it. "Music has always been a central part of Joe's life. The son of two preachers, Joe was always singing, playing guitar or directing the choir in his parents Pentecostal Church in Opelika, Alabama. Gospel greats like Commission, the Winans, the Clark Sisters and Vanessa Bell Armstrong, as well as soul legends Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and Sam Cooke provided constant inspiration. However, it wasn't until Joe discovered Bobby Brown, Guy and Keith Sweat that he recognized his own calling; as a singer and a songwriter. "By the time I was 16, I was playing in a 7-piece band in local clubs from 9p.m. Until 4a.m., covering Johnny Gill, Bobby Brown and Babyface tunes," he says, "I was like a DJ, a vocal DJ." After graduating from high school, Joe moved back and forth between Alabama and Georgia, writing music, singing and doing odd jobs. Then one day, he took a life-altering risk and purchased a one-way bus ticket to New Jersey where he knew some people who knew some people in the music business. Although closer to fulfilling his ambitions, Joe's longed for break was still to come. In the meantime, he worked at a Gospel music store where his encyclopedia knowledge of the genre came in handy and played guitar for a local church. Through the church he met Keith Miller and Noel Gorey who introduced Joe to a record producer, Vincent Herbert, with whom he recorded a three-song demo. Soon after, Tse Williams signed Joe to a publishing deal with Zomba. He made his recording debut with the track "All The Things You Want To Do," on the soundtrack to the movie "Don't Be A Menace." Joe produced his Jive Records album debut, which was recorded at "The Crib" in New Jersey and mixed at Bear Tracks and Battery Studios, with Gerald Levert, Tony Nicholas, Larry Campbell, and Rodney Jerkins. He co-wrote "Good Girls" with Joshua Thompson and Michelle Williams and "No One Else Comes Close" with Gary Baker and Wayne Perry. "There's an abundance of thoughts and feelings on this record. I can never stop thinking what if?" Joe admits, adding, "I don't like too much production or even doing a lot of takes of a song. I want everything to sound fresh and real." Recently, Joe remixed the Tina Turner/Barry White duet "Never In Your Dreams" and Turner's "Something Beautiful Remains," as well as working with LaFace on "Dreamings" for the 1996 Summer Olympic's album. He's also written songs and produced a debut album for Ideal.

Joe is an R&B singer-songwriter from Alabama who has been performing since he was a child, first in his parents' gospel choir and later in a seven- piece R&B cover band. Inspired by Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and Bobby Brown, Joe honed his vocal abilities throughout his teenage years, and when he graduated from high school, he bought a one-way bus ticket to New Jersey, where he hoped to break into the R&B business. Sure enough Joe recorded a three-song demo tape with producer Tse Williams that landed him a publishing deal and, later, a record contract with Jive. Joe's self- produced debut album, Everything, came out in 1993. He has also written songs and produced albums for Ideal and Deja Groove. When people say your name, they automatically think of sex! That's good. That's real good. More power to the people! Well you're doing the right thing. Far better to be known for that … Of course. Far better to be known for that. I'd rather promote sex than to promote violence. I'd rather see people making love than fighting. We've heard that Mariah Carey is hard to work with. How did you find it? I've heard that a lot, but she's beautiful to work with. I'm not just saying that. To have the opportunity to work and hang out with her, to be around her, you get to see her differently from how everyone else does. She's a superstar. She has so many things that she wants to do. She has so much freedom, so lively, it's a beautiful thing to see. Did you know Posh & Becks are big fans of yours? I'm so honoured that they used my song, 'All The Things Your Man Will Do' for the first dance at their wedding. I've never met them, but I would love to meet them just to say thank you. To have an affect on people's lives especially people of that calibre is such an honour. It's like winning a Grammy, a big pat on the back. Even if they weren't together, for them to know who I am is great. When I met Mariah she said she had my CD in her car and I was like "you gotta be kidding me!". I feel like a regular guy on the street. Fortunately for me I had the chance to have a record deal. I feel lucky, blessed. What's the single 'Stutter' about? It's a song different from what I usually write. It's about a girl who's lying to me - I never write stuff like that normally! Just to hook up with Mystikal and bring an uptempo feel was a real change. I've only ever done that once before with Big Pun on 'Don't Wanna Be a Playa'. Mystikal's so animated, has so much energy, he was great to work with. Why did you choose the Pharcyde's 'Passin' Me By' to sample? I've always been a fan of the Pharcyde and Quincy Jones who did the original instrumental. Quincy was really cool about it. I don't use samples very often, but I used the loop because it suited the song. I prefer songs in their original state which is why I don't do remixes. The Pharcyde version is a remix and we were going to do a Timbaland remix but it didn't work. Are you going to be touring over here? I'd like to do a show over here, yeah. Any British artists that you'd like to double up with? Craig David is really good. I think y'all have a golden child there. He's got a great voice and I think he's going to be a great thing for England. Do you think he'll go down well in America? I think he will. I'm very critical, but I like his voice. I think he'll go a long way. What do you think of Southern hip hop? I love it. I love Outkast. I'm from the South so I understand the way they deliver their lyrics and why. Is there a scene in your hometown? There's a big scene in Georgia. I may not be a part of it, but it's a big scene. You have Jermaine Dupri in Atlanta. There's Outkast, Goodie Mob, the whole Dungeon Family, Usher. . .He's like my little brother, he's a good guy. Atlanta's really big, TLC, and Pink are based down there too. Do you know Destiny's Child? Yeah, they're good friends of mine. Do you think Beyonce's going to go off on her own? That's because everyone associates the songs with her. When you see the video or hear the song, it's Beyonce. It's like how Sisqo was perceived in Dru Hill. I'm sure if she ever went solo she'd be great as would any of the other girls, Kelly or Michelle. I've worked with a lot of groups from Hi-5 to SWV and you do have certain times envy between singers. Great groups break up and you never know why. Sometimes it's just meant to be. Are British girls more subdued at your gigs? It is a little different. American girls, not be negative but they're less exotic. Just to listen to you girls talk all day - 'I'm just going down to the pub'. Like the way you pronounce 'vitamin' and 'aluminium'. I want to take elocution lessons and speak proper! What are the Grammys like? When I found out I was nominated for four Grammys I think my whole attitude changed. I was like, you know what? I am there! Even if I don't win, that feeling was unbelievable. I'm up against some tough guys; Brian McKnight, D'Angelo, Sisqo . . .a lot of great artists. And the Soultrain Awards? There my personal favourites because that's like your family and your peers saluting you. What are the parties like? The parties at these awards are unbelievable. They're very exclusive. You have a gold ticket or a platinum ticket, depending on how many records you sell. It's kinda bad. A couple of years I went to the gold parties but now I'm at the platinum ones. Yeah! Would you like to act? I'd love to. I've had lots of scripts and people want to put me in action roles but I'm concentrating on music right now. I'd like to be the first black Bond. Chris Tucker's in '00Soul', a funny version of James Bond. It's hard being a male r&b soloist. In the shadow of R. Kelly, your light burns pretty dimly, and if you're not a pretty boy like Ginuwine, Usher or Montell Jordan, you've got major challenges ahead. But Joe has persevered. He achieved nominal fame on the back of the swing-beat club hit 'I'm In Love', but it was the female anthem, 'All The Things' (from the motion picture soundtrack 'Don't Be A Menace To South Central While Drinking Your Juice In The Hood') that launched him as both a romantic contender, and an alternative to R. Kelly's dominance. Unfortunately, his debut solo album, 'Joe' disappeared as swiftly as it came, throwing doubt on the likelihood that Joe would be here to stay. However, Kedar Massenburg, head of Motown Records, and D'Angelo's former manager brought Joe under his managerial wing (he also manages Erykah Badu), and exploited the strengths contained within Joe's second album, 'All That I Am' for his recent release, 'My Name Is Joe'. On it, Joe's rich, church-orientated voice enlivens ballads and love odes, proving that Joe is not the singer to approach should you want romance with rap-inspired attitude. Joe is the singer who will promise you tomorrow and wake up with you when tomorrow dawns. The success of 'My Name Is Joe' has been enduring. Spurred on by the two step, 'Table For Two' and quiet storm favourite, 'I Wanna Know', Joe has gone on to sell over a million copies of the latter single in the US alone. He's further capitalised on this by making a name for himself in the mainstream by duetting with Mariah Carey on their cover of Keith Sweat's 'Make It Last Forever'. But don't think you've got him pegged. Just when you thought Joe had become luver-man number one, he's released the club-bound 'Stutter', a self-descriptive melody jigsaw which features Mystikal ('Shake that Ass') and was produced by Guy and Blackstreet founder Teddy Riley. Now that R. Kelly's been beset, once again, with accusations regarding his private life; now that Donnel Jones has disappeared without trace; now that Sisqo has rejoined Dru Hill and now that Usher has yet to convince he's a man, Joe's ahead of the pack. Perseverance, it seems, pays off.