Hey Mr. D.J.

Zhané — Renee Neufville and Jean Norris — recorded 'Hey Mr. DJ' for their debut album Pronounced Jah-Nay, with production by Naughty by Nature's DJ Kay Gee, who built the track around a sample of Marcus Miller's 'Lonnie's Lament,' itself drawn from a John Coltrane composition. Released in 1993 on Motown Records, 'Hey Mr. DJ' reached number 4 on the Billboard R&B chart and became a defining single of the early-1990s hip-hop soul movement, showcasing Zhané's smooth harmony vocals over a laid-back, jazz-sampled groove that distinguished the group within the era's crowded R&B landscape. The track remains Zhané's signature recording and a touchstone of early-1990s hip-hop soul, frequently cited in retrospectives of the genre for its seamless blending of jazz sampling with contemporary R&B vocal arrangement.