The Untold Story of SHAI, Jay-Z & Marley Marl — The Remix the Label Refused to Push

In this episode of The L.A.M.A.R.R. Show, Dr. Garfield Bright from the legendary R&B group SHAI breaks down one of the realest music-industry stories from the 90s — the rise of the “Tonight / I Don’t Wanna Be Alone (Remix)” and how it connected SHAI, Marley Marl, and a young Jay-Z.

After the success of “If I Ever Fall In Love,” SHAI started leaning into the rise of the remix era — inspired by what Teddy Riley, SWV, Jodeci, and others were doing. The labels didn’t fully understand it yet. They were scared multiple versions of a record would “compete” with each other — instead of realizing it actually helped songs chart higher.

So SHAI moved on instinct.

They linked with Marley Marl, who believed in them — and out of love, he brought in Jay-Z, before his superstar run. SHAI paid $5–10K out of pocket to make the remix happen, because the label wouldn’t. No budget. No support. No video. Nothing.

But the streets didn’t care.

NYC DJs started spinning it heavy. It became one of those records where DJs would ask each other:

“Yo… you got that SHAI / Jay-Z joint?”

The record was heating up — a hit without the machine.
But because the label didn’t fund it… they didn’t push it.
Politics over art.

Garfield walks us through:
• the “Right Back At Cha” era
• how the acapella remix wave took off
• why labels were behind the culture
• how the remix movement changed R&B
• working directly with Marley Marl
• Jay-Z’s early grind
• and how SHAI had to hustle on their own

This is raw 90s R&B & Hip-Hop history — from someone who lived it.

Love Art Music And Real Rap. 🎙️
Real stories. Real culture. No gossip.

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People Mentioned:
• SHAI
• Dr. Garfield Bright
• Jay-Z
• Marley Marl
• Foxy Brown
• Teddy Riley
• SWV
• MCA Records

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Love • Art • Music • And Real Rap — real conversations with the creators who shaped the soundtrack of our lives.

#JayZ #MarleyMarl #SHAI #HipHopHistory #RnB #90sMusic #MusicIndustry #LAMARRShow