Peabo Bryson

Robert Lee "Peabo" Bryson (/ˈpiːboʊ/ PEE-boh; born Robert Peapo Bryson April 13, 1951 – June 2, 2026) was an American singer and songwriter. After collaborating with singers Luther Vandross and Cissy Houston on his debut album Peabo (1976), he signed to Capitol Records and released the 1978 albums Reaching for the Sky and Crosswinds, which were certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). He later released the collaborative projects We're the Best of Friends (1979) with Natalie Cole and Born to Love (1983) with Roberta Flack, the latter of which included the hit single "Tonight, I Celebrate My Love".

In 1984, he signed to Elektra Records and released the single "If Ever You're in My Arms Again", which spent several weeks atop the adult contemporary chart. During this period, he earned several top ten albums on the U.S. Billboard R&B albums chart, with Can You Stop the Rain (1991) topping the chart. Bryson also contributed to several Disney animated feature soundtracks collaborating with Celine Dion on "Beauty and the Beast", and Regina Belle on "A Whole New World", with the latter becoming the first song from an animated feature film to top the Billboard Hot 100. Bryson was a winner of two Grammy Awards, both attributed to his Disney duets.

Born as Robert Peapo Bryson in Greenville, South Carolina, on April 13, 1951, he spent much of his childhood on his grandfather's farm in Mauldin, South Carolina. Bryson's love for music stemmed from his mother, who often took the family to concerts of well-known black artists of the time.

Bryson marked his professional debut at the age of 14, singing backup for Al Freeman and the Upsetters, a local Greenville group. It was Freeman's difficulty in pronouncing Bryson's French West-Indian name, Peapo, that led Bryson to perform as Peabo. Two years later, he left home to tour the Chitlin' Circuit with another local band, Moses Dillard and the Tex-Town Display.

Bryson's first break came during a recording session at Atlanta's Bang Records. Although Bang was not impressed with Dillard's band, the young backup singer caught the ear of the label's general manager, Eddie Biscoe. Biscoe signed Bryson to a contract as a writer, producer, and arranger and encouraged Bryson to perform his own songs. For several years, Bryson worked with hometown bands and wrote and produced for Bang.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.