Toward the end of their high school years the group, performing under the name LeVert, made appearances at Ohio nightclubs. In addition to enjoying their father ’s encouragement, the Leverts and Gordon could perfecttheir music skills in the fully equipped studio that was part of the Levert household. Growing up in a musical environment had its advantages. He and his brother Sean hooked up with a school friend, Marc Gordon, who sang and played keyboards. Although his father and the rest of the O ’Jays worked primarily in Philadelphia, Gerald and his siblings spent their formative years in Cleveland, Ohio. By the late 1990s he was still a leading album seller and concert headliner, and although he worked widely as a producer and was keenly aware of contemporary musical trends, in his own music he kept the focus where it had always been -on the vocals. Levert came onto the music scene in the middle 1980s as part of the trio LeVert, and embarked on a solo career in 1991. His father was Eddie Levert, lead vocalist and organizer of the O ’Jays, themselves an R&B act of unusual staying power. Following the untimely passing of his friends and fellow group members, Marc Gordon launched Saving Our Entertainers Lives (S.O.E.L.), a nonprofit, to provide awareness of the dangers of abuse and misuse of prescriptions drugs among entertainers.The son of one of the classic soul era ’s best-loved group leaders, Gerald Levert demonstrated the staying power of R&B vocal styles in an era when technologically driven musical genres such as hiphop gradually gained ascendancy. It was reported that prior to Sean’s passing he experienced hallucinations and other symptoms due to anxiety. It was later determined that his death was the result of a medical emergency that required certain medications while Sean was jailed due to unpaid child support. Sean LeVert passed away 16 months later, on March 30, 2008, at the age of 39. The cause of his death was an accidental overdose of prescription medicine. Gerald LeVert died on November 10, 2006, at the age of 40. The group LeVert was also credited with “discovering” and promoting other popular Cleveland R&B groups that emerged on the R&B scene in the 1990s including The Rude Boys, Men at Large, and The Girls. Gerald LeVert went on to make solo music as well as music with the singing group LSG, which included LeVert, Johnny Gill, Keith Sweat, and Eddie LeVert. Additionally, “Casanova” also was popularized by the New Orleans Rebirth Brass Band. “Casanova” was featured in Whoopi Goldberg’s film Fatal Beauty (1987) and was part of the 1987 soundtrack for the film The Pick-Up Artist starring Robert Downey Jr. Their hit was quickly adopted by Hollywood filmmakers. “Casanova” was the group’s only top 10 on both charts. In 1987 the group released their album The Big Throwdown which became an even greater success due to the popularity of their R&B hit “Casanova,” which reached no. Their second album, Bloodline, was release the following year in 1986 and featured the single “(Pop, Pop, Pop) Goes My Mind” which rose to no. Their debut album, I Get Hot, was released later that year. The group’s first single, “I’m Still,” was released in 1984 on the Tempre Records label. Gerald LeVert was born July 13, 1966, and Sean was born September 28, 1968, both in Canton, Ohio, to Eddie LeVert and Martha LeVert. Marc Gordon was born on September 8, 1964, in Cleveland, Ohio.

Influenced by their father’s illustrious career in soul and R&B music, the LeVert brothers, growing up in Shaker Heights, Ohio, decided to form their singing group in 1983. Sean and Gerald were sons of Eddie LeVert, the popular lead singer and founder of the R&B group The O’Jays. LeVert was a popular R&B group composed of Marc Gordon (1964-2010), Gerald Levert (1966-2006) and Sean Levert (1968-2008).

Gerald levert bloodline full album