Dedric Curry and 1 Step Ahead: Time to say “Yes!”

It’s time to say yes to Dedric Curry. He grew up in Alabama the son of a pastor, and like many southern African American singers his earliest musical roots were in gospel music, but his dad sang more than gospel around the house. The pastor also had an ear for Sam Cooke, an originator of soul music, and Cooke’s songs found their way into the soundtrack of the Curry household.

He was offered a music scholarship to Central Alabama Community College, but he had already enlisted in the Army Reserves and that set him on the move: basic training followed by Army training, then deployment to the Middle East in Operation Desert Storm. Returning stateside in 1991, Curry decided to move to Long Island where he discovered the cost of living on Long Island was not the same as Alabama.

Happily, he became a business owner and, luckily for us, formed his band 1 Step Ahead which has found a secure place in the wedding industry and corporate events performances on Long Island and the greater metropolitan area.

Curry’s musical influences developed beyond gospel and Sam Cooke; he added Peabo Bryson and Luther Vandross’s R&B stylings to his soulful sources. In conversation, he noted that growing up in Alabama country music also had an impact on him and that Darius Rucker’s turn from pop to country provided an inspiration to tap that additional source. His sound carries the rich synthesis of all these styles.

With over 100 songs produced and mastered Curry has a stockpile of material from which he will draw on Episode 3. In the meantime, you can listen to his album The Untold Story on Spotify. I did the other day, and when the cut “True Love” started, I was swept up. When it ended, I thought “Yesss! And why isn’t this on the air?” I asked him about the song, and he explained his producer shopped it around, but no one chose to record it. I find it hard to believe anyone could have given it greater service than Curry himself. Judge for yourselves.

Get ready for songs from the source: soulful songs with a blues-feel that are in the pocket of R&B wrapped in country and gospel harmonies.