During my vacation in New York, I got a chance to sit still and read music mogul’s GRAMMY award winning songwriter/producer LA Reid‘s new book, Sing To Me. It was filled with soooo many jewels as well as some jaw-dropping industry gossip that had me anxious to turn every page.

You’d probably be surprised when I tell you this, but I honestly didn’t know that Reid and Babyface were musical partners – like before all the money and the fame!! I grew up listening to Babyface as a solo artist, I mean who didn’t listen to the Tender Lover album in the late 80s, but Babyface was also the last singing member to join Reid’s group “The Deel” before that and who would’ve known their studio chemistry would take the industry by storm propelling them to become highly sought out songwriters and musicians by all the label execs during that time. What was I like 5 years old when The Whispers, “Rock Steady” came out and 7 years old when Karyn White’s “Superwoman” came out?? they wrote those songs!!!…so yeah, I just remember the hugely popular and catchy tunes I sang around my mom’s house, too young to understand the effort and creativity put behind them..

But the story of how they became this dynamic duo inspired me so much because it shows what focusing your creative energy in one area can do. Before the business deals, record labels, publishing companies, executive roles, or television shows were to even come into fruition, they were creators FIRST…proving how just one song can change your life forever.

RELATED: LA Reid Says Streaming Is The Remedy: “Free Music Is Not Helping” [VIDEO]

Reid narrates so candidly of how his songs came about, I was drawn in to the gossip behind each song, lol hell I literally felt like this book was written just for me! He shares this one story about how he met Pebbles and how her hit song “Girlfriend” was originally written for the lovely Vanessa Williams. Williams had been stripped of her Miss America crown and was working on her solo debut with Polygram. Well Pebbles heard the song right after Williams had already purchased it…and let’s just say Pebbles spent whatever she had to – to get what she wanted! It worked too, landing her a hit record and her future husband…lol

Reid also shares this crazy story about the musical camaraderie between brothers Michael and Jermaine Jackson and how he got caught in between it all – and can you believe it, the royal King of Pop was the culprit! #RIPMJ

Aside from the juicy tales of Pebbles being jealous of Whitney, to sending Usher to Puffy’s “swag” camp, Reid also opens up about the struggles transitioning from a creator to a businessman, losing his marriage to Pebbles and ultimately making one of the biggest decisions of his life that left him crying in his New York office.

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So if you’re a songwriter, producer, aspiring music industry executive or just an avid music enthusiast who loved the era in which he wrote some of his biggest songs, you will enjoy Reid’s personal testimony of trials and triumph that ultimately brought him back full circle.

RELATED: LA Reid’s Full Songwriting Discography

His transparency about life events and how always wanting what you don’t have can oftentimes distract you from your purpose. This hit home for me as I find myself always fighting for balance between being a mother, having a personal life, keeping the lights on and locking away in the studio.

Reid makes peace with his purpose and confidently accepts that he was given unique gifts from God – to be able to identify talent, cultivate culture and produce hit records.

I’ve included the link for you to buy below. Enjoy:)

Sing to Me: My Story of Making Music, Finding Magic, and Searching for Who’s Next

Don’t forget to come back and let me know your thoughts in the comments!