Mary Jane Girls
| Company type | Vocal ensemble |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1979 |
| Founder | Rick James |
| Defunct | 1987 |
| Headquarters | Los Angeles, California , United States |
| Products | Music albums and singles |
| Owner | Rick James (producer) |
The Mary Jane Girls were a female vocal ensemble from the United States, established in 1979 and recognized for tracks such as "In My House," "All Night Long," and "Candy Man." As protégées of the artist Rick James, the group dissolved in 1987.
Joanne "Jojo" McDuffie served as the lead singer, while the other members contributed mainly to the group's visual style and stage presence. In studio sessions, recordings typically featured McDuffie supported by professional session singers rather than the entire band. Throughout the 1980s, they released two albums and completed a third, which remained unreleased until it appeared in 2014 as part of a Rick James compilation.
In 2019, the Mary Jane Girls were honored with induction into the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame.
Background
Rick James often collaborated with vocalists Joanne "Jojo" McDuffie and sisters Maxine Waters Willard and Julia Waters Tillman on his recordings. Beginning in 1979, James’s live shows included McDuffie alongside Cheryl Bailey (also known as "Cheri Wells"), Candice "Candi" Ghant, and Kimberly "Maxi" Wuletich. Informally referred to as the Mary Jane Girls, this subgroup of James’s Stone City Band underwent training in both choreography and vocal performance.
Career
Following a misunderstanding with Motown in 1983, Rick James assembled an all-female group under the Mary Jane Girls name. The lineup featured McDuffie as lead vocalist, with Wells, Ghant, and Wuletich completing the ensemble. James was responsible for writing and producing all original material. Although often likened to Vanity 6—Prince’s protégées from 1982—James claimed he had developed the concept six years earlier, aiming to establish a Black female group that conveyed genuine narratives about relationships, love, empowerment, and more.
Their self-titled debut album, Mary Jane Girls (1983), included popular songs such as "Candy Man," "All Night Long" (which later appeared on the soundtrack for Grand Theft Auto: Vice City), and "Boys." Live performances were supported by the Stone City Band. Cheri Wells departed before their next release and was succeeded by Yvette "Corvette" Marine.
The group’s name referenced mary jane, a colloquial term for marijuana, reflecting Rick James’s influence. Visually, each member embodied distinct personas: McDuffie presented a street-savvy image; Ghant resembled a supermodel; Wells (later Marine) portrayed a cheerleader or valley girl; while Wuletich adopted a dominatrix style.
Their sophomore album, Only Four You (1985), showcased McDuffie prominently on lead vocals with background harmonies provided by the Waters sisters due to limited vocal capabilities among other members. The lead single "In My House" became their most successful track—reaching number three on R&B charts, number seven on the Billboard Hot 100, and topping the Hot Dance Club Play chart for two weeks. Subsequent singles like "Wild and Crazy Love" and "Break It Up" achieved moderate chart success.
Although they recorded a third album titled Conversation, it was shelved until its eventual release in 2014 within a Rick James anthology. Singles from this project included a rendition of "Walk Like a Man," which peaked at number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was featured in the movie A Fine Mess. Another single, "Shadow Lover," was promoted through a performance on Soul Train but did not receive sufficient label backing. Due to promotional challenges stemming from disputes with Motown, Ghant moved on to other endeavors by 1986. The Mary Jane Girls officially parted ways in 1987.
Legacy
Cheri Wells was brought on board by Morris Day to serve as the lead vocalist for his all-female ensemble, the Day Zs, which launched a single album and one single through Reprise Records in 1990; neither managed to enter the charts.
In 1991, Marine initiated legal action against Virgin Records, asserting that she shared lead vocal duties on tracks from Paula Abdul's debut album Forever Your Girl, specifically "Opposites Attract", "Knocked Out", and "I Need You". However, a jury decided against Marine in 1993.
The track "All Night Long" was reimagined in 1995 by Mike Gray and Jon Pearn under the title "The Hustlers Convention Remixes," attracting attention in dance clubs and reaching number 51 on UK charts. That same year, McDuffie, Ghant, and Wuletich appeared as MJG on The Jenny Jones Show and maintained sporadic live appearances afterward.
McDuffie contributed vocals to James's 1997 album Urban Rapsody on the emotional ballad "Never Say You Love Me."
In 2001, Mary J. Blige secured the rights to the "Mary Jane Girls" name with plans to assemble a multicultural girl group; however, this endeavor was never realized.
The Mary Jane Girls reunited for VH1's Where Are They Now? in 2003, featuring separate interviews with Ghant, Wells, Wuletich, Marine, and McDuffie.
In 2009, Robert Funderburg, McDuffie's spouse, applied for the "Mary Jane Girls" trademark but withdrew the application in 2010. Later that year, Kimberly "Maxi" Wuletich filed for the trademark "MJG Starring Maxi and Cheri of the Original Mary Jane Girls," which she uses when performing alongside Cheri Wells. In 2013, Rick James's estate filed a lawsuit against Wuletich and Wells over the rights to the group's name.
In 2014, Mary Jane Girls members Candice Ghant, Val Young, and Farah Melanson were honored with a HAL Award.
Studio albums
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Record label | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B |
CAN | NZ | UK | ||||||||||
| 1983 | Mary Jane Girls | 56 | 6 | — | — | 51 | Gordy | |||||||
| 1985 | Only Four You | 18 | 5 | 67 | 28 | — |
| |||||||
| "—" indicates a release that did not chart or was unavailable in that region. | ||||||||||||||
Compilation albums
- In My House: The Very Best of the Mary Jane Girls (1994, Motown)
- 20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of the Mary Jane Girls (2001, Motown)
Singles
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B |
US Dan |
AUS | BEL | CAN | IRE | NLD | NZ | UK | ||||||||||||||
| 1983 | "Candy Man" | 101 | 23 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 60 | Mary Jane Girls | |||||||||||
| "All Night Long" | 101 | 11 | — | — | — | 18 | — | — | 13 | ||||||||||||||
| "Boys" | 102 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 74 | ||||||||||||||
| 1984 | "Jealousy" | 106 | 84 | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||||||||||
| 1985 | "In My House" | "7" | "3" | "1" | "19" | "8" | "6" | "—" | "6" | "6" | "77" | "Only Four You" | |||||||||||
| "Wild and Crazy Love" | "42" | "10" | "3" | "—" | "26" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "101" | |||||||||||||
| "Break It Up" | "—" | "79" | "33" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | |||||||||||||
| "Walk Like a Man" (1986) | "41" | "91" | "—" | "—" | "26" | "97" | "—" | "—" | "48" | "—" |
A Fine Mess soundtrack |- |
All Night Long (The Hustlers Convention Remixes) (1995) |
'—' | '—' | '—' | '—' | '—' | '—' | '—' | '—' | '—' | '51' |
Non-album single |- |
External links
- Articles with short description
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