Soul synth-funk group formed in 1981 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA, from the ashes of funk soul group Manchild.
The debut of The Deele, Street Beat, in 1983, took a slow burn to make noise in the industry until the third single, the reflective slow ballad Just My Luck, started to gain traction. It wasn't until the next year that the final single, Body Talk, stormed the charts and dance clubs, making it to number 3 on the Hot R&B and 77 on the pop charts. Body Talk was also featured in the infamous pilot episode of Miami Vice, 'Brothers Keeper.' They recorded three albums during the 1980s with the classic lineup of six members, later scoring two major singles, Shoot 'Em Up Movies and Two Occasions, off of their third album, Eyes Of A Stranger (1988). After the huge crossover success of their signature ballad 'Two Occasions. L.A. & Babyface left the group, along with Kevin Kayo Roberson, becoming successful producers for various artists, and Reid and Edmonds established their label [l2927] in 1989, which spawned 90s powerhouse artists such as TLC, Outkast, Toni Braxton, and P!nk. Using the moniker Babyface, Edmonds also embarked on a very successful run as a solo artist. The remaining group recorded their final album, An Invitation To Love (1993). In 2007, The Deele continued touring and promoted their new single The Only One under Eieg/D-Town Records (Dallas, Texas) and had a reunion of the original members in 2016 featured on the BET Honors event where Reid was honored.