Don Philip was born 23 years ago in Miami, Florida. He discovered his love of singing while attending church with his mother. Consequently, Don's vocal style quickly echoed the gospel stylings of his favorite classic artists such as Hezekiah Walker and Shirley Caesar. The first song Don ever learned on his own was "Hey Baby, I'm The Telephone Man," which he performed at home at age 3. He also cites the Stevie Wonder song, "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life" as a major influence, since he remembers his mother singing it to him while he was still a child. Don began his professional singing career while still in high school. He formed a three-piece group with two other male friends, and together they traveled around the Miami area entering high school talent shows singing covers of Boys II Men songs. "We'd win every time," Don says, "even though it wasn't even our school! The other kids would get pretty mad!"
Also during his high school years, Don did a number of odd jobs to support his singing career. "I did singing telegrams, I sang at funerals, and I sang to kids at parties in a Barney outfit," Don remembers. "People would be so shocked when I sang. They'd say, you should be with a record label with that voice!'." Don even "busked" on the boardwalk of Miami Beach, singing a-capella for loose change. " I made a ton of money," says Don. "All I had to do was sing Killing Me Softly' and people would go nuts!".
When Don was 16, he left home to travel to Philadelphia to hone his chops singing professionally in clubs and demo'ing his first songs. After one year of getting some experience under his belt, he returned to Miami at 17 to be a guest opener for Peobo Bryson, Taylor Dayne, and a host of other soul singers touring through the area. A chance meeting with an artist named Donna Allen on Gloria Estefan's label gave him his first shot at singing backup vocals, leading to an even greater break of singing backups for Gloria Estefan herself on her Disney World TV special. Don also became a recurring performer on BET's "Fill The Room" program, which was geared on presenting fresh, upcoming talent.
Itching for more, Don met two producers who had worked with 'N Sync who told him he should come to New York and "get noticed." The producers happened to be meeting with Jive Records executives one afternoon when they offered Don to come along. This meeting became Don's audition. Don remembers: "The Jive folks asked me to just sing, right then and there, in the conference room. I didn't think I'd be really getting that chance, but when I did, I sang an old traditional gospel song that's really beautiful called `His Eyes On The Sparrow.' They were so floored, they told me to come back the next day and they would sign me. I went back, and they did just that!" Soon after signing, Don hooked up with professional music manager David Sonnenberg, who guides the careers of The Fugees, Joan Osbourne and The Spin Doctors, among others.
On the pop side, Don is also a fan of the works of a very wide range of artists including Dolly Parton, Amy Grant, Billy Ocean, Kenny Loggins and Bon Jovi, as well as soul performers such as Peobo Bryson, Whitney Houston and Babyface. He hopes one day to reach the success level of his idols. "I figure, in the beginning it was God that got me started, and so, in the end, it'll be God that sees me through. So far, he has!"
