iSound

Calvin P. Whittaker had always known, even from childhood, that he'd be involved in music somehow, though he initially thought he would wind up a singer. He loved to sing, and cites Michael Jackson as his first real musical influence. Upon enrollment at Hyde Park High School in Chicago, Calvin immediately got caught up in the excitement of joining the school's chorus program. However, later on in his freshman year, his love for singing began to take a back seat to his desire to play an instrument. Upon recognizing this newfound desire, his mother recommended he take piano lessons, but while listening to some records in his music collection, Calvin heard a sound that he fell in love with- the simple but funky bass line to Gwen McRae's "Funky Sensation". Soon after, he began listening to the bass in other records, from Teena Marie's "Square Biz", to Tom Browne's "Thighs High", and said to himself, "That's what I wanna do". That year, Calv...