Jocelyn Brown

Jocelyn Lorette Brown, sometimes credited as Jocelyn Shaw, is an American R&B and dance vocalist born on November 25, 1950, in Kinston, North Carolina. A defining voice in R&B, dance, and house music, she has charted 23 UK hit singles with eight reaching the top 20, and achieved multiple entries on the Billboard Hot 100 and Dance/Club Play charts.

Brown began as a gospel singer before transitioning to secular music in the late 1970s, collaborating with acts including Kleeer, Cerrone, and Luther Vandross. Her 1984 solo single ‘Somebody Else’s Guy’—which she co-wrote—reached number two on the Billboard R&B chart and became her signature track. Two years later, ‘Love’s Gonna Get You’ became a major dance hit and proved her most sampled work, later featured in Snap!’s 1990 worldwide hit ‘The Power’ and referenced across hip-hop and electronic music.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Brown collaborated with Culture Club (touring in 1985, appearing on their 1986 album From Luxury to Heartache), co-wrote with Boy George, and worked with George Michael, Right Said Fred, and Kym Mazelle. Based in London since 1990, she has maintained an active recording and performance career in house and dance music, accumulating more than 20 hits on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. Her vocal work and compositions have been extensively sampled and referenced in dance, electronic, and hip-hop genres, establishing her as a foundational figure in dance music history.