Cameo’s Biggest Hit Still Revs up the Party Four Decades After Its Release

Cameo’s 1986 hit “Word Up!” became the band’s first major pop breakthrough, reaching No. 6 in the US. Its synth-led funk sound and enduring appeal have kept it a party favourite around four decades after its release.

The band had been active since 1974, first performing as the New York City Players, and had a large lineup before narrowing to three members by 1986. Larry Blackmon Jr. and Tomi Jenkins wrote “Word Up!”, which followed the group’s near-miss with “She’s Strange”; their next single, “Candy”, reached No. 21, but Cameo had no further Top 40 pop hits. The song later gained fresh exposure through a sample in Mariah Carey’s 2001 hit “Loverboy”.