Next year marks the 25th anniversary of Bell Biv DeVoe's smash debut, so it's no surprise Michael Bivins doesn't mind looking back.
The new jack swing trio is set to perform a free show at the New York State Fair's Chevy Court on Saturday night, and Bivins says fans can expect "high energy" entertainment and "good music that came out in the '90s." Together with bandmates Ricky Bell and Ronnie DeVoe, Bivins personified the era with songs like "Poison," "Word to the Mutha," "B.B.D. (I Thought It Was Me)?" and "Do Me!" -- plus the fashion, ranging from silky smooth suits to baggy sports attire.
Syracuse University alumni and fans may recall seeing Bivins wearing SU gear in the videos for "Do Me!" and "Poison." In the latter, he wore an Orangemen bucket hat and an SU sweatshirt while shooting basketball on an outdoors court -- even sitting on the hoop at one point while sharing slick rhymes.
In the "Do Me! (Remix)" video, Bivins is briefly pictured wearing a Syracuse No. 10 basketball jersey. At the time, popular walk-on player Chaundu Carey wore the number.
But Bivins, who grew up in Boston, never attended Syracuse University.
"Nah, I was just an Orangemen fan from the '90s," he said. "It was my favorite Big East team. So when I had the opportunity to wear a jersey and a hat, that was the team of my choice."
Michael Bivins, second from right, wears an SU basketball jersey in this undated photo [listal.com]
Who could blame him? Jim Boeheim's SU basketball team was as big a powerhouse then as it is now, featuring the likes of Derrick Coleman, Billy Owens, Lawrence Moten and future coaches Mike Hopkins and Adrian Autry, plus Sherman Douglas and Rony Seikaly just before New Edition became BBD.
Also, Syracuse football was in the Dick MacPherson era, reaching bowl games year after year with standout players like Don McPherson, Daryl Johnston, Marvin Graves and Rob Moore.
There's long been a rumor that Bivins had beef with Moore over a girl, even going as far to claim a line from "Poison" says "Rob Moore you're dead," but the singer says there's no truth to it.
"No, I think it's 'wrong move you're dead,'" Bivins said. "Whoever thought of that was reaching a little bit. I don't even know who [Rob Moore] is. Who is that?"
Moor was a star wide receiver at SU in the late '80s and played in the NFL for 11 seasons. He later became a WR coach under Doug Marrone, first with the Orange and now with the Buffalo Bills.
But Bivins and his bandmates didn't write "Poison" or its iconic line "Never trust a big butt and a smile" -- Elliot Straite did. The '90s producer-songwriter, also known as Dr. Freeze, worked with BBD, Color Me Badd ("I Wanna Sex You Up") and Michael Jackson ("Break of Dawn"). The L.A.-based hitmaker has no ties to SU himself and no reason to target Moore with the lyrics.
"It was a little song I wrote on the train -- a revenge song about a woman," Straite told his hometown newspaper, the Lehigh Valley Morning Call, in 2009. "[Bell Biv DeVoe] picked it up and they loved it."
All three Bell Biv DeVoe members are also part of New Edition, along with Ralph Tresvant, Johnny Gill and Bobby Brown. The R&B sextet helped pave the way for New Kids on the Block and other boy bands in the '80s and '90s with hits like "Candy Girl" and "Cool It Now."
New Edition just wrapped a tour, and Bivins has nothing but positive things to say about his two groups.
"Touring's our bread and butter, so as long as everybody, god willing, is living and feeling it, we're going to always tour and service our fans and give them a good night of entertainment."
Brown will be fictionalized in Lifetime's upcoming Whitney Houston biopic, but Bivins doesn't think he will appear in it. But if a movie were ever made about BBD, he'd love to see Larenz Tate ("Dead Presidents," "Menace II Society") play the Biv.
"I think [Tate] best fits everything that I want to express," he said. "You know, having a smile, knowing when to turn it up... that's my guy. No matter how young he could look or old he could look, he's my first choice."
Bivins, who's had a number of cameo roles in films and TV shows himself, also dabbles in A&R. He helped launch Boyz II Men's career, worked on Diddy's "Making the Band 4," and judges Centric TV's "Apollo Live," but he says popular music has shifted to a more homogenized sound.
"I think the sound today is totally different than the sound of yesterday. I think everything is really more rap-influenced as opposed to R&B-influenced," Bivins said. "There's a certain sound on the radio that -- we're just going through a phase of, you know, you could close your eyes and all of the records kind of feel the same. So I think we're following the songs more so than the artists these days. Whereas yesterday, you used to follow the artist then get into their music."
Yes, the '90s are back in a big way -- from NKOTB reunion tours and a "Saved By the Bell" movie to Nicki Minaj sampling Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Baby Got Back" and an upcoming "Jurassic Park" sequel.
Bivins doesn't see his genre making the same comeback, though he admits he hears elements of new jack swing and other sounds in Pharrell Williams' work with Robin Thicke ("Blurred Lines") and Daft Punk ("Get Lucky").
But don't let all the nostalgia fool you. Bivins, who keeps in touch with fans on Twitter and Instagram, is also thinking about the future. He said Bell Biv DeVoe has big plans for the 25th anniversary of their 1990 debut, "Poison."
"[2015] will consist of music, a tour, god-willing, do a run through some awards shows. Stuff like that, just put the music industry on alert that we're celebrating and you know, pick out the moments that best fit what we're trying to do."
The trio hasn't released any new music since 2001's "BBD," but Bivins says they're considering making another record for the milestone.
"Always know that we're working and never sitting home and... we stay in the mix," he added. "That's what's always next -- continue moving and never get comfortable."
Bell Biv DeVoe performs Saturday, Aug. 30 at Chevy Court at the New York State Fair. The concert is free with admission to the fair.