You know that feeling when the first three notes of a track hit and you immediately start reaching for an imaginary microphone? That’s the Coko effect. When we talk about the landscape of nineties music, specifically the era of New Jack Swing bleeding into hip-hop soul, SWV songs are the literal blueprint. Sisters With Voices didn't just have a catchy acronym; they had a vocal blend that made other trios sound like they were trying way too hard.
Taj, Lelee, and Coko. They were New York through and through. They wore the baggy jeans, the long nails, and the combat boots, but they sang like they grew up in the highest rafters of a Pentecostal church. Honestly, if you grew up in the 90s, your memories are probably scented with the smell of hair grease and the sound of "Weak" playing on a localized FM station. It wasn't just music. It was a mood.
The Genius of the Remix: Why SWV Songs Hit Differently
Most artists put out a remix to squeeze a few more dollars out of a single. SWV? They used remixes to redefine their entire identity. Take "Right Here." The original version from their 1992 debut album It's About Time was a solid, mid-tempo R&B track. It was fine. But then Teddy Riley got his hands on it.
By sampling Michael Jackson’s "Human Nature," they created a cultural monster. It stayed at number one on the Billboard R&B charts for seven weeks. Think about that. Seven weeks. You couldn't walk into a grocery store or a backyard BBQ without hearing that "S-W-V" chant over the MJ synth. It’s arguably one of the most successful uses of a sample in music history because it didn't just lean on the MJ nostalgia—it elevated it.
Coko’s voice is the secret sauce. She has this piercing, high-register soprano that shouldn't work with gritty hip-hop beats, but it does. It’s sharp. It’s precise. When she hits those runs on "Anything" (the Old School Remix featuring Wu-Tang Clan), she’s holding her own against Method Man and U-God. That was revolutionary at the time. Merging the "sweetness" of a girl group with the "street" of the Wu-Tang Clan? Nobody was doing it like that.
The Vulnerability of "Weak" and the Power of the Ballad
Then there’s "Weak." If you’ve ever been at karaoke after 11 PM, you’ve heard a disastrous rendition of this song. It’s a deceptively hard song to sing. Brian Alexander Morgan, who wrote and produced many of their hits, originally wrote "Weak" for Charlie Wilson. Imagine that for a second. A Gap Band version of "Weak." Thankfully, it landed with the girls.
The lyrics are simple. They’re almost vulnerable to a fault. "My knees get weak, keep on burning that I can’t speak." It’s the universal language of a crush that’s turning into an obsession. While many R&B groups of the era were leaning heavily into "New Jack Swing" (lots of frantic drum machines), "Weak" slowed everything down. It gave the vocals room to breathe.
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Interestingly, Coko reportedly didn't even like the song at first. She's gone on record saying she wasn't a fan of the track when they recorded it. Can you imagine? The song that would become their signature, a multi-platinum staple, was almost a "no" from the lead singer. It goes to show that sometimes the artist is too close to the work to see the magic.
Deep Cuts and the "New Beginnings" Era
By the time New Beginnings dropped in 1996, the group was dealing with massive internal pressure. You can hear it in the music—it’s more mature, a little darker, and definitely more sensual. "You’re the One" was the lead single, and it was an absolute juggernaut.
It’s got that signature 90s bounce. The bassline is thick. But look closer at the lyrics. It’s a song about wanting someone who is already in a relationship. "I know you're someone else's guy, but I can't get you out of my mind." It was a bit scandalous for the "sweet" girls from the first album, but it reflected the growth of their fanbase. They weren't teenagers anymore.
- Rain: This is widely considered the "aficionado's" favorite SWV song. It’s silky. It’s jazzy. It samples Jaco Pastorius’s "Portrait of Tracy." Using a complex jazz-fusion bass track for an R&B ballad was a genius move.
- Can We: Produced by a young Missy Elliott and Timbaland. You can hear the futuristic, stuttering drums that would soon dominate the late 90s.
- Use Your Heart: The Neptunes (Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo) worked on this. It was early Pharrell, and you can already hear those spacey, stripped-back chords.
The range of producers they worked with is staggering. From Teddy Riley to The Neptunes to Missy Elliott. SWV songs acted as a bridge between the classic soul era and the digital future of R&B. They were the common thread.
The Tension That Fueled the Music
You can’t talk about the music without talking about the friction. It’s well-documented—thanks to their reality show SWV Reunited and numerous interviews—that the group struggled with internal dynamics. Coko was often pushed to the front, while Lelee and Taj handled the harmonies and the "vibe."
That tension, however, created a specific kind of energy in their live performances. There was a competitive edge to the vocals. When you listen to the harmonies on "Downtown," which is a pretty suggestive song for 1994, the blend is watertight. They sounded like a single unit even when they weren't speaking to each other off-stage.
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Some fans argue that the "Coko and the backup singers" narrative is unfair. If you listen to their Unplugged sessions or live radio spots from the 90s, Lelee and Taj’s mid-range support is what gives the songs their "warmth." Without them, Coko’s high notes might feel too clinical. Together, they sounded like home.
Why "Rain" is the Sophisticated Peak
"Rain" is basically the "smooth jazz" of 90s R&B, but it never feels cheesy. It’s atmospheric. Most people don't realize how difficult the timing is on that track. The way the vocals lag just slightly behind the beat—it’s a technique called "singing behind the beat"—gives it a lazy, Sunday-afternoon feel.
It’s also one of the few songs where the atmosphere of the production matches the lyrical content perfectly. When Coko sings about "Rain falling on my window pane," the synth pads in the background actually sound like a storm clearing up. It’s masterful.
The Modern Revival and Sampling Culture
If you listen to the radio today, you’re still hearing SWV. You just might not know it.
Drake, Chris Brown, Bryson Tiller—they’ve all dipped into the SWV catalog. Why? Because the melodies are bulletproof. In an era where "vibes" often trump actual songwriting, producers go back to the 90s to find melodies that actually stick to your ribs.
When Jacques sampled "Rain" for his track "B.E.D.," it introduced a whole new generation to the Sisters With Voices. But there's a nuance lost in the samples. Modern R&B is often very processed. SWV songs had a raw, slightly unpolished edge to them, even with the high-end production. You could hear the breath. You could hear the slight imperfections that made them human.
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The Practical Legacy: How to Listen Now
If you’re diving back into their discography, don't just stick to the Greatest Hits. You’re missing the texture.
Start with It's About Time, but skip the radio edits. Listen to the album versions. Then, move to Release Some Tension. That third album is often overlooked because it came out right before their initial breakup, but it’s a masterclass in how to integrate hip-hop features without losing your soul. Redman, Lil’ Kim, and Snoop Dogg all show up. It’s a party record.
The reality is that SWV didn't have the "clean" image of En Vogue or the "bad girl" marketing of TLC. They were just the girls from around the way who could sang. Really sang.
Next Steps for the R&B Enthusiast
To truly appreciate the technicality of SWV, you should listen to their 1993 The Remixes EP. It’s a textbook example of how the New Jack Swing era evolved into the Hip-Hop Soul movement. Pay close attention to the vocal arrangements on the "Whatever" remix—it’s a masterclass in layering harmonies. Once you've mastered the hits, seek out the live performance of "Weak" at the 1993 Billboard Music Awards to see how Coko handled those runs under pressure. Finally, compare the production on "Use Your Heart" to early Destiny's Child tracks to see how SWV influenced the girl groups that followed in their footsteps.