Melvin Riley Tickets

Ready for the World In Concert

Ready for the World’s spiky, revved-up bubble-funk was born in Flint, Michigan, and it quickly took over the world thanks to the band’s longing 1985 single “Oh Sheila.” That song, powered by a piston-like bassline and the vocals of Jheri-curled frontman Melvin Riley, topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1985. That same week, it also hit No. 1 on the R&B, Dance, and Video charts, making Ready for the World the first act to hit the peak of four Billboard charts simultaneously. 

Ready for the World bridged the gap between the robo-funk of the early 1980s and the swaggering New Jack Swing that arose in the middle of the decade. They toured with titans of soul like Luther Vandross, Guy, and Mint Condition, thrilling audiences around the world with their always-evolving style. 

“We grew up in an era when music consisted of a multitude of genres that were popular,” drummer Willie Triplett said in a 2018 interview. “The ‘70s had disco, jazz, R&B, funk, rock… We experienced a broad range of influences and we are thankful for that.”

After the success of “Oh Sheila” and their self-titled album, singles like the synth-heavy “Digital Display” and the sumptuous “Love You Down” became staples of ‘80s R&B radio. Ready for the World released three more albums, including 1991’s New Jack Swing–tinged Straight Down to Business, before breaking up in the early ‘90s. In 2004, they got back together and released She Said She Wants Some, a bedroom-minded collection with stripped-down production. 

IN 2018, Ready for the World toured with soul legend Charlie Wilson and released the slow jam “So Much Life.” Now fronted by R&B hotshot Ray Lavender, who has worked with soul masters like Tank and Teddy Riley, Ready for the World is gearing up for a new era. In 2019, the band will independently release an album and follow it up with a tour, bringing their hybrid of funk, rock, and pop to new audiences around the globe.