Music producer Teddy Riley was at the height of his creative ascent in the late 1980s. But the Grammy Award-winning producer told The OBSERVER this week that a chance encounter with legendary balladeer Luther Vandross in London in 1988 may have altered the course of music history — including his own.
Riley said he was finishing studio work in London and heading to the airport for a return flight to New York when he unexpectedly ran into Vandross. The two artists began catching up, talking about music and life. According to Riley, the conversation lasted long enough that they ultimately decided to delay their departure and take a later flight.
That decision, Riley said, proved life-changing.
The flight they originally had been scheduled to take later crashed. The timeline aligns with Pan Am Flight 103, the Dec. 21, 1988, London-to-New York flight destroyed by a terrorist bomb over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 259 passengers and crew members and 11 people on the ground.
“When we heard the news, it was just unbelievable,” Riley said. “That shows you how God works.”
More than three decades later, Riley brought that perspective — part testimony, part music history — to Sacramento on Sunday, where he appeared before a sold-out crowd at the Guild Theater in conversation with former Mayor Kevin Johnson before performing a concert for fans.
Riley was in Sacramento to promote his new memoir, “Remember the Times,” which traces his journey from a Harlem childhood musical prodigy to becoming one of the most influential producers in the history of popular Black music.
During his conversation with Johnson and in a separate interview with The OBSERVER, Riley reflected on the music that helped define his career — particularly his work with Michael Jackson. Among the songs that best capture the sound he created, Riley pointed to Jackson’s 1992 hit “Remember the Time.”
“If there’s one record that describes my music, it would be ‘Remember the Time,’” Riley said. “That record really shows the high bar and the fusion that became New Jack Swing.”
The collaboration with Jackson marked a pivotal moment in Riley’s career. Already known for producing hits for artists such as Guy and Bobby Brown, Riley brought his signature blend of hip-hop rhythms and R&B melodies to Jackson’s “Dangerous” album, helping introduce the New Jack Swing sound to a global audience.
Riley also shared lighter moments from their time together in the studio, describing Jackson as both intensely focused and surprisingly playful.
“Michael loved to play jokes,” he said.
Riley described New Jack Swing as more than just a musical style. He called it a cultural movement that extended beyond the studio.
“It was fashion, it was technology, it was lifestyle,” Riley said. “Music drove it, but it was really about the culture.”
That cultural influence was evident throughout the evening, as Johnson guided Riley through stories of his early life in Harlem, the mentors who shaped him and the artists he later helped launch, including the groups Guy and Blackstreet.
After the conversation ended, Riley took the stage, transforming the theater from a storytelling venue into a celebration of the music that helped define an era.