Syleena Johnson Replaces Donell Jones In R&B Trio, The Chi
Back in July 2021, Dave Hollister announced that he, Carl Thomas, and Donell Jones formed an R&B supergroup named The Chi. However, there haven’t been any updates on the trio until now.
On Sunday (May 19), Syleena Johnson confirmed that she replaced Jones and is now a part of The Chi, alongside Hollister and Thomas. The announcement followed the group’s debut performance at the 2024 Black Music Honors.
“Welp, the cat is out the bag in a good way,” wrote the “All Falls Down” singer on Instagram. “I am officially a part of an R&B trio that is SURE to shake the table in R&B music‼️ It’s an honor to be able to share the stage with these two vocal Giants‼️ So THIS is our next Chapter and we couldn’t be more ready. It’s official.”
Under Hollister’s version of the announcement, Jones wrote, “This is dope bro!!!!”
So, it appears there’s no bad blood, despite neither party publicly explaining why the “Where I Wanna Be” crooner left the trio.
When Hollister first made the announcement nearly three years ago, he wrote, “The music…the voices finally coming together to give your ears and hearts what you’ve been waiting for…we started talking about this in 2009 and now the time has finally come….Brothas I count it an honor and privilege to Rep home with you both! LETS GO!”
Fans can check out the group’s set on Saturday, June 1, when the televised special airs on the Stellar Network at 8 p.m. ET. It will also air on Bounce TV on Juneteenth at 9 p.m. ET and will remain in national syndication throughout Black Music Month.
This year’s ceremony honored Johnny Gill, Patrice Rushen, Bootsy Collins, Hezekiah Walker and featured a surprise salute to MC Lyte.
In the meantime, Johnson’s latest solo single, “Black Balloon,” is currently streaming and Thomas is co-headlining Tank’s R&B Money tour.