Our celebration of Dru Hill following their “Unsung” episode continues as we roll out a feature on the Top 5 Songs that should have been singles on their albums. For the purpose of this article, we scoured each of their four albums “Dru Hill”, “Enter the Dru”, “Dru World Order”, and “InDRUpendence Day” to find gems which could have been hits.

As a disclaimer, this is not to say we necessarily disagree with any of the songs that were chosen by the group. You can’t argue with the hits they’ve had over the years. We feel that these songs could have also had a strong impact had they also been selected.

As an added bonus, we got in touch with founding member Nokio who gave us his picks as well. In case you missed it, he recently released his only solo project called “While We’re Going Crazy – Part 1”.

Here is our list:

April Showers (from the “Dru Hill” album)

There is no disputing that the self titled debut album from Dru Hill is a classic. The project certified them as one of the top group’s of the 90’s and featured the standout singles “Tell Me”, “In My Bed”, “Never Make a Promise”, and “5 Steps”. However, it’s almost stunning that arguably the album’s best song wasn’t even chosen as a single! We absolutely love the song “April Showers” and the strong fan reaction we’ve heard to it over the years makes us confident it would have done well as a single. The stripped down Nokio production provides a beautiful backdrop to the standout vocals, heartfelt lyrics, and lush harmonies of the group.

All Alone (from the “Dru Hill” album)

There were so many classic songs on Dru Hill’s debut album that we have to choose at least one more. “All Alone” is a quintessential Dru Hill song that showed the group was totally unafraid to show their vulnerability. This is the type of song that you immediately gravitate to if you’ve ever found yourself going through a rough breakup. The song structure alone deserves props. Woody, Jazz and Nokio each take a verse before Sisqo eventually comes in on the chorus and the bridge. The gorgeous production from Nokio ties it all together.

What Do I Do with the Love (from the “Enter the Dru” album)

Not sure you can dispute any of the single choices that Dru Hill made on their “Enter the Dru” album. The hit singles “How Deep is Your Love”, “These are the Times”, “Beauty”, and “You Are Everything” are some of the group’s most recognizable songs today. There is also the gem towards the end of the album called “What Do I Do With the Love” that could easily have been a single as well. Star writer Diane Warren really gave us a different feel from the group as Dru Hill cooked up a stirring ballad.

If I Could (from the “Dru World Order” album)

This one feels like a real lost opportunity. Dru Hill made good choices in releasing “I Should Be…” and “I Love You” off of their third album “Dru World Order”, and “If I Could” would have been a good one to follow up with. Producer Bryan-Michael Cox was just coming into his prime following major success alongside Jermaine Dupri. He gave Dru Hill a gem of a production that perfectly fit their style and they didn’t disappoint by giving us an emotionally charged vocal performance.

She Said (from the “Dru World Order” album)

We find ourselves reaching for another selection off the “Dru World Order” album with the song “She Said” featuring Chinky of LovHer. The smoothed out cut showcased the group’s versatility perfectly as Nokio takes lead vocals and the other members croon in the background. The sound of the song was definitely tailor made for radio.

Nokio’s List:

All Alone (from the “Dru Hill” album)

April Showers (from the “Dru Hill” album)

So Special (from the “Dru Hill” album)

One Good Reason (from the “Enter the Dru” album)

Men Always Regret (from the “Dru World Order” album)

Words from Nokio: The first 3 were the songs that got us the attention we needed from Haqq (Producer A. Islam Haqq) when he came to hear them at my mothers house.