Irish’s twin sister, Ornish was also a founding member and subsititute vocalist for the group. The group was named after the area code of their hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada.
LeMisha, Irish, and Kameelah attended the Las Vegas Academy of Performing Arts. Irish, Orish, and LeMisha sang occasionally in the lobby of Caesars Palace where they were discovered by actor\comedian, Sinbad.
Sinbad visited their home in order to convince the girls’ parents to send the three of them to Atlanta for a convention and music competition.
Even though the girls missed the deadline for entry, Sinbad used his name to get them in. The group (under their original name “Sweeta than Suga”) came in 2nd place in the competition. As the convention was ending, the girls met Michael Bivins of New Edition & Bell Biv Devoe, who agreed to work with them.
The group were briefly joined by their cousin, Amelia Childs. After making their music debut on R&B group, Subway’s song, “This Lil’ Game We Play,” Amelia left the group and was replaced by Kameelah.
After recording a few demos as a quartet, Ornish left the group as well (even though her vocals appear on 702’s debut album). Michael Bivins continued to work with different producers and songwriters to get the right feel for the group’s album. The group’s name was changed to “702” which Michael suggested.
The song featured rapper Missy Elliott and was certified Gold by the RIAA by February of 1997, with sales exceeding 500,000 copies in the United States.
The song’s lyrics were altered and used as the theme song to the Nickelodeon television series, “Cousin Skeeter.”
The success of 702’s debut album earned them a Soul Train “Lady of Soul” Award in 1997. They also opened up for New Edition, Blackstreet, and Keith Sweat during New Edition’s 1996-1997 reunion tour.
The group made an appearance on Missy Elliot’s album, “Supa Dupa Fly” on the track, “Beep Me 911.” They even sang with Busta Rhymes’ new artist, Rampage.
They contributed the song “My Friend” to the “Men in Black” movie soundtrack. In 1998, 702 made cameo appearances on the television shows “Moesha” and “Sister, Sister.”
During that same month, LeMisha gave birth to a son named Tony Lyndon and was replaced by Orish during her maternity leave.
The song managed to chart in the United Kingdom, Canada, Sweden, and the Netherlands. It was certified Gold by the RIAA and earned them a Soul Train “Lady of Soul” Award nomination.
702 was a part of Brandy’s “Never Say Never” tour. They also appeared in the 1999 ABC television movie, “Double Platinum”featuring Brandy and Diana Ross. They even signed a deal with Wilhelmina Models and was the opening act for Brian McKnight’s tour, promoting his album, “Back at One.”
After the release of their second album, 702 took a brief hiatus. Kameelah decided to leave the group and start a solo career. She was briefly the new protege of Faith Evans and signed a deal to be managed by Faith & her husband, Todd Russaw under their Pedigree MGI Management.
Kameelah sang backup vocals and wrote three songs on Faith’s album, “Faithfully.” She also sang backup on the track, “Take Away” from Missy Elliot’s album, “Miss E…So Addictive.”
In 2001, it was reported that Kameelah joined R&B group, Total which was later denied. Later that year, it was reported that 702 would be featured on Aaliyah’s self-titled third album for the track “Candy Girls” that would also feature Missy Elliott and Timbaland, but according to various sources, it was found to be untrue.
LeMisha and Irish decided to return to the spotlight and enlisted singer Cree Lamore to replace Kameelah. As the new version of 702, they recorded the lead single, “Pootie Tangin'” for the Chris Rock film, “Pootie Tang” which failed to make any impact on the charts, but it earned them a 2002 Soul Train “Lady of Soul” Award nomination.
After Kameelah returned to 702 and replaced Cree, 702 returned to the studio to record their third studio album.
During that same year, 702 shared lead vocals on the track, “Gamble It” on singer Sirena’s album, “Emotions.” Irish appeared in the Brewster Project in 2004.
In 2006, 702 appeared on the independent album, “E Sharp Presents.” In 2007, LeMisha released a song entitled “What I Got” which appeared on the independent album, “E Sharp Presents Vol II.”
Sadly on April 20, 2008, Orish Grinstead passed away from kidney failure. She was 27 years old.
In 2010, Kameelah Williams confirmed on her official Twitter that she is now a permanently solo artist and currently working on her solo album which is yet to be released. She also has a child with singer, Musiq Soulchild.
In 2011, Kameelah was featured on the children’s album “We are Different” under the name “Meelah” which is available on iTunes.
As of January 2022 the legacy of 702 still going strong more concert tours on the way.
RnB Souleffect-Tv Magazine 