Keith Washington
Grammy Winning R&B Artist
Keith Douglas Washington (born November 15, 1960) is an American R&B vocalist from Detroit who recorded the hit single “Kissing You” in 1991. The song was also used as background music for the ABC television soap opera General Hospital. “Kissing You” was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance Male and won a 1992 Soul Train Music Award for Best R&B/Soul Single – Male. The song also topped the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for one week.
Washington branched out in a few acting roles, starring as himself on the television series Martin in an episode called “A Woman with a Past” which featured him singing a duet with Tisha Campbell-Martin titled “The Closer I Get to You”, a classic ballad performed and made famous in 1978 by Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway. Additionally, Keith had a brief role in the TV soap opera General Hospital as Keith Jasper. Appearing alongside lead actress Janet Jackson, he also had a brief role in John Singleton’s Poetic Justice, as a hairdresser named Dexter.
Washington’s first marriage to Marsha Jenkins ended in divorce and resulted in her writing The Other Side of Through, a book loosely based on Jenkins’ marriage to Washington and her experiences with the singer’s marital infidelities. In June 2009, Washington married his longtime girlfriend, Stephanie Grimes, who is general sales manager for WGPR-FM 107.5 in Detroit. He also revealed his plans to release a new album. Washington has since branched out into radio himself, as he now hosts the nighttime “Slow Jams” show “Kisses After Dark” on Detroit radio station WDMK-FM 105.9 (Kiss-FM).
