Singer Q Parker may not have envisioned celebrating 112’s 30th anniversary as a solo act.
However, he’s embracing the group’s undeniable legacy while carving out a new chapter as the “Romance Dealer” with his new music.
Eight years after his unexpected exit from the Grammy-winning group, Parker is sharing the creative differences that ultimately led to his departure.
In an exclusive interview with Atlanta Black Star, Parker addressed the “unfinished business” he believes remains among 112’s founding members.
He said the group’s communication issues played a major role in leaving that business unresolved.
He believes the members needed more maturity to make sure everyone had a voice.
“We just lacked, at that time, we lacked the maturity as a group to communicate effectively to where everybody can be heard,” Parker told Atlanta Black Star.
“I’m intentional when I say we, because that includes everybody. We lack the maturity to have that level of a conversation with respect to, ‘Hey, we’re not gonna agree.’ And I know because of that lack of maturity, it is what caused the separation.”
In hindsight, Parker believes better communication could have changed the trajectory of the group’s split.
“When I look back at it, we most certainly should have just had a conversation, and even if we left the conversation just saying, ‘Hey, we can agree to disagree, but we do need to address it in a mature, in a manly way,’ and we didn’t do that,” he explained.
“I think the group is not together; the original members are not together because we didn’t have that maturity back then to have a high-level conversation like we needed to have.”
When 112 faced fellow R&B hitmakers Jagged Edge in a 2020 Verzuz battle, viewers immediately noticed two missing faces. Instead of the original quartet, founding members Slim and Mike performed alongside two backup dancers.
Ahead of the battle, Parker announced that he and Daron Jones would sit out the event. This forced Slim and Mike to reveal that their former bandmates had actually parted ways with the group two years earlier.
Looking back, Parker admits he wasn’t thrilled with his former groupmates moving forward with the Verzuz without the full lineup.
“I didn’t like it… I believe certain things should not have been done if it wasn’t the truest representation of the group,” he said, comparing the situation to professional sports.
“The Falcons wouldn’t go play the Rams with only 10 men on the football field,” Parker quipped.
112 built its legacy with R&B hits including “Only You,” “Anywhere,” “Peaches & Cream,” “It’s Over Now,” “Cupid,” and “U Already Know.”
Under Bad Boy Records, the group made major collaborations, such as “Dance With Me,” with Jagged Edge and the Biggie Tribute “I’ll Be Missing You” with Sean “Diddy” Combs and Faith Evans.
The original four members last performed together at the R&B Music Experience Detroit in June 2025.
Given their history, Parker remains hopeful they will find their way back together and give fans what they’ve been missing.
“There’s some unfinished business, there’s some tours out there, there’s even some more music out there, that we are to complete,” he declared.
As a solo artist, the “Cupid” singer is returning to the essence of R&B with music centered on the romance he believes the genre is missing — delivered by “a more seasoned, more confident, more assured, more direct Q Parker versus the Q from 112.”
“I realized that romance was something that I felt was missing. We all believe in love, but what is love without some romance?” he asked.
“Who was singing about romance? Purely about romance. I couldn’t identify anybody. And so I’m like, you know what? I’m gonna call myself the romance dealer, and I’m gonna start dealing romance through my music.”
As Parker steps into this new chapter with 30 years of perspective behind him, the “Only You” crooner is also taking time to honor the greats who helped push the industry forward.
On Oct. 2, the Atlanta native returns to his hometown as Honorary Gala Chair for the Living Legends Foundation’s 35th Anniversary Awards Dinner & Gala.
The event will honor the executives, radio professionals, entrepreneurs, advocates, and cultural architects who helped shape Black music. Parker is also reflecting on the people who shaped his career and the legacy he built with 112.
“Artists, we don’t build our careers alone,” he said.
As 112 celebrates 30 years of music, Parker continues to honor the group’s legacy despite its complicated history.
“You don’t get to 30 years by happenstance. You get there because you’ve put out quality work,” he said.
The “Peaches & Cream” singer also made his case for 112’s place among R&B’s greats, naming New Edition and Jodeci on his personal Mount Rushmore while pointing to the group’s role in bridging R&B and hip-hop.
“When you talk about hip-hop and R&B as a genre, you have to mention 112, because we were on the front lines of blending those two worlds,” he said.
