Nobody Knows – Tony Rich Project | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning

Chart Performance: Pop (#1) & R&B (#11); 1996

Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne

Tony Rich’s brother Joe originally penned Nobody Knows as a country song, and, indeed, a version by Kevin Sharp went all the way to #1. And although this rendition was true to the original spirit of the song, by early 1997 Kevin’s Nobody Knows was looked upon as a country cover of a very successful R&B hit by the Tony Rich Project.

The Tony in question was Joe’s brother, who got his professional start in the music business when John Salley of the Detroit Pistons heard one of Tony’s demo tapes. Salley just happened to have a production company, and through his connections Tony ended up as a staff songwriter/producer for LaFace Records.

Finally, Tony got the green light to record his own album. Two months after Nobody Knows entered the Hot 100 it was in the Top 10 where it stayed for six months. Tony even earned a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist, all thanks to his brother’s “country” song.

This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.

Produced by:

  • Tony Rich

Lyrics Written by:

  • Joe Rich
  • Don DuBose

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Ed Osborne

Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).