Jam and Lewis's emergence as major record producers was kick-started by Prince's pique. Keyboard player Jimmy Jam (James Harris III) and bassist Terry Lewis played together in local Minneapolis bands while in high school, graduating to Flyte Tyme, which evolved into Prince's backing band, the Time, in 1981. When Jam and Lewis produced the SOS Band's hit "Just Be Good to Me" in 1983, they broke Prince's rule that no member of the Time do outside work, and he fired them. They then set up an alternative Minneapolis production powerhouse, Flyte Tyme studios, where they crafted hits for Force MDs, Patti Austin, and Cheryl Lynn. They also made a star of Alexander O'Neal, updating the romantic crooner formula that served Al Green so well in the 1970s (a smooth, soulful voice, stylish clothes, and sexy stage moves).