Robby Pardlo — a former member of the now-widely forgotten R&B-pop trio City High — is back in the spotlight, but this time it’s not for happy reasons.
On Monday night (Jan. 25), A&E’s guilty pleasure show “Intervention” staged exactly that with Pardlo, who has been struggling with alcoholism since his days with City High. Concerned for his health and the safety of his young daughter, Lyric, Pardlo’s family set up an on-camera intervention on the reality show to get him to accept a path to sobriety.
What prompted Pardlo’s downfall? Back in 2003, the singer was living the life — “I was just on the red carpet with Will Smith and Jada, performing with Eve, and I was like, ‘Hahaaa!'” as he puts it — when City High’s debut album spawned the popular, Wyclef-produced single “What Would You Do” and even earned a Grammy nomination. Sadly, though, drama got in the way of the group’s success. Pardlo was dumped by his bandmate Claudette Ortiz for Ryan Toby, the other male member of City High, and the couple married in 2004 while Pardlo fell deeper into alcoholism.
The situation is altogether sad, but you can’t deny that it makes for some riveting reality TV, especially after learning that Pardlo responded well to the intervention and has been sober since October. Go to a&etv.com to watch the full video of Pardlo’s intervention.
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