YOUNG BAND READY FOR WORLD TO SEE

“Oh Sheila,” America’s No. 1 single two weeks ago, is not what it seemed.

Though it sounds like a typical Prince song--suggestive lyrics, sexual grunting, and that patented, Princian pop/funk beat--it’s performed by a young band from Flint, Mich., called Ready for the World. Also, the Sheila who lead singer-songwriter Melvin Riley, 19, is panting about isn’t, as many still assume, Prince’s former flame, Sheila E.

“Sheila isn’t anybody,” insisted Riley, aloof and reserved during a recent lunch, “I made her up,” he said in a droning monotone. “It’s a song about a playgirl, a flirt who has a lot of guys. I came up with the name because I like the sound of it.”

Riley didn’t show much enthusiasm for anything. An exception was Sheila E. When he talked about her, his eyes lit up. He even managed a smile, a rare occurrence.

“I like her music and I like her looks,” he said. “I’ve never met her but I hope to one day--one day soon.”

When “Oh Sheila”--from the band’s first album, “Ready for the World”--was released a few months ago, many record buyers were attracted to it thinking it was from Prince. This happened during the first couple of weeks of release but soon fans were buying the single on its own merits. A few months later it steamed to No. 1.

Naturally, Ready for the World is frequently accused of ripping off Prince. Riley denies it, of course, and wasn’t particularly riled by a repeat of that charge.

“I’m flattered that we’re compared to a great artist like him,” he said matter-of-factly. “But we didn’t try to sound like him. I sound like me, not Prince. I can’t worry about what these negative people are saying. Fans are buying our records--that’s what’s important. As long as we’re selling records, they can say what they want about us.”

“Oh Sheila” is not, as many fans think, the band’s first hit. It’s merely the band’s first pop hit. Two singles, “Tonight” and “Deep Inside Your Love,” preceded it. Both made the Top Five on the black charts, as did “Oh Sheila,” indicating a sizable soul following. The band’s new single, “Digital Display,” is out this week.

Before the debut album was released, Ready for the World had limited performing experience, working an occasional high school talent show but forgoing the usual club dates. “We never even thought about playing clubs and bars,” Riley said. “We just practiced a lot.”

The band, which has opened shows for both Luther Vandross and Kool and the Gang, has basically had to learn in front of tough concert audiences.

On the band’s headlining dates, the audience is composed primarily of screaming 15- to 21-year-old females who are more interested in the musicians--all good-looking guys between 19 and 21--than the music.

“We give them what they want,” Riley explained. “I move sexier on stage in those shows. It’s harder to work those older crowds. The older ladies give us a few screams, but nothing compared to what we get when we’re headlining and it’s strictly our audience. The young crowd loves us.”

Ready for the World was formed 2 1/2 years ago in Flint. Riley, Gordon Strozier (guitar), Gregory Potts (keyboards), John Eaton (bass), Gerald Valentine (drums) and Willie Triplett (percussion) have come up with a pop-soul sound that, while not particularly distinctive, is certainly commercial.

When major record companies ignored the band, it found backers to finance the local release of a single, “Tonight,” which sold 6,000 copies in two months. Impressed, MCA Records decided to take a chance on it. With help from Bernard Terry, the band produced its debut album, which has already sold more than 600,000.

The suggestive lyrics of songs like “Deep Inside Your Love” and “Human Toy” have been part of the album’s appeal. Surprisingly, such lyrics were written by a band whose members are very religious.

“That has nothing to do with the lyrics,” Riley insisted. “We’re not intentionally trying to be sexually suggestive--the lyrics just turn out that way. That doesn’t make us nasty guys. We’re just trying to make a living.”