Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, better known by his stage name Nas, is an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop, he is regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time. The son of jazz musician Olu Dara, Nas began his musical career in 1989 under the moniker "Nasty Nas", and recorded demos for fellow East Coast rapper Large Professor. He was later featured on the 1991 song "Live at the Barbeque" by his group, Main Source.
Usher Raymond IV is an American singer, songwriter, and dancer. Primarily performing in the R&B genre, Raymond first released his self-titled debut album in 1994 at the age of sixteen, and rose to fame in the late 1990s following the release of his second album My Way (1997). It spawned his first Billboard Hot 100 number-one single "Nice & Slow", and saw similar success with its follow-ups "You Make Me Wanna..." and "My Way". His third album, 8701 (2001), saw continued success with the number-one singles "U Remind Me" and "U Got It Bad", as well as the top-three single "U Don't Have to Call". It sold eight million copies worldwide and won his first two Grammy Awards as Best Male R&B Vocal Performance in 2002 and 2003.
Confessions is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Usher. It was released on March 23, 2004, by Arista Records. Recording sessions for the album took place during 2003 to 2004, with its production handled by his longtime collaborator Jermaine Dupri, along with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Lil Jon, among others. Primarily an R&B album, Confessions showcases Usher as a crooner through a mixture of ballads and up-tempos, incorporating musical genres of dance-pop, hip hop and crunk. The album's themes generated controversy about Usher's personal relationships; however, the album's primary producer Jermaine Dupri claimed the album reflects Dupri's own personal story.
Live is a live album by American singer Usher. It was recorded on October 15 and 16, 1998 in the singer's hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee, and released by LaFace Records on March 23, 1999. Both audio-only and video longform versions were released; it was distributed to break up the gap between Usher's second and third studio albums, My Way (1997) and 8701 (2001).
8701 is the third studio album by American singer Usher, released in the United Kingdom on July 9, 2001, and in the United States on August 7, 2001, by Arista Records. Recording was handled by several producers including The Neptunes, Jermaine Dupri, Babyface, Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, Mike City, Bryan Michael Cox, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis. Although intended for an October 31, 2000, release under the title All About U, the album was delayed numerous times, following the leak of several tracks onto the online music store Napster. Usher subsequently recorded new tracks and released the album under the new title, 8701, which is derived from Usher singing for the first time in his local church in 1987 and the album's US release date of August 7, 2001. The single "Can U Help Me" was supplied with Windows XP Service Pack 2 and later Windows versions to showcase Windows Media Player 11 and higher WMP versions.
"Burn" is a song by American R&B singer Usher, which he wrote with American songwriters Jermaine Dupri and Bryan-Michael Cox. The song was produced by Dupri and Cox for Usher's fourth studio album, Confessions (2004). A downtempo track about the breakup of a relationship, it was originally planned as the album's lead single, but "Burn" was pushed back after favorable responses for the song "Yeah!". "Burn" was eventually released as the second single from the album on March 21, 2004.
"Confessions Part II" is a song by R&B singer Usher, produced by Jermaine Dupri and Bryan-Michael Cox for Usher's fourth album Confessions. Written by Usher, Dupri and Cox, the song is a confession of a man to his woman about his impregnated mistress. This is a continuation of "Confessions Part I" which relates to a man's infidelity. Its personal content evoked rumors and early responses from the public even before its release, believing that Usher was asserting the truth; however, Dupri divulged that the story behind the album is about himself.
"U Don't Have to Call" is a song by American singer Usher. It was written by Pharrell Williams and produced by Williams and Chad Hugo under their production moniker The Neptunes for Usher's third studio album, 8701 (2001). The song was released as the third US single from the album and the fifth international single. In the US, it was initially serviced to radio on January 18, 2002, and it was eventually issued as a commercial single in Europe and Australia later in the year.
"U Got It Bad" is a song by American singer Usher. It was released through Arista Records as the second official single from his third studio album 8701 (2001). It was written by Usher, Jermaine Dupri and Bryan-Michael Cox, and produced by Dupri, with Cox credited a as co-producer. Released in the United States on August 21, 2001, "U Got It Bad" is an R&B ballad that, according to MTV, incorporates "digi-coustic" guitars, a "slow-burning bass line" and "sex funk" drums. The lyrics notably contain some quick direct allusions to other soul music ballads, mainly Maxwell's "Fortunate" and Prince's "Adore".
"U Remind Me" is a song by American singer Usher. It was written by Edmund "Eddie Hustle" Clement and Anita McCloud and produced by Clement along with duo Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis for Usher's third studio album 8701 (2001). A mid-tempo R&B track, the song is about a man who meets a woman who seems like a nice catch, but he decides not to enter a relationship with her because she looks too much like an ex-girlfriend with whom he had a bad breakup.
"Pop Ya Collar" is a single by American recording artist Usher, released to US radio on October 17, 2000. It was written by himself, Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, and Kandi Burruss. The song was produced for his cancelled third studio album All About U. The project was abandoned following the leak of the song and several other tracks onto online music store Napster, several months prior to its release of October 31, 2000. The song was instead later included on non-US editions of his official third studio album, 8701.
Unfinished Business is the second and final collaboration album between American rapper Jay-Z and American singer R. Kelly. The album was released worldwide on October 26, 2004. It was distributed in the United States and Canada by Jive Records and Island Def Jam Music Group, by the Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) and its subsidiary Jive Records, except in Canada and the United States of America where Island Def Jam Music Group and its labels Def Jam Recordings and Roc-A-Fella Records replaced BMG. The album was composed of unreleased tracks from the recording sessions of 2002's The Best of Both Worlds, although slight additions were made.
The Party Tour was the debut concert tour by American recording artist, Pink. The tour supported her second studio album Missundaztood (2001).
Here I Stand is the fifth studio album by the American singer Usher, released on May 13, 2008, by LaFace Records. Inspired by love for his then-wife—Tameka Foster—and son, Usher recorded many ballads for the album. Prior to the album's recording, Usher split with his mother, Jonnetta Patton, as manager and hired Benny Medina. Usher's estranged father died months before the release of Here I Stand; this also influenced themes of the album. It was originally to be titled Measure of a Man, but Usher named it Here I Stand to mark "a new chapter in life".
"Better on the Other Side" is a tribute song from American recording artists The Game, Chris Brown, Diddy, DJ Khalil, Polow da Don, Mario Winans, Usher and Boyz II Men dedicated to Michael Jackson. The song was recorded on June 25, 2009, after being notified that Jackson had died that day, and subsequently released the following day on Diddy's Twitter account. The song gained airplay on radio show "Big Boy's Neighborhood" as well as on Game affiliate DJ Skee's satellite radio show, "Skeetox". The song's lyrics are about Jackson's influence and effect on people worldwide, as well as the recording artist reflecting on their memories of Jackson.
OMG Tour was the fourth concert tour by American recording artist Usher. Visiting North America, Asia, Europe and Australia, the tour accompanies his sixth studio album, Raymond v. Raymond (2010), as well as his first extended play, Versus (2010). At the conclusion of 2011, the tour placed seventh on Billboard's annual, "Top 25 Tours", earning nearly $75 million with 73 shows.
American singer Usher has released six video albums and appeared in forty-one music videos, eleven films, nine television programs, and four commercials. Usher released his debut single, "Call Me a Mack" in 1993 from the soundtrack Poetic Justice. Directed by Bille Woodruff, Usher appeared in the video for "You Make Me Wanna...", the lead single from his break-through album My Way (1997). The video shows Usher flanked by four dancers, to which the scene is then replaced by five clones of Usher performing dance routines around chairs. The latter song was sung by the singer on the sitcom Moesha, where he made his television debut. Usher appeared in four episodes for the show, portraying his character, Jeremy Davis. Live (1999) was released to keep Usher's fans satisfied during his four-year break between My Way and 8701 (2001). The video album version was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), denoting shipments of 50,000 units. During his musical break, he made his film debut in the 1998 science fiction horror film The Faculty, which received mixed reviews, but was a box office success. Following this, he starred in three films: She's All That (1999), Light It Up (1999) and Texas Rangers (2000).
The Truth Tour was the second concert tour by American recording artist Usher. Visiting Africa, North America and Europe, the tour accompanies his fourth studio album, Confessions. The tour commenced on May 21, 2004, in Johannesburg and concluded on October 15, 2004, in Hartford. It was ranked as one of the highest-grossing tours of 2004 in North America, grossing $29.1 million.
"No Limit" is a song by American singer Usher featuring fellow American singer and rapper Young Thug. It was released by RCA on June 9, 2016, for online streaming through the streaming service Tidal, which Usher co-owns. The following day it was released for paid purchase on digital download and other online streaming services. "No Limit" serves as the lead single off his eighth studio album, Hard II Love. The song was written by the artists alongside producers Rock City, Brandon "B.A.M." Hodge, and Christopher "Talent" Perry. The track gives reference to Master P's song, "Make 'Em Say Uhh", from his 1997 No Limit Records release Ghetto D singing, "Make you say uh, no limit / Got that Master P, no limit baby" In North America, the song reached number 32 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, number nine on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
