Monica Denise Arnold is an American singer, rapper and actress. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia, she began performing as a child and became part of a traveling gospel choir at the age of ten. Monica signed with record producer Dallas Austin through his label Rowdy Records in 1993, and gained prominence following the release of her debut studio album, Miss Thang (1995). Her follow up releases were met with further commercial success; her second, The Boy Is Mine (1998) remains her best-selling album and spawned three singles that peaked the Billboard Hot 100: "The Boy Is Mine", "The First Night", "Angel of Mine".
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, record executive, entrepreneur, and DJ. Raised in Atlanta, he began his musical career at the age of nine, as the son of Columbia Records executive Michael Mauldin. In 1991, he discovered the teen hip hop duo Kris Kross. Dupri wrote and produced their breakout 1992 single "Jump," which peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100 and was named the 23rd most successful song of that decade. He established his own record label, So So Def Recordings in a joint venture with Columbia the following year.
Dionne Yvette Farris is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New Jersey, she began singing in elementary school and competed in pageants as a teenager. In the early 1990s, she was featured on the hip hop group Arrested Development (1992) hit single "Tennessee".
"It's Like That" is a song by American singer and songwriter Mariah Carey from her 10th studio album, The Emancipation of Mimi (2005). Written by Carey, Jermaine Dupri, Manuel Seal, and Johntá Austin, and produced by Carey, Dupri, and Seal, the song borrows the hook "It's Like That Y'all" from the Run–D.M.C. tracks "Hollis Crew" and "Here We Go (Live)". Several other tracks were contenders for the album's lead single. However, plans were changed when Island Def Jam Music head L.A. Reid suggested to Carey she record a few more strong songs to ensure the album's success, thus "It's Like That" was written and chosen as the album's lead single, being released on January 25, 2005.
"Sweetheart" is a song originally recorded by American singer Rainy Davis. It was written by Davis and Pete Warner, and produced with Dorothy Kessler. The track was released in 1986 by independent record label SuperTronics as a single from Davis's 1987 studio album Sweetheart. A freestyle, hip hop pop, and synth-funk song, "Sweetheart" appeared on R&B and dance music-based record charts in the United States.
"Always Be My Baby" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter, and record producer Mariah Carey for her fifth studio album, Daydream (1995). It was released by Columbia Records on February 20, 1996, as the third single in the United States and fourth worldwide. Written and produced by Carey, Jermaine Dupri and Manuel Seal, "Always Be My Baby" is a midtempo song, with lyrics describing the feeling of attachment and unity the singer feels towards her estranged lover, even though they are no longer together, she says he will always be a part of her and will "always be her baby" even after they move on.
Caron Melina Wheeler is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and musician. Born and raised in London, she performed in various singing competitions as a teenager and began her recording career as one of the founding members of Brown Sugar. She was also one of the founding members of the female backing vocalist group Afrodiziak. She officially rose to fame in the late 1980s as lead singer of R&B group Soul II Soul. Managed by her bandmate, Jazzie B, the group became one of the London's best-selling groups in the 1990s. Their debut album, Club Classics Vol. One (1989), which established them as a global success worldwide, earned two Grammy Awards and featured the UK and Billboard number-one singles "Keep on Movin'" and "Back to Life ".
Denise Lorraine "Rainy" Davis is an American singer and songwriter. Out of four Billboard charted singles, Rainy Davis is known best for her song "Sweetheart". The single was originally released on the New York–based independent label called Supertronics Records. However, after the song became a hit in the clubs, then on urban radio and eventually crossing over to pop radio, Columbia Records A&R exec Joe McEwen offered Davis a production-artist deal for worldwide physical distribution, which included buying her previous contract from Supertronics. She went on to record two albums for Columbia and received numerous awards for her contributions to hit songs over the years.
"Back to Life (However Do You Want Me)" is a song by British R&B band Soul II Soul featuring the Reggae Philharmonic Orchestra. It is an alternate version of a song that appears on their secondary debut album, Club Classics Vol. One (1989) (titled Keep On Movin' in the United States), and was released as its second single on 29 May 1989 by Virgin. "Back to Life" is one of two songs on the album featuring British singer Caron Wheeler and gained success in both North America and Europe, topping the charts in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom and peaking at number four in the United States. Its music video, directed by Monty Whitebloom & Andy Delaney, of Big TV!, sees the group performing in a forest. Soul II Soul won their first Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal with the song in 1990. It was later included on a tenth-anniversary edition of the album.
20 Y.O. is the ninth studio album by American singer Janet Jackson. It was first released in Japan on September 20, 2006, by Virgin Records. Its title makes reference to her third studio album Control (1986), and is a commemoration to its twentieth anniversary. 20 Y.O. represents the "celebration of the joyful liberation and history-making musical style" of Control. An R&B and dance album, Jackson enlisted a range of producers to work on material with, including LRoc, Manuel Seal, The Avila Brothers and No I.D., in addition to her longtime partners Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and then-boyfriend Jermaine Dupri.
"So Excited" is a song recorded by American singer Janet Jackson, featuring guest vocals from rapper Khia, for Jackson's ninth studio album 20 Y.O. (2006). The song was written by Jackson, Jermaine Dupri, James Phillips, Johntá Austin, James Harris III, Terry Lewis and Khia Chambers, with Herbie Hancock, Michael Beinhorn and Bill Laswell also receiving songwriting credits for sampling Hancock's 1983 song "Rockit". Production for "So Excited" was handled by Dupri, LRoc, Jam, Lewis and Jackson. "So Excited" is musically a hip hop and dance song which lyrically expresses submission from a woman to her lover. It was released on August 28, 2006, by Virgin Records as the second single from 20 Y.O.
"Everytime tha Beat Drop" is a song by American recording artist Monica from her fifth studio album The Makings of Me (2006). It was written by Johnta Austin, Jermaine Dupri, Robert Hill, Charles Hammond, Deangelo Hunt, James Phillips, and rap group Dem Franchize Boyz, while production was hemled by Dupri, with additional credits by LRoc. Musically, the downbeat uptempo track was greatly influenced by crunk and snap music, incorporating beats of rapper Nelly's 2005 song "Grillz" and containing a vocal sample of Dem Franchize Boyz' "Lean wit It, Rock wit It" (2006).
A Rose Is Still a Rose is the thirty-fourth studio album by American recording artist Aretha Franklin. It was released on March 24, 1998, by Arista Records. Conceived after a longer hiatus and a complete departure from her previous studio album What You See Is What You Sweat (1991), the album includes influences of 1990s hip hop as well as modern-day contemporary R&B and soul music. Throughout the project, Franklin worked with many famed hip hop producers and rappers, such as Lauryn Hill, Sean "Puffy" Combs, Jermaine Dupri, and Daryl Simmons. With the latter acts producing most of the album, A Rose Is Still a Rose deviated from the adult contemporary sound of Franklin's older work.
"Miss P." is a song by Cherish, released as their debut single as a lead artist soon after they made their musical debut alongside Da Brat in her single, "In Luv Wit Chu". The song was written by Kandi Burruss and produced by Jermaine Dupri and released on June 3, 2003. Seen as their breakout into the music industry, the song had moderate success, but the album was soon shelved for undisclosed reasons. A music video was also released for the single, and the girls' performed the track on Soul Train in May 2003.
"Stepped on My J'z" is a song written and performed by American rapper and singer Nelly featuring fellow American singer Ciara and fellow American rapper Jermaine Dupri; produced by the latter, it was released as the second single from Nelly's fifth studio album, Brass Knuckles.
Leah LaBelle Vladowski was an American singer. She rose to prominence in 2004 as a contestant on the third season of American Idol, placing twelfth in the season finals. In 2007, LaBelle began recording covers of R&B and soul music for her YouTube channel. These videos led to work as a backing vocalist starting in 2008 and a record deal in 2011 with Epic in partnership with I Am Other and So So Def Recordings. LaBelle released a sampler, three singles, and a posthumous extended play (EP).
"Sexify" is a song recorded by American singer Leah LaBelle, which was released on May 1, 2012, as part of the sampler album Pharrell Williams and Jermaine Dupri Present Leah LaBelle (2012). Written and produced by Pharrell Williams, it was the first song that LaBelle recorded with Williams as part of a joint record deal with Epic Records, So So Def Recordings, and I Am Other. It is an R&B song that features throwback elements to 1990s music. In its lyrics inspired by headlines from the women's fashion magazine Cosmopolitan, LaBelle instructs a woman on how to draw and keep the attention of a man.
"Here We Go Again" is a song by American singer and songwriter Aretha Franklin. It was written by Trina Broussard, Jermaine Dupri and Trey Lorenz for Franklin's thirty-fourth studio album, A Rose Is Still a Rose (1998), while production was helmed by Dupri and Manuel Seal. The song is built around replayed portions of "The Glow of Love" (1980) by Italian-American post-disco group Change. Due to the inclusion of the sample, Mauro Malavasi, David Romani and Wayne K. Garfield are also credited as songwriters. The song was the second single released from A Rose Is Still a Rose in June 1998 and reached number 76 on the Billboard Hot 100, also becoming Franklin's fifth number one on the US Dance Club Songs.
Dauman Music is an American entertainment company and record label headquartered in Los Angeles. The company was founded in 2007 by Jason Dauman who was originally a song placer and music publisher.
Raphael Orlando Tate is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. His debut single "With Every Beat of My Heart" peaked at number 25 on Billboard's Dance Club Songs in America. Raphael made his television on British ITVX primetime show Starstruck. On Starstruck 2023 series 2 Episode 6 Raphael delivered a masterful tribute to Soul Legend known as The Godfather of soul music James Brown. The series is presented by Olly Murs with a judging panel, in the second series 2023, consisting of Adam Lambert, Beverley Knight, Jason Manford and new judges Shania Twain and Ronan Keating due to first series judge Sheridan Smith fulfilling other filming commitments. Raphael Starstruck, performance was accompanied by teammates late Ron Davis, and Gospel singer Emmanuel Smith. The series is described by some media outlets as a revived and reformatted version of Stars in Their Eyes.
