Fantasia Monique Barrino-Taylor, known professionally by her mononym Fantasia, is an American R&B singer and actress. She rose to prominence in 2004 for her performance of the Porgy and Bess standard "Summertime" during the third season of the reality television series American Idol, and eventually became that season's winner. Following her victory, Barrino became the second woman to have their first single debut at number-one on the Billboard Hot 100, following Lauryn Hill, when her debut single "I Believe", launched atop the chart.
Joseph Lewis Thomas, known mononymously as Joe, is an American R&B singer-songwriter and record producer. Born and raised in Ashburn, Georgia, he later relocated to Atlanta and signed a record deal with Polygram Records in 1992. He rose to prominence after releasing his debut album Everything the following year. He followed it with a series of successful albums under Jive Records, including All That I Am (1997), the international bestseller My Name Is Joe (2000) as well as the multi-certified albums Better Days (2001) and And Then... (2003). Several songs from these albums became hit singles on the pop and R&B record charts, including the number-one hit "Stutter", the top ten entries "All the Things ", "Don't Wanna Be a Player", and "I Wanna Know" as well as his collaborations "Faded Pictures", "Thank God I Found You" and "Still Not a Player".
Free Yourself is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Fantasia, which was released on November 23, 2004. The album sold 240,000 units in its first week, reaching number eight on the Billboard 200 chart. The album is certified platinum in the United States and has been nominated for ten awards, including three Grammy Awards.
"Miss Independent" is a song by American singer Kelly Clarkson from her debut studio album Thankful (2003). Written by Clarkson, Christina Aguilera, Rhett Lawrence, and Matt Morris, with Lawrence serving as producer, it was released as the album's lead single by RCA Records on April 10, 2003, preceding its release by five days. The track was initially intended for Aguilera's fourth album, Stripped (2002), but was left half-finished. Lawrence later continued writing the song with Clarkson, who eventually recorded it.
Samuel Joshua Watters is an American singer, songwriter, record producer and record executive. Watters was a member of the multi-platinum selling 1990s R&B group Color Me Badd and co-authored many of their hits including "I Adore Mi Amor", and "All 4 Love". Watters has also written and produced songs for Grammy-winning and nominated artists such as American Idol winners Fantasia, Kelly Clarkson and Jordin Sparks, and other superstars such as Céline Dion, Whitney Houston, Leona Lewis, and Anastacia. Watters is a member of the production/songwriting team The Runaways including fellow hitmakers Rico Love, Wayne Wilkins, Ryan Tedder, and Louis Biancaniello.
"I Believe" is the debut single of American Idol third season winner Fantasia. The song was co-written by Louis Biancaniello, Sam Watters, and former American Idol contestant Tamyra Gray. Released in the United States on June 15, 2004, "I Believe" debuted at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, selling 142,000 copies during its first week and winning three Billboard awards. The song also reached number one on the Canadian Singles Chart and number four on Australia's ARIA Singles Chart. It was included on Fantasia's debut album, Free Yourself, released on November 23, 2004.
Keri Lynn Hilson is an American R&B singer, songwriter and actress. She was born and raised in Decatur, Georgia and spent most of her youth working with producer Anthony Dent as a songwriter and background vocalist for several R&B and hip hop artists. By the age of 14, Hilson had secured a record deal with the girl group D'Signe, which later disbanded. She attended Oxford College of Emory University in Georgia while she continued writing songs for artists including Britney Spears, The Pussycat Dolls, and Mary J. Blige, with the production and songwriting team The Clutch. In 2006, Hilson signed with American producer and rapper Timbaland's record label Mosley Music. Her breakthrough came in 2007 after appearing on Timbaland's single "The Way I Are", which topped charts around the world.
"And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" is a torch song from the Broadway musical Dreamgirls, with lyrics by Tom Eyen and music by Henry Krieger. In the context of the musical, "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" is sung by the character Effie White, a singer with the girl group The Dreams, to her manager, Curtis Taylor Jr., whose romantic and professional relationship with Effie is ending. The lyrics to "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going", often considered the show's signature tune, describe Effie's love for Curtis, both strongly devoted and defiant. She refuses to let Curtis leave her behind, and boldly proclaims to him, "I'm staying and you ... you're gonna love me."
American singer and actress Jennifer Hudson has released three studio albums, sixteen singles, five promotional singles and ten music videos. She has also made various contributions to other artist's albums and has appeared on the soundtrack for the 2006 musical film, Dreamgirls.
Back to Me is the third studio album by American singer and songwriter Fantasia. It was released on August 24, 2010, by J Records. The album's title was suggested to her by comedian Steve Harvey, when Barrino visited his morning radio program. The album sold 117,000 in its first week, debuting at number two on the US Billboard 200 and at number one on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, making it Fantasia's highest-charting album as of September 2010.
"Where You At" is a song recorded by American recording artist Jennifer Hudson. It was written and produced by fellow R&B singer R. Kelly for her second album I Remember Me (2011). Released as the album's lead single, the song debuted on January 24, 2011 and was released on February 8, 2011. Remixes for the song have been made by Dave Audé. The track reached number one on the US Billboard Adult R&B singles chart. In 2019, Hudson removed the song from all streaming platforms and stopped performing it live in support of several women who had come forward with stories of abuse at the hands of Kelly.
"Motivation" is a song recorded by American recording artist Kelly Rowland for her third studio album Here I Am (2011). The song was written by Jim Jonsin, Rico Love, Daniel Morris and Lil Wayne, with Jonsin producing the song and Lil Wayne having featured vocals. The R&B slow-jam was released as the lead single from Here I Am on March 2, 2011, by Universal Motown Records.
Lace Up is the debut studio album by American rapper Machine Gun Kelly. It was released on October 9, 2012, by Bad Boy Records and Interscope Records. Puff Daddy, who served as the executive producer on the album, enlisted the guest appearances from Cassie, DMX, Planet VI and Avenged Sevenfold; as well as the production that was provided by Alex da Kid, JP Did This 1 and J.R. Rotem, among others. The album was supported by four singles: "Wild Boy" featuring Waka Flocka Flame, "Invincible" featuring Ester Dean, and "Hold On " featuring Young Jeezy, along with a promotional single, "Stereo" featuring Alex Fitts.
David Jamahl Listenbee, better known by his stage name GoonRock, is an American record producer, musician, singer, songwriter and rapper. Raised in Los Angeles, California, early in his career he focused on hip hop and sold beats to artists such as Dr. Dre, Ne-Yo, Kanye West, and Juvenile. He later began incorporating club music. GoonRock co-wrote and co-produced a number of songs on LMFAO's 2011 album Sorry for Party Rocking, including hit singles "Party Rock Anthem" and "Sexy and I Know It."
Michael Len Williams II, known professionally as Mike Will Made It or simply Mike Will, is an American record producer and rapper. He is best known for producing trap beats for several Southern hip hop and pop artists on various commercially successful singles, including "Black Beatles" and "Powerglide" by Rae Sremmurd, "Mercy" by Kanye West, "No Lie" by 2 Chainz, "Bandz a Make Her Dance" by Juicy J, "Pour It Up" by Rihanna, "Love Me" by Lil Wayne, "Body Party" by Ciara, "We Can't Stop" by Miley Cyrus, "Formation" by Beyoncé, and "Humble" by Kendrick Lamar. He has released six mixtapes and one solo studio album, Ransom 2.
"Neva End" is a song by American hip-hop recording artist Future from his debut studio album Pluto. The hip hop and pop song was produced by Mike Will Made It, and on December 4, 2012, it was released as the fifth official single from Pluto. The single version features an additional verse by American singer-songwriter Kelly Rowland, and was included in the 2012 re-release of Pluto, titled Pluto 3D.
Candice Rickelle Glover is an American R&B singer and actress who won the twelfth season of American Idol. Glover is the first winner to have auditioned three times before being cast for the live shows. Her debut album Music Speaks was released on February 18, 2014.
"#Beautiful" is a song recorded by American singers Mariah Carey and Miguel. It was released as the lead single from Carey's fourteenth studio album, Me. I Am Mariah... The Elusive Chanteuse (2014). "#Beautiful" was written by Carey, Miguel, Nathan Perez, Brooke Davis, Mac Robinson, and Brian Keith Warfield, with Carey, Miguel and Perez producing the song. Released on May 6, 2013, Carey and Miguel did not reveal that they had collaborated on the song, until April 25, 2013, when Carey revealed the title in a 25-second teaser video during season twelve of American Idol. It was also on Idol, on May 9, that Carey premiered the official music video for "#Beautiful", before uploading an alternative edit to her VEVO account, that is set to the explicit version of the song.
Music Speaks is the debut studio album by American recording artist and American Idol twelfth season winner Candice Glover, released on February 18, 2014, by Interscope Records. It was preceded by the release of two digital singles, "I Am Beautiful" and "Cried". In the album, Glover combined the styling of contemporary R&B with 1960s-style lounge music.
The singles discography of American rapper Jay-Z consists of 68 singles as a lead artist, and 51 singles as a featured artist, as well as 14 promotional singles.
