Alicia Augello Cook, known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys began composing songs by age 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Columbia Records. After disputes with the label, she signed with Arista Records and later released her debut album, Songs in A Minor, with J Records in 2001. The album was critically and commercially successful, selling over 12 million copies worldwide. It spawned the Billboard Hot 100 number-one single "Fallin'", and earned Keys five Grammy Awards in 2002. Her second album, The Diary of Alicia Keys (2003), was also a critical and commercial success, selling eight million copies worldwide, and producing the singles "You Don't Know My Name", "If I Ain't Got You", and "Diary". The album garnered her an additional four Grammy Awards.
"In da Club" is a song by American rapper 50 Cent from his debut studio album Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2003). Written by 50 Cent alongside producers Dr. Dre and Mike Elizondo, the song, which uses an unconventional off-beat rhythm, was released in January 2003 as the album's lead single and peaked at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming 50 Cent's first number-one single.
"California Love" is a song by American rapper 2Pac featuring fellow American rapper-producer Dr. Dre and American singer Roger Troutman. The song was released as 2Pac's comeback single after his release from prison in 1995 and was his first single as the newest artist of Death Row Records. This is one of 2Pac's most widely known and most successful singles, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks and also topping the charts of Italy, New Zealand, and Sweden. The song was posthumously nominated Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group in 1997.
"Hate It or Love It" is a single by American rapper and West Coast hip hop artist the Game, featuring 50 Cent. It was released as the third official single from the Game's debut studio album The Documentary (2005). The song features production from duo Cool & Dre, with additional production from Dr. Dre. The song features a music sample of "Rubber Band" by the Trammps from their album The Legendary Zing Album (1975). "Hate It or Love It" peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks, becoming the Game's second top ten song on the chart as a lead artist and 50 Cent's eighth. It is the Game's highest-charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 to date. The song was kept from the number one position on the Billboard Hot 100 by 50 Cent's single, "Candy Shop",. "Hate It or Love It" reached the number one spot on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, making it yet again another top ten hit on the chart alongside "How We Do" which also featured 50 Cent. Outside of the United States, "Hate It or Love It" peaked within the top ten of the charts in multiple countries, including the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Republic of Ireland, and the United Kingdom.
Kasseem Daoud Dean, known professionally as Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, rapper, and record executive. Born and raised in New York City, Dean embarked on his musical career as a DJ. At the age of 18, he started to gain recognition in the hip hop industry through his family's record label, Ruff Ryders, as well as his friendship and work with East Coast rapper DMX. Working with DMX as his producer, DJ and hype man helped Dean gain prominence as a high-profile personality in hip hop.
"How We Do" is a song by American rapper and West Coast hip hop artist the Game, featuring rapper 50 Cent from his debut album, The Documentary. Produced by Dr. Dre, Mike Elizondo, it was released as the album's second official single in late 2004.
"21 Questions" is a song by American rapper 50 Cent featuring guest vocals from American singer Nate Dogg. It was released in March 2003 through Interscope Records, Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment, Eminem's Shady Records, and 50 Cent's G-Unit Records as the second single from 50 Cent's debut studio album Get Rich or Die Tryin'. In contrast to his previous singles and much of the songs on his debut studio album, "21 Questions" is an R&B influenced love song, largely themed around a series of questions pertaining to a relationship between 50 Cent and an unnamed girlfriend. It contains elements of Barry White's 1978 song "It's Only Love Doing Its Thing".
"Outta Control" is a song by American rapper 50 Cent, recorded for his second studio album, The Massacre (2005). The song features production from Dr. Dre and Mike Elizondo. A remixed version of the song was released as the fourth and final single from The Massacre, although it is only included on the re-released version and replaces the original version. The remix is also produced by Dr. Dre and Elizondo and features a guest appearance from hip-hop group Mobb Deep. It also appears as a bonus track on Mobb Deep's seventh studio album Blood Money (2006).
"No Diggity" is a song by American R&B group Blackstreet as the first single for their second studio album, Another Level (1996), featuring Dr. Dre and Queen Pen. Released on July 29, 1996, the song reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and in Iceland and New Zealand. "No Diggity" ended "Macarena"'s 14-week reign atop the Billboard Hot 100. In the United Kingdom, the song peaked at number nine. "No Diggity" was the final number-one single of Cash Box magazine. The track sold 1.6 million copies in 1996 and won the 1998 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. It uses samples from Bill Withers's Grandma's Hands.
"Still D.R.E." is a song by American rapper-producer Dr. Dre, featuring fellow American rapper Snoop Dogg. It was released on November 2, 1999 as the lead single from Dre's multi-platinum second studio album, 2001 (1999).
"The Next Episode" is a single by American rapper-producer Dr. Dre, released on May 9, 2000 as the third single from his second studio album, 2001 (1999). The track features Snoop Dogg, Kurupt and Nate Dogg, but only Snoop Dogg is credited. It is a sequel to Dre and Snoop's famous single "Nuthin' but a 'G' Thang" from the former's debut album, The Chronic.
"Crack a Bottle" is a hip-hop song by American rapper Eminem, featuring American rappers Dr. Dre and 50 Cent. The song was released as the lead single from Eminem's album Relapse (2009). On February 12, 2009, the song broke the first week digital sales record with 418,000 downloads, topping the previous record held by "Live Your Life" by T.I. featuring Rihanna. This record was broken again the following week by "Right Round" by Flo Rida. The song won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group in 2010.
"Ok, You're Right" is the first promotional single by rapper 50 Cent from his fourth album, Before I Self Destruct. It also appears as the first promo single for his mixtape War Angel LP, the song is also featured on Tony Yayo's mixtape The Swine Flu.
"Baby by Me" is the lead single by American rapper 50 Cent from his fourth studio album Before I Self Destruct. It was commercially released on September 10, 2009. The song was produced by Polow Da Don and William Tyler, and written by Curtis Jackson, Jamal Jones, William Tyler and Shaffer Smith. The single version features vocals by R&B singer Ne-Yo.
"I Need a Doctor" is a single by American rapper Dr. Dre featuring fellow American rapper Eminem and American singer Skylar Grey. The song was produced by Alex da Kid and released for digital download through the American iTunes Store on February 1, 2011.
"Haters" is the second single from Tony Yayo's second studio album. The song features fellow rapper 50 Cent, Shawty Lo and Roscoe Dash. The song was released as a digital download on March 23, 2011.
"New Day" is a song by American recording artist Alicia Keys from her fifth studio album Girl on Fire (2012). Produced by Swizz Beatz and Dr. Dre, the song showcases a musical departure from the previous singles by the singer, with a more upbeat sound led by drums and percussion, as opposed to her classical R&B sound. On the song, Keys sings about "touching the sky and not letting chances go to waste". It received praise from music critics, who complimented the new musical direction, as well as criticizing the downgrade of Keys' "powerhouse voice" in favor of percussion. Rapper 50 Cent has a version of the song with one verse by Dr. Dre and the hook by Alicia Keys, also called "New Day". It was released as the second international single from the album and was officially sent to French radio stations on February 21, 2013.
"Girl on Fire" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Alicia Keys for her fifth studio album of the same name. Keys co-wrote and co-produced the R&B ballad with Jeff Bhasker and Salaam Remi. The song contains an interpolation of the drums from the 1980 song "The Big Beat" by American rock guitarist Billy Squier, who received a writing credit on "Girl on Fire". Released on September 4, 2012, as the lead single from the album of the same name, "Girl on Fire" is Keys' first release under RCA Records following the closure of J Records, after a reorganization at Sony Music Entertainment.
"My Life" is a song by American rapper 50 Cent, featuring fellow rapper and friend of 50 Cent, Eminem, as well as Maroon 5's lead singer Adam Levine. It was originally released as the second official single of 50 Cent's scrapped studio album Street King Immortal, but was later removed from the project. The single was produced by American music producer Symbolyc One. The song premiered on American radio station Hot 97, and was made available for digital download on iTunes Store on November 26, 2012.
"Blended Family " is a song by American recording artist Alicia Keys, featuring vocals from rapper ASAP Rocky. It was written by Keys, Rocky, John Bush, Brandon Aly, Tish Hyman, Dave Kuncio, John Houser, Kenneth Withrow and Edie Brickell for her sixth studio album Here (2016), while production was helmed by Keys and Mark Batson. The song refers to the former marriage of Keys' husband Swizz Beats and musician Mashonda Tifrere. It was released on October 7, 2016 by RCA Records.
