Joseph Lewis Thomas, known mononymously as Joe, is an American R&B singer. He signed to Polygram Records in 1992, and 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".
Chapter II is the second studio album by American singer and songwriter Ashanti. It was released by Murder Inc. and Island Def Jam on July 1, 2003, in the United States. Ashanti reteamed with Murder Inc. head Irv Gotti and producer Chink Santana to work on the album. Chapter II features a guest appearance by rapper Ja Rule, Chink Santana, and Gunnz. Critical reception towards the album was generally mixed, with critics commending the album's autobiographical lyrics, and its fun yet light nature, while other critics felt Chapter II lacked creativity and personality and relied too heavily on the formula of her debut album (2002).
Nellyville is the second studio album by American rapper Nelly. It was released on June 25, 2002, by Universal Records and Fo' Reel Entertainment. The album's production was handled by Waiel Yaghnam, the Neptunes, Jay E, Trackboyz, Ryan Bowser, and Just Blaze. Two singles from Nellyville, "Hot in Herre" and "Dilemma", both topped the US Billboard Hot 100 for respectively seven and ten weeks. The album received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who praised the production.
We Invented the Remix is a remix compilation by P. Diddy & The Bad Boy Family, released on May 14, 2002. It features remixes of hit singles by artists from P. Diddy's Bad Boy Records record label.
Trouble is the debut album by Senegalese-American singer-songwriter Akon, released in on June 29, 2004. The album contains Akon's worldwide hit single, "Lonely", which was his commercial breakthrough. However, the release of "Locked Up" propelled Akon to sign a record deal. "Gunshot " was released as promotional single on May 11, 2004. The album performed well in the United Kingdom where it peaked at No. 1 on the UK Album Chart. Trouble sold 25,000 copies in the first week, and certified 2× Platinum by the RIAA in the United States and has sold 1.6 million copies.
Now That's What I Call Music! 4 was released on July 18, 2000. The album is the fourth edition of the Now! series released in the United States. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart. This was the first album in the American series to reach number one and marked "the first time ever that an album of previously released hits has debuted at number one in the U.S."
The discography of American rapper Tupac Shakur consists of 11 studio albums. Throughout his career and posthumously, Shakur sold more than 75 million records worldwide. He has scored 5 No. 1 albums on Billboard 200 and 8 No. 1 albums on Top R&B/Hip-Hop albums.
American singer Brandy Norwood entered the music business as a backing vocalist for R&B boy bands such as Immature, prior to launching her own career in 1994. Her discography, as a solo artist, includes eight studio albums, one compilation album, one extended play, 42 singles, 46 album appearances and 28 soundtrack appearances. Norwood has sold over 8.6 million albums in the United States, and more than 40 million records worldwide. Additionally, she has won over 100 awards as a recording artist. In 1999, Billboard ranked Norwood among the top 20 of the Top Pop Artists of the 1990s.
Now That's What I Call Music! 7 was released on July 31, 2001. The album is the seventh edition of the (U.S.) Now! series. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart, selling 621,000 copies in its first week, the highest opening week of sales for any U.S. Now! album to date. It is the third number-one album in the series and has been certified 3× Platinum by the RIAA. Now! 7 is the first in the series to also crossover onto the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, peaking at number three.
Now That's What I Call Music! 14 was released on November 4, 2003. The album is the 14th edition of the (US) Now! series. It peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 and number eleven on the R&B/Hip-Hop albums charts. It has been certified 3× Platinum. The album spent a record 13 weeks in the top 10 of the Billboard 200, the most for any multi-artist compilation album since 1963.
Ryde or Die Vol. 3: In the "R" We Trust is a compilation album from American hip hop record label Ruff Ryders Entertainment, released on December 18, 2001. The album was certified gold by Music Canada in August 2002 for sales of 50,000 units.
"Big Shit Poppin' (Do It)" (edited for radio as "Big Things Poppin' (Do It)") is a song by American hip hop recording artist T.I., released on May 29, 2007, as the lead single from his fifth album T.I. vs. T.I.P. (2007). The song was produced by Mannie Fresh. The song was listed as No. 66 on Rolling Stone's "The 100 Best Songs of 2007" list.
Poison is the debut studio album from American R&B/hip hop group Bell Biv DeVoe, released March 20, 1990, on MCA Records.
Hot, Cool, & Vicious is the debut studio album by American hip hop trio Salt-N-Pepa. Released by Next Plateau Records on December 1 1986, it was the first rap album by a female rap act to attain gold and platinum status in the US.
Jason Lee Epperson is an American record producer and DJ from St. Louis, Missouri. He first became known as the primary producer of hometown native Nelly's 2000 debut album Country Grammar, which received diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Thereafter, he produced extensively for Nelly and his collaborators, and signed with his record label, Derrty Entertainment as in-house talent. He has since produced songs for other artists including Murphy Lee, St. Lunatics, Justin Timberlake, E-40, Cedric the Entertainer, Lil Wayne, Ron Isley, Three 6 Mafia, and Hilary Duff. Epperson's style is characterized by hip hop mixed with soul, R&B, and pop music. Billboard magazine, in its December 2000 issue, listed Epperson at number 16 on its "Top 100 Producers" list, as well as number 19 on its "Top 100 R&B/Hip Hop Producers of 2000" list. He has received a Grammy Award nomination.
Self Made Vol. 1 is the first compilation album by MMG. The album was released on May 24, 2011, by Maybach Music Group and Warner Bros. Records. It features MMG's new roster additions, Wale, Meek Mill, Teedra Moses, Pill and Stalley along with Torch and Gunplay of Triple C's. Outside of the label, the album features guest appearances from Curren$y, Jadakiss, Jeremih, J. Cole, CyHi the Prynce and French Montana.
I Will Always Love You: The Best of Whitney Houston is a posthumous greatest hits album by American recording artist Whitney Houston. The album was released on November 13, 2012 via RCA Records.
American rapper Lil Wayne has released 286 singles including 19 promotional singles. Lil Wayne attained his first singles chart entry in 1999 as a featured artist on Hot Boys member Juvenile's single "Back That Azz Up", which peaked at number 19 on the United States Billboard Hot 100 and became a top ten hit on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs charts. Wayne later released his debut solo studio album Tha Block Is Hot in November 1999. Its title track and lead single, which features B.G. and Juvenile, reached number 72 on the Billboard Hot 100. Lights Out followed in December 2000 and produced the singles "Get Off the Corner", "Everything" and "Shine". "Way of Life", the lead single from Wayne's third studio album 500 Degreez, peaked at number 71 on the Hot 100 and became a top 20 hit on the Hot Rap Songs chart. In 2004, Wayne was featured on the single "Soldier" by American girl group Destiny's Child, which became his first top ten hit on the Hot 100 and enjoyed commercial success internationally.
"Planez" is a song by American singer Jeremih from his third studio album, Late Nights (2015). It features American rapper J. Cole, and was released in January 2015 as the second single from the album. It interpolates "Put It in Your Mouth" by Akinyele. The original version of the song featured a verse from fellow Chicago native Chance the Rapper. "Planez" garnered mixed reviews from critics, praising Jeremih's performance but criticized J. Cole's guest verse. The track peaked at numbers 15 and 44 on both the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot 100 charts respectively. It was also certified 5x Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The single garnered Jeremih's first career Grammy nomination for Best R&B Performance at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards.
Summer Marjani Walker is an American R&B singer-songwriter. Born and raised in Atlanta, she signed with the local record label Love Renaissance, an imprint of Interscope Records in late 2017. The following year, she released her debut commercial mixtape Last Day of Summer (2018), supported by its lead single, "Girls Need Love." The song became her first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 and spawned a remix featuring Canadian rapper Drake. Her debut studio album, Over It (2019) was met with critical and commercial success, peaking at number two on the Billboard 200 chart—briefly breaking the record for the biggest debut streaming week for a female R&B artist—and receiving triple platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
