Richard Martin Lloyd Walters, better known as Slick Rick, is an English-American rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence as part of Doug E. Fresh & the Get Fresh Crew in the mid-1980s. Their songs "The Show" and "La Di Da Di" are considered early hip hop classics. "La Di Da Di" is one of the most sampled songs in history.
Taalib Johnson, better known by the stage name Musiq Soulchild or simply Musiq is an American singer and songwriter whose style blends R&B, funk, blues, jazz, and gospel influences fused with hip hop. Soulchild has released several successful studio albums that went platinum in the United States.
Hip hop soul is a subgenre of contemporary R&B music, most popular during the early and mid 1990s, which fuses R&B or soul singing with hip hop musical production. The subgenre had evolved from a previous R&B subgenre, new jack swing, which had incorporated hip-hop influences into R&B music. By contrast, hip hop soul is, as described in The Encyclopedia of African American Music, "quite literally soul singing over hip hop grooves".
Def Soul Records was an R&B-based division of American multinational record label Def Jam Recordings. It was formed in 1996 by Russell Simmons and Kevin Liles to expand R&B and soul music through Def Jam's said genre-related roster following the successes of Montell Jordan and Case.
Def Jam Recordings is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop.
Venni Vetti Vecci is the debut studio album by American rapper Ja Rule. It was released on June 1, 1999, by Def Jam Recordings and Irv Gotti's Murder Inc. Records. It was the first album to be released on Murder Inc. Production was mostly handled by Irv Gotti, with additional work provided by Lil Rob, Ty Fyffe, Erick Sermon and Self Service. The album features guest appearances from Jay-Z, DMX, Case, Memphis Bleek, Black Child, Ronald Isley and Erick Sermon, among others. The album title alludes to the Latin phrase "veni, vidi, vici", meaning "I came, I saw, I conquered".
The Senior is the fourth studio album by American singer Ginuwine. It was released in the United States on April 8, 2003, via Epic Records. The album was primarily produced by Bryan-Michael Cox, with additional production from Scott Storch, R. Kelly, Brandon Howard and Joe Little III. The album debuted at No. 6 on the US Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 122,000 copies and was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The Senior was supported with the release of three singles, with all of them appearing on the Billboard Hot 100: "Hell Yeah" peaking at No. 17, "In Those Jeans" peaking at No. 8, and "Love You More" peaking at No. 78.
Keep the Faith is the second album by American singer Faith Evans. It was released by Bad Boy Records on October 27, 1998, in the United States. Almost entirely written and produced by Evans, the album garnered generally mixed to positive reviews by music critics, with AllMusic noting it "without a doubt a highlight of 1990s soul-pop music." Also enjoying commercial success, it went platinum and produced the top ten singles "Love Like This" and "All Night Long," prompting Evans to start an 18-city theater tour with Dru Hill and Total the following year.
Chris Brown is the debut album by American singer Chris Brown, released on November 29, 2005, through Jive Records. The production on the album was handled by multiple producers including Scott Storch, Cool & Dre, Oak Felder, Bryan-Michael Cox and the Underdogs among others. The album also features guest appearances by Juelz Santana, Lil Wayne, Bow Wow and Jermaine Dupri.
Todd Smith is the eleventh studio album by American rapper LL Cool J. It was released on April 11, 2006 by Def Jam Recordings. It includes collaborations with Jennifer Lopez, Pharrell, Juelz Santana, Teairra Mari, Jamie Foxx, Ginuwine, Mary J. Blige, 112, Mary Mary, Ryan Toby and Freeway. Producers on the project include Pharrell, Scott Storch, Bink!, Shea Taylor, Drumma Boy, Keezo Kane and Trackmasters.
The Soulquarians were a rotating collective of experimental Black music artists active during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Initially formed by singer and multi-instrumentalist D'Angelo, drummer and producer Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, and producer-rapper J Dilla. They were later joined by singer-songwriter Erykah Badu, trumpeter Roy Hargrove, keyboardist James Poyser, singer Bilal, bassist Pino Palladino, rapper-producers Q-Tip and Mos Def, and rappers Talib Kweli and Common. Prior to its formation, Q-Tip, Common, Mos Def, and Talib Kweli were members of the Native Tongues collective, whilst Q-Tip's original group A Tribe Called Quest served as one of the inspirations behind the Soulquarians.
Broken Silence is the third studio album by American rapper Foxy Brown, released on June 5, 2001, by Violator and Ill Na Na Entertainment; distributed under Def Jam Recordings. The album debuted at number five on the Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 131,000 copies. It has been certified gold by the RIAA for shipments of 500,000 copies in the United States. This is Foxy's only album to be released in the 2000s, and remains her most recent release.
Special Occasion is the second studio album by American R&B singer Bobby Valentino. It was released by Disturbing tha Peace and Def Jam Recordings on May 8, 2007, in the United States. The singer co-wrote over three quarters of the album, which also features songwriting and production from Tim & Bob, Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, Timbaland, Sean Garrett, Don Vito, Bryan-Michael Cox and Dre & Vidal. It also features guest appearances by Ludacris, Timbaland and Fabolous.
A Nu Day is the second studio album by Canadian recording artist Tamia. It was released by Elektra Records on October 10, 2000, following her transition from Qwest Records. A less ballad-driven collection of songs and more progressive approach than her debut effort, Tamia worked with a smaller number of songwriters and producers on the album, including Dallas Austin, Shep Crawford, Missy Elliott, Bink!, Errol "Poppi" McCalla, and Jazz Nixon, some of whom would become frequent collaborators on subsequent albums. As with Tamia, a cover version, DeBarge's 1983 single "Love Me in a Special Way", was also recorded for the album.
Open Letter is the third studio album by American R&B singer Case. It was released by Def Soul, the R&B division of Def Jam Recordings, on April 24, 2001 in the United States. The album peaked at number five on the US Billboard 200 and was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It was preceded by the Tim & Bob-produced single "Missing You", which earned Case a nomination for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance at the 44th Grammy Awards in 2002. Open Letter was Case's last album on Def Soul and Def Jam Recordings.
Soulstar is the third studio album by American singer Musiq Soulchild. It was released on December 9, 2003. It debuted on the Billboard 200 at number thirteen, spending 23 weeks on the chart and exiting on May 29, 2004; on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart where it peaked at number three, it spent 37 weeks, falling off on September 9, 2004.
Get It On...Tonite is the fourth studio album by the American singer Montell Jordan. It was released by Def Jam Recordings's spin-off label Def Soul on November 9, 1999, in the United States. The production was by Jordan, Anthony "Shep" Crawford, and Jazz the Man. Another success, it peaked at number 32 on the US Billboard 200 and number 3 on the top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The title track found also found success on the Billboard charts, peaking at number 4 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks.
Jhené Aiko Efuru Chilombo is an American R&B singer-songwriter and rapper from Los Angeles, California. Aiko embarked on her musical career in 2002, as a backing vocalist and music video performer for the R&B group B2K. She was signed by their record label, The Ultimate Group that same year and was marketed as the "cousin" of B2K member Lil' Fizz to cultivate her own following, although they are not related. Her debut album, slated for a 2003 release through the label with Epic Records, was shelved due to Aiko instead further pursuing her education.
"Love Like This" is a song by American singer Faith Evans. It was written by Evans, Ron "Amen-Ra" Lawrence, Sean "Puffy" Combs, Clarence Emery, and Schon Crawford for her second studio album Keep the Faith (1998), with production helmed by Lawrence and Combs. The song is built around a looped sample from "Chic Cheer" (1978) by American band Chic. Due to the inclusion of the sample, band members Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers are also credited as songwriters. "Love Like This" was released as the album's lead single.
Sail Out is the debut extended play (EP) by American recording artist Jhené Aiko, released on November 12, 2013 through Def Jam Recordings. It was Aiko's first release under the label after leaving her contract with Sony Music in 2003. After leaving Sony Music, Aiko released her first mixtape Sailing Soul(s) (2011), independently; the mixtape featured appearances from well-known artists and was met with generally positive reviews and was nominated for Best Urban Contemporary Album at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards. . In 2012, Aiko met with American record producer and vice president of A&R at Def Jam No I.D., who ended up signing Aiko to his Artium Records imprint, through Def Jam.
