Mya Marie Harrison is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer, and actress. Classified as a "triple threat entertainer," she has become a staple in pop cultural zeitgeist for her work in contemporary R&B. Born and raised in Washington D.C., as a child she studied ballet, jazz, and tap dance. She began her career in television as a dance posse member, performing on BET's Teen Summit. She signed with record executive A. Haqq Islam's University Records, an imprint of Interscope Records to release her eponymous debut studio album (1998), which lyrically explored romance and coming-of-age scenarios. A critical and commercial success, the album spawned her first Billboard Hot 100-top ten single, "It's All About Me". Her collaborative singles — "Girls Dem Sugar", "Ghetto Supastar ", and "Take Me There" — were also met with commercial success.
Estelle Fanta Swaray is a British singer, rapper and actress. She is known for her eclectic blending of musical genres including R&B, soul, reggae, grime, hip hop, and dance. She has collaborated with prominent American artists including John Legend, Robin Thicke, Rick Ross, Chris Brown, will.i.am, Kanye West, Akon, and Tyler, the Creator.
Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III, known professionally by his stage name Aloe Blacc, is an American singer-songwriter and rapper. He is best known for his singles "I Need a Dollar" and "The Man", which topped the charts in the United Kingdom, and for co-writing and performing vocals on Avicii's "Wake Me Up", which topped the charts in 22 countries, including Australia and the United Kingdom. Aside from his solo career, Blacc is also a member of hip hop duo Emanon, alongside American record producer Exile.
"I Can't Make You Love Me" is a song written by Mike Reid and Allen Shamblin and recorded by American singer Bonnie Raitt for her eleventh studio album, Luck of the Draw (1991). Released as the album's second single in 1991, "I Can't Make You Love Me" became one of Raitt's most successful singles, reaching the top-20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the top-10 on the Adult Contemporary chart.
"She's like a Star" is a song written, produced and performed by British singer and songwriter Taio Cruz. It was released on 18 August 2008 as the fifth single from his debut studio album Departure (2008). An R&B ballad, the lyrics of "She's like a Star" are about the theme of parenthood, an idea which inspired Cruz to compose the song. The song was remixed to feature vocals from English girl group Sugababes and American rapper K.R., and American rapper Busta Rhymes. It received generally mixed reviews from critics, who were ambivalent towards the composition. Upon release, it peaked at number twenty on the UK Singles Chart. The song's music video features Hollyoaks actress Roxanne McKee as Cruz's love interest. Cruz performed the song with the Sugababes at the 2008 MOBO Awards ceremony, and at Radio 1's Big Weekend 2011.
Anna Leddra Chapman, better known as Leddra Chapman, is an English singer-songwriter and musician from Brentwood in Essex. She rose to prominence when her debut single, "Story", was released on 7 December 2009 to much critical success and strong radio support and play from Terry Wogan on BBC Radio 2 during his last weeks as host of the station's breakfast show. The track is taken from her debut album, Telling Tales, which was produced by Peter-John Vettese and released for download on 29 November 2009. She was a student at London College of Music and she is also an ambassador for clothing company Quiksilver and The Body Shop. Her single 'All About You', from her second EP 'The Crowds and Cocktails', was BBC Radio 2's single of the week on 4 March 2013 and later added to the radio's B List.
All of Me is the third studio album by British rapper and singer Estelle. It was first released on 24 February 2012 in Ireland, 28 February in the United States and 12 March in the United Kingdom.
Lianne Charlotte Barnes, known professionally as Lianne La Havas, is a British singer-songwriter and record producer. Her career began after being introduced to various musicians, including singer Paloma Faith, for whom she sang backing vocals. In 2010, La Havas signed to Warner Bros. Records, spending two years developing her songwriting, before releasing any music. La Havas' debut studio album, Is Your Love Big Enough? (2012), was released to positive reviews from critics and earned her a nomination for the BBC's Sound of 2012 poll and awards for the iTunes Album of The Year 2012. She has released two other studio albums since, Blood in 2015 and Lianne La Havas in 2020. She was nominated once for a Grammy award in 2016 and twice for Brit Awards, in 2017 and 2021. She currently lives in London.
"Home Run" is the debut single by British singer Misha B, was officially released 15 July 2012. It was written and produced by Uzoechi Osisioma Emenike (MNEK) and Misha Bryan. The music video was released on 15 June 2012.
"Freedom" is a song by rapper Nicki Minaj. It was released on November 2, 2012 by Young Money, Cash Money and Universal Republic as the second single from the reissue of Minaj's second studio album, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded – The Re-Up (2012). It was written by Minaj, Matthew Burnett, and Matthew Samuels. Production was helmed by Samuels under his stage name Boi-1da. The song was released for digital download by Cash Money Records in the US and Canada on November 2, 2012 and in other countries on November 6, 2012. It was serviced to US urban radio on November 27 and to mainstream radio in the United Kingdom the following day. "Freedom" is a downtempo hip hop and R&B song that features a "sonically breezy" soundscape, complied with ambient riffs, pop-inspired synths, and soft pop choruses.
Simbiatu "Simbi" Abisola Abiola Ajikawo, better known by her stage name Little Simz, is a British rapper, singer and actress. She rose to prominence with the independent release of her first three albums; A Curious Tale of Trials + Persons (2015), Stillness in Wonderland (2016) and Grey Area (2019), the last of which was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize and won the awards for Best Album at both the Ivor Novello Awards and the NME Awards.
Laura Mvula is a British singer. A native of Birmingham, England, Mvula has gained experience as a young member or leader of a cappella, jazz/neo-soul and gospel groups and choirs. She was classically trained. In 2012, she signed with RCA Records and released an extended play, She, to critical acclaim.
Jacob Banks is a Nigerian-born English singer and songwriter from Birmingham. Banks won the 2012 MOBO UnSung regional competition in Birmingham and the Adidas "Are You In" music competition. His music is influenced by a range of genres including soul, R&B and hip hop. Banks is currently signed with American label Interscope Records.
Limey is the debut mixtape by British recording artist Rainy Milo, released in October 2012 through an independent label. The mixtape is Milo's first body of work, released after Milo began singing with local musicians and arts collectives when she was fourteen. Rainy began surfing the internet for jazz-inspired hip-hop beats in which she found producer BLCK RSSN. Milo enlisted BLCK RSSN as a producer for the mixtape along with Oddisee, Daje, Chet Faker, Flowzart, Cole M.G.N. and Eldad Guetta.
Black and Blonde stylized as Black & Blonde is the debut extended play by British recording artist Rainy Milo, released on 22 April 2013 through Universal Music. The extended play is Milo's first body of work after signing a contract with Universal. The extended play was released after Milo released her mixtape Limey (2012) which gained universal acclaim.
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.
This Thing of Ours is the debut album from British recording artist Rainy Milo. The album was recorded in the San Francisco Bay area in 2013 with the help of producer, mixer, engineer, and songwriter Daje. The album comes in both standard and deluxe formats, and features Milo's singles "'Deal Me Briefly", "Rats" and "'Bout You".
Kasim Keto is an American music producer. He has collaborated with artists such as Roc Marciano, and in 2013 signed to Babygrande Records, releasing several singles. His debut album with Babygrande, Long Cars Rides, was released in December 2013. Clash Music gave it a score of 8/10, with reviewer Joe Rivers writing, "This largely instrumental record... evokes the golden age of hip-hop...however, nightmarish and unsettling sounds and samples ensure 'Long Car Rides' always remains the right side of Daisy Age nostalgia." In 2014, Keto had three collaborative singles featured in the film Kid Cannabis.
Walk With Me is the debut EP by Bugzy Malone. The EP entered the UK Albums Chart at number eight. The EP was released on July 24, 2015. The EP was released on independent record label Grimey Limey.
Neo Jessica Joshua, better known as Nao, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer from East London. Her sound has been described as soul combined with electronic music, funk and R&B. Nao coined the term "wonky funk" to describe her style. She released her debut album, For All We Know, in 2016, her second album, Saturn, in 2018, followed by her most recent album, And Then Life Was Beautiful, released in 2021.
