Theodore DeReese Pendergrass was an American soul and R&B singer-songwriter. He was born in Kingstree, South Carolina. Pendergrass spent most of his life in the Philadelphia area, and initially rose to musical fame as the lead singer of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes. After leaving the group in 1976, Pendergrass launched a successful solo career under the Philadelphia International label, releasing five consecutive platinum albums. Pendergrass's career was suspended after a March 1982 car crash left him paralyzed from the waist down. Pendergrass continued his successful solo career until announcing his retirement in 2007. He died from respiratory failure in January 2010.
Kenneth Arnold Chesney is an American country music singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He has recorded more than 20 albums and has produced more than 40 Top 10 singles on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay charts, 32 of which have reached number one. Many of these have also charted within the Top 40 of the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, making him one of the most successful crossover country artists. He has sold over 30 million albums worldwide.
Tamar Estine Braxton is an American singer and television personality.
"What's It Gonna Be?!" is a song by American rapper Busta Rhymes featuring American singer Janet Jackson. It was released as the fourth and last single from his third studio album Extinction Level Event: The Final World Front. The song was written by Rhymes, Antoinette Roberson and its producer Darrell "Delite" Allamby. The song was a commercial and critical success, reaching number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and the top ten of various countries. It also hit number one on the Billboard Hot Rap Tracks and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks charts, and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group at the 2000 Grammy Awards.
Big Willie Style is the debut solo album by American rapper and actor Will Smith. It was released on November 25, 1997, by Columbia Records. The album was primarily produced by Poke & Tone, with other contributors including L.E.S. and Smith's former collaborator DJ Jazzy Jeff. The album was the first to be released by Smith since 1993's Code Red, the last by the duo DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince. Five singles were released, including Smith's first US Billboard Hot 100 number one, "Gettin' Jiggy wit It".
Back to Then is the first studio album by the American singer Darius Rucker, lead singer of Hootie & the Blowfish.
Time, Love & Tenderness is the seventh studio album by American recording artist Michael Bolton. The album was released on April 23, 1991, by Columbia Records; it was produced by Walter Afanasieff and Michael Bolton. To date, the record has sold more than 16 million copies worldwide, becoming the best-selling album of his career.
Destiny's Child is the debut studio album by American R&B group Destiny's Child, released by Columbia Records and Music World Entertainment on February 17, 1998. It features the singles "No, No, No" and "With Me", both of which preceded the album. The album spent twenty six weeks on the US Billboard 200 chart and peaked at number sixty-seven. To date the album has sold a total of 831,000 copies in America. In the United Kingdom, it reached the top fifty, peaking at number forty-five. It was re-packaged and re-released in several countries after the success of the follow-up album, The Writing's on the Wall (1999). The album was met with generally favorable reviews from music critics, including AllMusic and Rolling Stone, and won a Soul Train Lady of Soul Award for Best R&B/Soul Album of the Year.
Special Occasion is the second studio album by American R&B singer Bobby V. 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.
"My Body" is a song by R&B group LSG released as the first single from their debut album Levert.Sweat.Gill.
Tonight is the third studio album by American R&B group Silk, released on March 23, 1999 on Elektra Entertainment. It was their first album in four years and the reason for the break was due to the group wanting to be more involved in the creative process. Another reason for the hiatus was due to the lackluster performance of their previous album Silk (1995), which caused the group to seek new management after dealing with financial and legal issues. After severing ties with their former managers, they were managed by Sonja Norwood, mother of singer/actress Brandy Norwood. They were soon given the green light to record a new album by Elektra's then-president Sylvia Rhone, who let them take their time to record the album until they had the right songs.
There are numerous references to Dutch painter M.C. Escher in popular culture.
Next Friday (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) is the soundtrack album to Steve Carr's 2000 comedy film Next Friday. It was released on December 14, 1999 through Priority Records and consisted of hip hop and R&B music.
In the Line of Fire is the debut solo studio album by American rapper Hussein Fatal. It released on March 24, 1998 via Relativity Records. Recording sessions took place at Platinum Island Studios, The Hit Factory and Chung King Studios in New York, and at Jimmy Weaver Studio. Production was handled by Darrell "Delite" Allamby, Reef, Steve Pitts, Baby Paul, Buff William, D'Anthony Johnson, Femi Ojetunde, Quimmy Quim, and Courtney Burgess, who also served as executive producer together with Awanda Booth. It features guest appearances from Dirty Bert, Antoinette Roberson, Freddie Foxxx, Merciless X, Smooth and Tame One. The album peaked at number 50 on the Billboard 200 and number 10 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Two singles were released: "Getto Star" and "Everyday", with the latter reached number 79 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.
Lincoln Browder, better known by his stage name Link, is an American R&B singer from Dallas, Texas.
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back is the second studio album by American hip hop group Public Enemy, released on June 28, 1988, by Def Jam Recordings and Columbia Records. It was recorded from 1987 to 1988 in sessions at Chung King Studios, Greene St. Recording, and Sabella Studios in New York.
Ship Ahoy is an album by Philadelphia soul group The O'Jays, released on November 10, 1973 on Philadelphia International Records. The album was a critical and commercial success, reaching #1 on Billboard's "Black Albums" chart and #11 on the "Pop Albums" chart and launching two hit singles, "For the Love of Money" and "Put Your Hands Together." Conceived as a theme album built around the title track, Ship Ahoy includes socially relevant tracks and love songs under a cover that is itself notable for its serious subject matter. The album, which achieved RIAA platinum certification in 1992 for over 1 million copies sold, has been reissued multiple times, including in a 2003 edition with a bonus track. Ship Ahoy was the highest selling R&B album on the Billboard Year-End chart for 1974.
Personal is the debut studio album by the American vocal group Men of Vizion. It was released on June 18, 1996, via Michael Jackson's record label, MJJ Music, after a demo tape was played to him by producer Teddy Riley. The album has been described as a "sumptuous blend" of vocal R&B and "90s production techniques", that alternates between smooth ballads and new jack swing.
Paradise is the second studio album from American R&B artist Billy Lawrence, released June 24, 1997 on East West Records. The album features an appearance from rapper MC Lyte on the first single "Come On", which previously appeared in the soundtrack to the film Set It Off the year before. Also appearing on the album was the then-unknown Van Hunt who played the Wurlitzer on the album's title track. Paradise also marked the debut of the controversial rap group dead prez who were credited as sticman & M-1 on the song "Footsteps".
