Brian Kainoa Makoa McKnight Sr. is an American singer-songwriter, actor, record producer, radio personality, and multi-instrumentalist. An R&B performer, he is recognized for his strong head voice, high belting range, and melisma.
"Lean Back" is a song by American hip hop group Terror Squad. It was released as the second single from their second studio album, True Story, on June 1, 2004. An uptempo hip hop song built for the club environment, it contains vocal performances from group members Fat Joe and Remy and production from Scott Storch. It topped the US Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, starting on August 21, 2004, and topped the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart for seven weeks. Worldwide, the song reached the top 20 in several other countries, including Denmark, where it peaked at number five.
Back at One is the fifth studio album by American singer Brian McKnight, released on September 21, 1999, by Motown Records. The album followed the same pattern as McKnight's previous album of original material, Anytime (1997), in which he began his transition from urban adult contemporary into the hip hop soul market. Back at One contains a mix of hip hop-influenced contemporary R&B songs, as well as a variety of ballads. While McKnight co-wrote and produced nearly every song on the album, he also worked with a few new producers, including Rodney Jerkins, his brother Fred Jerkins III, and Anthony Nance.
Anytime is the third studio album by American singer Brian McKnight. It was released by Mercury Records on September 23, 1997, in the United States. Following his moderately successful second album I Remember You (1995), McKnight consulted a wider range of collaborators to work with him on the album, including producers Sean Combs, Keith Thomas, Poke & Tone and songwriters Diane Warren, and Peter Black. While McKnight would provide most of the material by himself, Anytime deviated from the urban adult contemporary sound of his older work, with the former acts taking his music further into the hip hop soul genre.
"Angel in Disguise" is a song recorded by American singer Brandy for her second studio album Never Say Never (1998). It was written by Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, Fred Jerkins III, LaShawn Daniels, Traci Hale, and Tye-V Turman, and was produced by Jerkins along with Brandy. The song was recorded and mixed by audio engineer Dave Way at the Pacifique Recording Studios in North Hollywood, California and features prominent backing vocals by singer Joe.
Mason Durell Betha, better known by his mononym Mase, is an American rapper. Best known for his work with Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs' Bad Boy Records, he signed with the label in 1996 and quickly found mainstream recognition as Combs' hype man. He guest appeared on Combs' 1997 single "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down", which peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100, while his singles as a lead artist, "Feel So Good" and "What You Want" both peaked within the top ten of the chart. Released in October of that year, his debut studio album, Harlem World (1997) peaked atop the Billboard 200 chart, received quadruple platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and spawned his third top ten single as a lead artist, "Lookin' at Me". Furthermore, his guest performances on labelmate the Notorious B.I.G.'s single "Mo Money Mo Problems" and Puff Daddy's "Been Around the World" peaked at numbers one and two on the Billboard Hot 100, respectively, that same year.
American singer Usher has released nine studio albums, ten compilation albums, eight extended plays, and 81 singles. His music has been released on the LaFace, Arista, Jive, RCA, and gamma record labels. Usher has sold more than 33 million albums in the United States alone and over 65 million albums worldwide. With over 150 million total records sold worldwide, he is one of the best selling music artists of all time. He has nine number-one singles and 18 Hot 100 top-ten singles on the US Billboard Hot 100. In 1994, Usher released his self-titled debut album in North America, which went onto sell 500,000 copies, and produced the singles "Can U Get wit It", "Think of You", and "The Many Ways". The former two peaked in the lower half of the UK and US charts. His follow-up 1997 album My Way sold over 8 million copies worldwide, becoming his breakthrough album. It is certified seven-times platinum in the US, and spawned three successful singles, including his first UK number-one song, "You Make Me Wanna...", and first US Hot 100 number-one song, "Nice & Slow". Usher's success continued in 2001, with his third studio album, 8701. It debuted at number four on the Billboard 200. The album produced two number-one singles, such as "U Remind Me" and "U Got It Bad". In 2002, the album was certified five-times platinum in the US for sales of 5 million copies. As of 2010, its worldwide sales stand at over 8 million.
"For You I Will" is a song by American singer Monica. It was written by Diane Warren and produced by David Foster, and recorded for the soundtrack of the live-action/animated sports comedy film Space Jam (1996), directed by Joe Pytka and starring basketball player Michael Jordan. One out of several songs from the album to be released as a single, it was issued on February 25, 1997, by Atlantic Records and Rowdy Records. A downtempo pop and R&B ballad, the song's lyrics involve the singer pledging love and devotion and promising to help an unnamed "you" overcome any difficulty, regardless of the magnitude.
American rapper Mase has released three studio albums and twenty-two singles, including ten as a featured artist.
"Used to Be My Girl" is a song by American singer Brian McKnight. It was written by McKnight along with Tim Kelley and Bob Robinson for his ninth studio album Ten (2006), while production was helmed by Kelley and Robinson under their production moniker Tim & Bob. The song peaked at number 25 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The song was released as the album's lead single on October 17, 2006 and peaked at number 25 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
"Find Myself in You" is a song by American singer Brian McKnight. Written and produced by McKnight, it was released as a single from the original soundtrack to the comedy-drama film Madea's Family Reunion in February 2006. The song reached number 27 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. It was also included in his album, Ten released in December of that year.
The discography of Brian McKnight, an R&B singer, consists of 15 studio albums, six compilation albums, more than 40 singles, and 19 music videos. McKnight has sold more than 25 million albums worldwide.
"Let It Go" is a song by American R&B singer Keyshia Cole featuring American rappers Missy Elliott and Lil' Kim. It was written by Cole, Jack Knight, Cainon Lamb, Lil' Kim, and Missy Elliott for her second album Just Like You (2007) and samples "Juicy Fruit" by Mtume, and "Don't Stop the Music" by Yarbrough and Peoples, while also interpolating "Juicy" by The Notorious B.I.G., who also sampled "Juicy Fruit." An uptempo song written by all three artists with Jack Knight, Cainon Lamb and James Mtume and produced by Lamb and Elliott, it marked the first collaboration between any of the three artists with one another.
"Been Around the World" is a song by American rapper Puff Daddy, featuring the Notorious B.I.G. and Mase and included on Puff Daddy's debut studio album No Way Out (1997). The song samples David Bowie's 1983 hit song "Let's Dance", and contains an interpolation of Lisa Stansfield's song "All Around the World", sung by the Notorious B.I.G. in the chorus. In the album version, the song concludes with a skit featuring an interview with "The Mad Producer".
"Love Me" is the lead single from American R&B group 112 from their second studio album, Room 112 and features vocals from rapper Mase. Q and Mike share lead vocals on the song, with Slim providing adlibs. It peaked at number 17 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and reached number eight on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. A music video directed by Frosty for the song was made, featuring the group and Mase performing in a white background. The song contains a sample of the 1981 record, "Don't You Know That?" by recording artist Luther Vandross from his debut album, Never Too Much. In the song, Mase takes a supposed shot at rapper Jay-Z on this song with the line "What we hear is platinum that, platinum this/Platinum whips, nobody got no platinum hits".
"Feel So Good" is the debut single by American hip-hop artist Mase. It was released in October 1997 through Bad Boy Records and Arista Records as the lead single from his debut album, Harlem World, and it appeared on the Money Talks soundtrack. The song was produced by D-Dot and Sean "Puffy" Combs and featured vocals by R&B singer Kelly Price on the chorus. The single was the most successful of the three singles released from the album, having peaked at number 5 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, and number-one on the Hot Rap Singles chart. "Feel So Good" was certified gold just about a month after its release on November 12, 1997; it was later certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Chris Tucker, Mase and Sean appears in the music video, which was directed by Hype Williams. They drive around the city in a Mercedes-Benz and a group of female dancers are also shown dancing with them.
"What You Want", also known as "Tell Me What You Want", is a song by American rapper Mase, featuring vocals from Bad Boy Records labelmates, R&B group Total. It was released as the second single from the former's debut album, Harlem World by the aforementioned label and Arista Records on December 3, 1997. The song was co-written Mase and Bad Boy label boss Sean Combs, produced by Nashiem Myrick of the label's in-house production team The Hitmen, and contains a sample of "Right on for the Darkness" by Curtis Mayfield. As with Mase's previous single, "What You Want" proved commercially successful, peaking at number six on the Billboard Hot 100 and becoming his second consecutive top ten single; it received gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
"Love of My Life" is 2001 single by the American R&B singer Brian McKnight from his album Superhero. The song peaked at number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 11 on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart.
"Mo Money Mo Problems" is a song by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., released as the second single from his second studio album, Life After Death (1997) on July 15, 1997 by Bad Boy Records and Arista Records. It features guest performances from labelmate Mase and label boss Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs; all three performers co-wrote the song with Stevie J, who also co-produced it with Combs. "Mo Money Mo Problems" contains a sample and an interpolation of "I'm Coming Out" by Diana Ross, hence Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers are credited as songwriters; the sampled portions are heard in the production, while the hook is interpolative and performed by Kelly Price in an uncredited appearance.
"Can't Nobody Hold Me Down" is the debut single by rapper Puff Daddy. It appears on Puff Daddy's debut studio album No Way Out and the song was released to Rhythmic contemporary radio in December 1996 and was physically released on January 7, 1997. The single was released through BMG Music, Arista Records and Puff Daddy's Bad Boy Records.
