Lonnie Rashid Lynn, known professionally as Common, is an American rapper and actor from Chicago, Illinois. He is the recipient of three Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He first signed with the independent label Relativity Records to release his debut studio album Can I Borrow a Dollar? (1992), which was met with critical acclaim along with its follow-ups, Resurrection (1994) and One Day It'll All Make Sense (1997). He maintained an underground following into the late 1990s, and achieved mainstream success through his work with the Black music collective, Soulquarians.
The Black Album is the eighth studio album by American rapper Jay-Z. It was released on November 14, 2003, through Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. It was advertised as his final album before retiring, which is also a recurring theme throughout the songs, although Jay-Z resumed his recording career in 2005. For the album, Jay-Z wanted to enlist a different producer for each song, working with Just Blaze, Kanye West, the Neptunes, Eminem, DJ Quik, Timbaland, 9th Wonder and Rick Rubin, among others. The album also features a guest appearance by Pharrell Williams.
Aftermath Entertainment is an American record label founded by hip hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre in 1996. It operates as a subsidiary of Universal Music Group, and is distributed through Interscope Records.
Natalie "the Floacist" Stewart is an English rapper, singer, songwriter, spoken word artist, poet, and actress. Born in Germany and raised in London, she performed in various singing and dancing competitions as a child, and rose to fame in the early 2000s as part of the R&B girl-duo Floetry. During a break, Stewart's first album, Floetic Soul (2010), was released which established her as a solo artist, with the singles "Forever" and "Let Me".
Marsha Ambrosius-Billups is an English singer and songwriter. She began her musical career as a member of the R&B duo Floetry. Ambrosius released her debut solo album Late Nights & Early Mornings in 2011.
Floetry were an English R&B duo comprising Marsha Ambrosius and Natalie Stewart. The group recorded two studio albums, one live album, and sold over 1,500,000 records worldwide. Formed in 1997, Floetry started on the performance poetry stage. They have worked with many US musicians and artists including: Jill Scott, Queen Latifah, Michael Jackson, Common, The Roots, Bilal, and more founders of Neo-Soul.
"Butterflies" is a song by American singer and songwriter Michael Jackson. It was written and composed by Andre Harris and Marsha Ambrosius, and produced by Jackson and Harris. The track appears on Jackson's tenth studio album, Invincible (2001). The song also appeared in The Ultimate Collection (2004). "Butterflies" is a midtempo ballad. The single received generally positive reviews from music critics; some music reviewers described the song as being one of the best songs on Invincible while others felt that it was a "decent track".
Electric Circus is the fifth studio album by American rapper Common, released on December 10, 2002, on the now-defunct MCA Records. The album was highly anticipated and praised by many critics for its ambitious vision. However, it was not as commercially successful as his previous album, Like Water for Chocolate, selling under 300,000 copies. An eclectic album, Electric Circus features fusions of several genres such as hip hop, pop, rock, electronic, and neo soul. "I wasn't feeling hip hop," the rapper remarked. "So my motivation for that album were other genres of music, like Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix. It wasn't hip hop." This was Common's second and last album for MCA, as well as the final album released under the label, which would soon be merged into Geffen Records a year later.
Free at Last is the second studio album by rapper Freeway. It was released on November 20, 2007 by Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings in the United States. The album enlists guest performances from Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Marsha Ambrosious, Rick Ross, Busta Rhymes, and Jadakiss.
Robert Andre Glasper is an American pianist, record producer, songwriter, and musical arranger. His music embodies numerous musical genres, primarily centered around jazz. Glasper has won five Grammy Awards from 11 nominations.
Back Again! is the second solo studio album by American rapper Mr. Cheeks. It was released on March 18, 2003 through Universal Records. Recording sessions took place at Sony Music Studios, Sound On Sound and Daddy's House Recording Studio in New York, at Circle House Studios and South Beach Studios in Miami, and at The Hit Factory. Production was handled by Bink!, Mr. Sexxx, Chuckie Madness, Mario Winans, P. Diddy and Yogi Bear. It features guest appearances from Floetry, Alexander O'Neal, Glenn Lewis, Journalist, Mario Winans, M.O.P., Pete Rock & CL Smooth.
Late Nights & Early Mornings is the debut studio album by English singer Marsha Ambrosius. Recorded after the disbandment of her former band Floetry, it was released by J Records on 1 March 2011 in the United States. Her only album for the label before its dissolution seven months later, it debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 with 96,400 copies sold in the first week.
"Far Away" is a song by English recording artist Marsha Ambrosius. It was released on 7 December 2010 as the second single from her debut studio album, Late Nights & Early Mornings. The album was subsequently released on 1 March 2011. The song was written by Marsha Ambrosius with co-writing by Sterling Simms and production by Just Blaze, in 2008. The song was nominated for Best R&B Performance and Best R&B Song at the 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards.
Friends & Lovers is the second studio album by English R&B singer Marsha Ambrosius. It was released by RCA Records on 15 July 2014. The album features guest appearances from Charlie Wilson, Dr. Dre, Skye Edwards and Lindsey Stirling. On 23 June 2014 the album's first and second singles "Run" and "Stronger" featuring Dr. Dre, were released.
Nobody's Smiling is the tenth studio album by American hip hop recording artist Common. It was released on July 22, 2014, by Def Jam Recordings and No I.D.'s label ARTium Records. Following the release of his 2011's album The Dreamer/The Believer, Common took a hiatus from musical endeavors. In 2013, he returned to the studio and began working his tenth album and later revealed that the production, much like his previous effort, would be handled entirely by his longtime collaborator and record producer No I.D. In 2014, Common signed a recording contract with No I.D.'s ARTium Records, through Def Jam Recordings, for the distribution of the album.
Shady XV is a hip hop compilation album performed by various artists of Shady Records. The double disc album was released on November 24, 2014, by Shady Records and Interscope Records. The album was released in honor of the label's 15th anniversary and as its 15th project. The compilation consists of two discs, the first featuring new material from Shady Records artists such as Slaughterhouse, Bad Meets Evil, D12 and Yelawolf, as well as the label's founder Eminem. The second disc includes the label's greatest hits, also featuring former Shady Records members. All previous and current members of the label are represented on the album.
Summertime '06 is the debut studio double album by American rapper Vince Staples. It was released on June 30, 2015, through ARTium Recordings, Blacksmith Records, and Def Jam Recordings. The album was primarily produced by No I.D., alongside a variety of high-profile record producers, including DJ Dahi, Clams Casino, Brian Kidd, Christian Rich, and Mikky Ekko. The album was supported by three singles: "Señorita", "Get Paid", and "Norf Norf".
Compton is the third studio album by American hip-hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre. It was released on August 7, 2015, on Apple Music and the iTunes Store, with the physical editions released on August 21, 2015. It is the follow-up to his second album, 2001 (1999), after the cancellation of the premeditated album, Detox.
Book of Ryan is the seventh studio album by American rapper Royce da 5'9". It was released on May 4, 2018 by Royce's own label Heaven Studios and eOne Music. The album features guest appearances from artists Eminem, J. Cole, Pusha T, Jadakiss, Fabolous, T-Pain, Logic, pianist Robert Glasper, Chavis Chandler, Agent Sasco, King Green, Ashley Sorrell, Melanie Rutherford, and Marsha Ambrosius. Meanwhile, the production was handled by a wide array of producers, including Mr. Porter, S1, Boi-1da, Cool & Dre, DJ Khalil and Frank Dukes, among others. Upon its release, the album received critical acclaim.
Born 2 Rap is the ninth studio album by American rapper the Game. It was released on November 29, 2019 via eOne Music. Its release coincided with the Game's fortieth birthday. It was advertised as his final album before retiring, although Game resumed his recording career in 2021. It features guest appearances from Dom Kennedy, Ed Sheeran, 21 Savage, Anderson .Paak, Bryson Tiller, Chris Brown, D Smoke, J. Stone, Just Liv, Masego, Marsha Ambrosius, Miguel, Mozzy, Nipsey Hussle, Osbe Chill, Red Café, Sly Pyper, ToBi, Travis Barker and Trey Songz.
