USHER

Learning to sing in his local church's gospel choir, 14-year-old Usher (born 14 October 1978 in Dallas, Texas) was spotted at a talent contest and signed to LA Reid's label LaFace Records. As a smooth singing teen starlet, he released his first singles while still at school, before making a huge splash with second album My Way (1997). "You Make Me Wanna" hit number 2 in the US singles chart (number 1 in the UK), while "Nice & Slow" went one step further, topping the US charts and establishing a new R&B superstar. Huge, multi-platinum albums 8701 (2001), Confessions (2004), Here I Stand (2008) and number 1 singles "U Remind Me," "Yeah!" featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris, "Burn" and "Love in This Club" were followed by a flood of awards as Usher matured from a slick, pop playboy into a confessional soul star. Along the way, he's also found time to act in numerous Hollywood films, buy a stake in NBA basketball team Cleveland Cavaliers and sing at Michael Jackson's funeral. Albums-wise, he followed up 2008's Here I Stand with another chart-topping triumph in the form of Raymond v. Raymond, released in 2010, and seventh album Looking 4 Myself, which also rocketed to the top of the US Billboard 200 in 2012. He returned four years later with his eighth studio album Hard II Love (No. 5), for which he enlisted the talents of Young Thug ("No Limit") Future ("Rivals") and the Panamanian salsa singer Rubén Blades on "Champions," a track included on the soundtrack of the film Hands of Stone. Two years later, he teamed up with Zaytoven for collaborative album A, which featured guest spots from Future and Gunna and went to number 31 on the US Billboard 200. In August 2023, Usher unveiled a new single with Summer Walker and 21 Savage, "Good Good," which went to number 68 and gave fans the second taste of his ninth album following the release of single "Glu" in March 2023, which was co-produced by Avila Brothers, Lil Jon, and Sean Garrett. Coming Home, his first solo effort in eight years, came out in February 2024, two days before his Super Bowl LVIII halftime show performance. The album included collaborations with Summer Walker, 21 Savage, H.E.R., and Jungkook.