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Usher
Born
Usher Terry Raymond IV on October 14, 1978 in Dallas, Texas, the
future R&B superstar's family later relocated to Chattanooga,
Tennessee, where the 9-year old began singing in the church choir.
By age 12 he was part of NuBeginnings, a local R&B group,
and a two years later appeared on national television, ultimately
winning Best Teen Vocalist on Star
Search.
The teenager's singing style and young ladies-man image was about
to go under a major transformation, however, when up and coming
producer, Sean "Puffy" Combs took the 15-year old under
his wing and moved him to New York for a gangsta makeover.
Combs
influence was quickly evident in Usher's self-titled debut album
containing explicit lyrics and an attitude that most critics panned
as, at best, unconvincing. Dropping the tough-guy image in favor
of a more natural R&B lilt, Usher's second appropriately titled
album My Way in 1997 went multi-platinum with the single
You Make Me Wanna nominated for a Grammy
Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance.
Following
that success, Usher next released his biggest-selling album, 8701
which produced the hit singles U Remind Me and U Don't
Have To Call, both of which eventually went on to win Grammy
awards for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. Later,
his Confessions album broke a record for R&B albums
selling over a 1 million copies its first week.
Usher
walked away with the lion's share of accolades at the
2004 Billboard Music Awards with a total of 11 trophies including
Artist of the Year, Album of the Year for Confessions and
Hot 100 Single of the Year for Yeah!
In
2005, the singer continued to vie for, and win, similar top honors
at international awards shows.
He
was also on the way to movie
stardom with his role in the Hollywood comedy In
the Mix (movie trailer) following up in 2006 with a live
appearance on Broadway in New York City in the hit musical Chicago.
Offstage,
Usher and longtime girlfriend, Tameka
Foster announced in early 2007 that they were expecting the
couple's first baby.
Although
a wedding date had been planned for late July, a gala wedding
was cancelled the very weekend that the marriage would have occurred.
The following week, however, the couple were rumored to be married
in a very private ceremony at the Atlanta office of the singer's
lawyer. Usher filed for divorce a year later.
In 2008, the
R&B superstar put his name on a new line of cologne and fragrances,
and released a new album, "Here I Stand" in May. His
most recent national U.S. TV appearances included the May 2008
finale on Dancing
with the Stars, as musical guest on Saturday
Night LIve and a guest performance at the December Victoria's
Secret Fashion Show.
More about
Usher around the Web:
UsherWorld
- The official site, featuring the latest news, pictues, music
& video clips, tour dates, fan club access and online shop.
UsherDirect
- News, biography, an extensive archive of related feature articles
and interviews, picture galleries with candid photos with friends
and family, promotional shots and professional appearances, related
links.
MTV.com
- Usher - News, biography, video and music clips, picture
gallery, discography, with downloadable music and ringtones.
Usher
on LAUNCH - Biography, video clips, photo gallery, discography,
reviews, interview archive, links to lyrics and related Web sites.
Usher
- Wikipedia bio, career history, photos, related links.
also
see -> Black
Eyed Peas | Beyonce
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Carey
Ciara
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Child | Eminem
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Jackson | Jay-Z
| JoJo
Lil Jon
| Ludacris
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| Outkast
| Shakira
Snoop Dogg | Usher
| Kanye
West
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