Usher Raymond IV is a popular American singer and songwriter. One of the best-selling music artists of the contemporary era, Usher has sold a total of 23.8 million albums and 38.2 million digital songs in the United States alone.
Career
Rhythm and blues singer Usher began his career as a teen singer in the 1990s, but his career has grown to include television and film acting as well as music.
Usher also benefited from having an extended family of grandmothers and aunts. They all enjoyed R&B music, so he grew up listening to it. His first favorite song was the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back;" it inspired him to sing along. His mother, noticing his vocal talent, convinced him to join her church choir—a training ground for many well-known R&B singers. After he had honed his abilities in church, she entered him in talent contests, many of which he won.
Hoping to further nurture his abilities, his mother moved the family to Atlanta, Georgia, where many R&B singers had gotten their start. Usher continued to compete in singing contests and was selected to compete on the nationally televised show Star Search. He won the competition and signed a contract with LaFace Music in 1992.
At the time, the popularity of R&B was giving way to hip-hop, and one of the most well-known names in the hip-hop scene was that of Sean "Puffy" Combs, a performer and producer who had helped promote "gangsta" rap and who eventually became a multiplatinum-selling artist. Combs took Usher under his wing for a year, showing him the ropes, although Combs' style did not always feel comfortable for the young Usher.
In 1995, Usher was chosen to sing the Coca-Cola jingle in ads for the holiday season. He also joined other singers to create Black Men United, a group that sang on the soundtrack for the film Jason's Lyric.
Usher, wanting to take more control over his career and image, moved away from the Combs-inspired "bad boy" pose and began working with R&B producer Jermaine Dupri. He also began writing some of his own songs, working with Dupri; of the nine tracks on his second album, My Way, , six were cowritten with Dupri. Usher's new image paid off with My Way, which sold more than five million copies and appealed to listeners beyond the R&B niche, as it mixed R&B and hip-hop styles. Tracks that were especially popular included "You Make Me Wanna" and "Nice and Slow." "You Make Me Wanna" shot up the Billboard charts to No. 1, staying there for eleven consecutive weeks. The album was more diverse than Usher, a deliberate attempt to appeal to a variety of listeners with a mix of soulful ballads and lively dance songs.
One group did not find the album particularly appealing: the critics. A Rolling Stone critic noted that although "You Make Me Wanna" was catchy, "Usher's voice lacks the force and nuance to make up for the thin, synthetic quality of the backing tracks. And you know there's a problem with the songwriting when you see the word 'hook' plastered over the choruses in the lyric booklet." Despite this response, listeners loved the album.
While on tour to promote the album, Usher performed before an enthusiastic audience at the prestigious Apollo Theater in Harlem. He told a reporter for MTV News, "When you come to the Apollo, you gotta sing, you gotta dance, you gotta give it up to the audience. They want to see that, and to get the response I got, when the song came on I came sliding out, all the audience bum-rushed the stage. It's like I think I'm a superstar." As a result of the album's success, Usher was chosen to join Combs' fall tour, as well as for performance dates supporting singers Mary J. Blige and Janet Jackson. He was also named Billboard 's Artist of the Year in 1998. Usher, always grateful to his mother for all her support, gave her a Mercedes 420 automobile and a Cartier watch.
Usher also began acting, appearing on the teen television shows Moesha and Promised Land. Of his appearance on Moesha, he told a Jet reporter, "I'm a natural actor. I have a talent to take words off the paper and relate to it." After this experience, Usher wanted to move into film acting. Knowing that horror movies were popular among teens of all races, he chose to make his debut in The Faculty, in which he played a high-school football player possessed by aliens. Director Robert Rodriguez told a People reporter that for an amateur, Usher did an excellent job. "He was already way above and beyond a lot of people I have worked with who were coming in for the first time." The film was a success, and it attracted the attention of clothing designer Tommy Hilfiger, who featured members of the cast wearing his designs in his advertising. Usher was prominent in the ads, and he also argued with Hilfiger over the use of his image and his payment for it. He eventually sued Hilfiger for $1 million, claiming the company had used his image far more than he had originally agreed to, but had not paid him appropriately.
In 1998, Usher was nominated for a Grammy award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance, and he won the award for Best R&B/Soul Single at the Soul Train Music Awards. He also appeared on the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful. In 1999, Usher appeared in the teen comedy film She's All That and the action movie Light It Up, which starred Vanessa L. Williams and Forest Whitaker. He also signed for two more films, Disney's telepic Geppetto and Texas Rangers.
However, critics did not love his acting as much as Usher did.
Usher's fourth studio album, Confessions, was released on March 23, 2004—just as its first single, "Yeah!", was in its sixth week at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and fifth week on top of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Chart. The album's nearly 1.1 million unit debut sales were the highest first-week numbers ever scanned by a male R&B artist and the seventh best of the Nielsen SoundScan history. The album has since sold over 20 million copies worldwide, with over 10 million in the United States, earning the album a Diamond certification by the RIAA.
The album's second and third singles, "Burn" and "Confessions Part II", also topped the Billboard Hot 100, the former for eight weeks. Usher became the first artist to top the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay with four consecutive number-one singles, In September 2004, "My Boo", a duet with American singer-songwriter Alicia Keys, also peaked at number one at the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the album's fourth number-one single. In December, the album's final single "Caught Up" peaked at number eight on the Hot 100.
Usher supported Confessions with "The Truth Tour". The tour set featured a small stage up on top of the main stage, where the band played with Usher and his supporting dancers left with enough room to perform. The smaller stage had a mini platform attached to it which lowered to the main stage and had two big staircases on both sides of it. To the left, a group of circular staircases climbed to the top, and to the right, there was a fire escape replete with steps and an elevator. Kanye West and Christina Milian was the opening act for the tour. Usher at select dates would bring out special guest, during his Atlanta show taping he brought out his artist at the time Rico Love to rap a verse on the song "Throwback". During a more intimate part of the showing Ushers, dancers selected singer Monica from the crowd to be serenaded by Usher while he sang album favorites "Do it to Me" and "Superstar". Usher also performed Confessions Pt. II remix where Kanye would appear from the back of the stage. Then lastly Usher would also bring out artist Lil Jon and Ludacris where they would finish the show performing the hit "Yeah". This concert date was filmed to make the official tour DVD of Truth Tour: Behind the Truth "Live from Atlanta". It has been certified by the RIAA selling more than 7 Million copies.
In spring of 2005, Usher scored a number three Hot 100 hit as a featured vocalist on Lil' Jon's "Lovers & Friends". In 2007, Usher also collaborated with R. Kelly on the track "Same Girl", for Kelly's album, Double Up. He was also featured in a remix version of Omarion's "Ice Box". Usher also appeared on the track "Shake Down" on American singer-songwriter Mary J. Blige's 2007 album Growing Pains.
In November 2005, Usher starred as a disc jockey named Darrell in the Lions Gate film, In the Mix.
On August 22, 2006, Usher took over the role of Billy Flynn in the long-running Broadway revival of the musical Chicago. Usher's opening night brought out stars Penélope Cruz, Gabrielle Union, Clive Davis, and Rosie Perez, and others. Usher played the role of Flynn for two months but a case of strep throat brought an abrupt ending to Usher's run in Chicago, which saw a spike in ticket sales after he joined the cast. The New York Post reports that Usher's absence cost the production an estimated $400,000 in refunds to disappointed ticket buyers.
Here I Stand was released on May 26 in the United Kingdom and May 27, 2008, in the United States. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 Chart with first-week sales of over 433,000 copies. To date Here I Stand has sold over 1.5 million copies in the United States, been certified platinum by the RIAA, and has sold over 5 million copies worldwide. While not approaching the success of his previous album, it received positive reviews from most music critics, who praised the maturity in the album's lyrics. To promote Usher's fifth studio album, the single "Love In This Club" was sent to radio in February 2008 and peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100. It went on to spend three consecutive weeks at the top—becoming Usher's eighth number-one single and the fastest-rising song of his career. It also reached No. 1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The single was another huge international success for Usher. It reached No. 1 on the New Zealand Singles Chart, No. 3 on the Irish Singles Chart, No. 3 on the Eurochart Hot 100, No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart, No. 5 on the Japan Hot 100, No. 5 on the German Singles Chart, No. 5 on the Belgian Singles Chart (Flanders), No. 6 on the Canadian Hot 100, No. 8 on the Swedish Singles Chart, No. 8 on the Australian Singles Chart, No. 9 on the French Singles Chart, No. 9 on the Swiss Singles Chart, No. 10 on the Norwegian Singles Chart, No. 12 on the Austrian Singles Chart, No. 13 on the Belgian Singles Chart (Wallonia), and No. 18 on the Finnish Singles Chart. The follow-up single "Love in This Club Part II", which features American singer Beyoncé and rapper, Lil Wayne, peaked at No. 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 7 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Its third single "Moving Mountains" peaked at No. 18 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and reached No. 6 on the New Zealand Singles Chart.
The album's fifth single "Trading Places" peaked at No. 4 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. In September 2008, Usher announced he would embark on the 15-date tour One Night Stand, in which the audience is only females.
On January 18, 2009, Usher performed with Stevie Wonder and Shakira at the We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial. He also sang "Gone Too Soon" at the memorial of Michael Jackson on July 7, 2009.
Raymond v. Raymond, was released on March 26, 2010, in Germany, on March 30, 2010, in the US, and on April 26, 2010, in the UK. The album was expected to follow in Usher's Confessions album's footsteps. Raymond v. Raymond was released only months after Usher's divorce from Tameka Foster. "Papers", a song about divorce, was released as the first single for the album in October 2009. It topped the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for two consecutive weeks, becoming his tenth number one single on that chart. It also peaked at number 31 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. Critics praised the song for its emotion. "Hey Daddy (Daddy's Home)", was released as the second single on December 8, 2009. The single peaked at number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 2 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The song was released as the second international single in July 2010. "Lil Freak" was announced as the album's official second single in the United States. Usher and Nicki Minaj shot the music video for the song on March 9, 2010, in Los Angeles with director TAJ Stansberry.
It reached number 8 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and number 40 on the Billboard Hot 100. It became Usher's fourth Top 40 hit single from Raymond v. Raymond, when including the buzz single "Papers".
"OMG", which features will.i.am, is the third official US single and the first international single. The song received mixed reviews, complimenting the song's dance and club vibe but criticizing the Auto-Tune effect. It reached number-one in Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States. The song became his ninth number one in the United States, making him the first 2010s artist to collect number one singles in three consecutive decades, and only the fourth artist of all-time to achieve the feat. Usher also became the third artist to have at least one number one song from five consecutive studio albums. The song's choreography and the dance-heavy accompanying music video have been compared to that of "Yeah!". "There Goes My Baby" was released to airplay as the album's fourth single in the United States on June 15, 2010.
Usher announced on July 8, 2010, a follow-up extended play to his sixth studio album Raymond v. Raymond called Versus, and a deluxe edition of Raymond v. Raymond, both to be released on August 24, 2010. Usher described Versus as "the last chapter of Raymond v. Raymond", and that it would explore the subjects of being newly single and a father. The album included 9 tracks, including 7 new tracks, Raymond v. Raymond single "There Goes My Baby", and Justin Bieber single "Somebody to Love (Remix)". The tracks would be included on a deluxe edition of Raymond v. Raymond. The album debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 chart and is preceded by the singles "DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love" featuring Pitbull, for mainstream audiences, and "Hot Tottie" featuring Jay-Z, for urban circuits.
Usher also made an appearance at the Super Bowl XLV to sing his song, "OMG" with The Black Eyed Peas' singer will.i.am.
In November 2011, Usher revealed that for his next album he was working on a new type of music which he has depicted as "revolutionary pop", which combines different genres to form a new sound. His seventh studio album Looking 4 Myself was released on June 8, 2012, worldwide and received generally positive reviews from contemporary music critics.
The lead single from Usher's seventh studio album is titled "Climax". It impacted Urban radio on February 21, 2012, and was made available for purchase as a digital download on February 22, 2012. It impacted US mainstream radio on March 13, 2012. The second single released from the album was "Scream" and the third single "Lemme See" which features Rick Ross. "Scream" was premiered on April 26, 2012, while "Lemme See" was premiered on May 8, 2012.
In 2013, Usher substituted for CeeLo Green as a coach for the fourth season of NBC's The Voice. His last act, Michelle Chamuel, lost the winning title to Danielle Bradbery, mentored by Blake Shelton. He returned for the sixth season and his last act, Josh Kaufman, won.
On March 19, 2013, Usher announced that his eighth studio album, titled UR, was in the works.
On August 25, 2014, Usher announced his UR Experience Tour in support of his then-titled eighth studio album UR. The UR Experience kicked off in Montreal, Quebec on Nov 1 and closed in Tampa, FL. on Dec. 14.
On October 16, 2015, Usher released an interactive music video exclusively on the music streaming platform Tidal called "Chains" that featuring artist Nas and Bibi Bourelly.
Usher performed the song for the first time at the Tidal X:1020 concert on October 20, 2015, at Brooklyn's Barclays Arena. On January 14, 2016, after continual delays of his eighth album, Usher announced via Daniel Arsham Instagram post that he changed the title of the album from UR to Flawed. It was scheduled to be released in April 2016 but has been pushed back with no release date. On February 29, 2016, Yuna released "Crush" as the first single from her forthcoming album Chapters featuring Usher. On June 9, 2016, Usher released a new single from his expected forthcoming album Flawed on the music streaming platform Tidal titled "No Limit" featuring Young Thug, along with a second single titled "Crash" on June 10 for all digital platforms.
The album Hard II Love was released on September 16, 2016, and received generally positive reviews from contemporary music critics. It debuted at number 5 on the US Billboard 200 and sold 28,000 copies in the United States in its first week. It also became his seventh consecutive top ten album in the United States. The lead single, "No Limit" featuring rapper Young Thug initially was serviced to Urban radio on June 9, and eventually peaked at number 1 on the Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart, number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100, and number 9 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. On December 16, 2016, Chris Brown released "Party" as the second single from his forthcoming album Heartbreak on a Full Moon featuring Usher and Gucci Mane.
On October 12, 2018, Usher released his ninth studio album is titled A. It is produced entirely by Zaytoven. The official tracklist which features 8 songs with features from Future and Gunna. Usher again enlisted record-producer Zaytoven, who collaborated on Usher's Raymond v. Raymond album, as a co-producer for "Papers".
November 9–17, 2018, Usher served as the headlining act of the RNB Fridays Live concert series. The six-date stadium tour in Australia and New Zealand sold over 150,000 tickets On November 14, 2018, Billboard reported that Usher signed a worldwide management deal with Luke Mitzman and 100 Management. It was also reported he is working on a follow-up album that will be released in 2019. On December 2, 2018, Usher performed at the Global Citizen Festival: Mandela 100 in Johannesburg, South Africa, celebrating the legacy of Nelson Mandela. Usher and DJ Black Coffee performed a mash-up featuring the South African Indigenous Dance Academy (IDA).
Mar 20, 2019, it was announced Usher joined the cast of Hustlers directed by Lorene Scafaria. The film features cast Jennifer Lopez, Constance Wu, Keke Palmer, and Cardi B.
On March 27, 2019, Usher posted a photo of himself in the studio next to a whiteboard with the words “Confessions 2” and a blurred out tracklisting. The following day producer Jermaine Dupri, who produced the original Confessions went live on Instagram and previewed new music.
Politics
Usher in 2007 launched his campaign in "Change in the South" in Atlanta, Georgia on the campus of Georgia Tech in support of then-presidential hopeful Barack Obama. Obama, asked Usher to serve as National Co-Chair for his voter registration campaign "Vote for Change." Doing more groundwork for Obama the following year Usher and Kerry Washington would lead a rally on the campus of South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, S.C. In 2008, Usher supported the Service Nation campaign, serving as the Service Nation Youth Chair. Usher stated "As an artist, I am often recognized for the music I make and the performances I give. I'm blessed to have had the opportunity to be a part of many incredible moments. But this is the work that inspires me, empowering young people to become active in their communities". Usher also released an exclusive song "Hush" that was influenced by social issues and voting, In the video, he features a motivational Barack Obama speech. Usher performed "Higher Ground" alongside Stevie Wonder and Shakira at the 2009 presidential inauguration at the Lincoln Memorial and the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on January 18, 2009. He continued to endorse Obama in 2012 and supported on the 2012 reelection campaign.
On September 13, 2014, Usher and Bill Clinton held a special campaign event for Georgia U.S. Senate candidate Michelle Nunn. Dunn was honored for her work with the Points of Light Foundation at a charity event in 2010 and has been a semi-regular attendee at Clinton Foundation events since 2009. Usher's New Look Foundation also awarded Clinton its Service Legacy Award in 2010.
In October 2015 Usher partnered with the organization Sankofa which focuses on issues of social injustice that disproportionately affect the disenfranchised, the oppressed, and the underserved. On October 23, 2015, Usher and the founder of Sankofa, former Civil Rights Activist, Harry Belafonte led the conversation titled "Breaking the Chains of Social Injustice" at 92nd Street Y in Manhattan speaking about popular culture and activism. At this panel, he introduced his music video "Chains" featuring Nas and Bibi Bourelly. The music video is geared towards facing the issues of social Injustice and features images of Trayvon Martin, Rekia Boyd, Sean Bell, Marlon Brown, Ramarley Graham, Amadou Diallo, Caesar Cruz and other recent victims of police violence.
In August 2015, he attended a major celebrity fundraiser at the Brentwood home of Scooter Braun held for presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. Kanye West, Kim Kardashian, and Tom Hanks were also among the crowd of 250 whose ticket prices were of $2,700 per person.
Usher was selected among a 33-member delegate for the Presidential Committee for Arts and Humanities of the United States of America to Cuba seeking to strengthen cultural ties between the two countries. Less than a month after the historic visit by President Barack Obama, a U.S. government cultural mission to Cuba that took place from April 18–21, 2016. The President described his trip as extending the hand of friendship to the Cuban people, and this delegation, including some of America's most distinguished writers, artists, musicians, as well as arts and cultural leaders, will continue this historic collaboration with the Cuban people.
Views
Usher founded New Look, a non-profit charity organization which aims to "provide young people with a new look on life through education and real-world experience". Its flagship project, camp New Look, ran from July 11 to 23, 2005, in Clark Atlanta University. In 2006, the charity started an initiative called Our Block, for which it helped rebuild and revitalize city blocks in New Orleans. The project went on one street at a time, and the funding was helped through part of the proceeds of Usher's team-up with Armani Exchange in creating "Love 4 Life" dog tags, which were made available at the company's stores and Web site. Since then, Usher has launched chapters of New Look in such cities as Baltimore, Detroit, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, New York, and Washington D.C. New Look has for basic pillars; Talent, Education, Service, and Career. New Look program begins in the 8th grade and progresses through a student's high school and post-secondary education. Education is the center focus, Usher and his program ensure this. Students who participate in Usher's New Look achieve 100% graduation rates and all of New Look participants go on to Higher Education or Job Placement.
In 1999, Usher participated in "Challenge for the Children", a benefit basketball game hosted by American boy band NSYNC. The event, which was held on the campus of Georgia State University, had raised an estimated $50,000 for several local charities. In 2005, Usher is one among the artists who signed on for a Hurricane Katrina relief concert. He has also performed a public service announcement to promote Do Something's campaign for civic engagement.
After the devastating events of Hurricane Katrina, Usher launched Project Restart that would go on to help more than 700 families with housing and keeping their lights on. Usher also while in New Orleans would meet with students from Dillard and Xavier to aid them with cleaning up the city. "I'm here to physically do something and hopefully motivate other people to do the same," said Usher in an interview. Usher, because of his efforts and dedication to helping the city of New Orleans rebuild was presented the key to the city of New Orleans in 2008 from former Mayor Ray Nagin. Also in this presentation, Usher in his honor was proclaimed his own day, Usher Day.
In 2011, Usher was honored with the Freedom Award by the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis. The Freedom Awards honor individuals who work for justice, equality, philanthropy, civil and human rights, and humanitarian causes. Raymond was awarded this honor for his philanthropic work done by his New Look Foundation. Others honored with this award in the past Usher included Oprah, Ruby Dee, Harry Belafonte, Cicely Tyson, Coretta Scott King, and other great figures.
In 2015, Usher teamed up with Anthony Anderson, Kevin Hart, Big Sean, Chris Paul and more collectively donating more than $500,000 in scholarships that were given to 20 students attending historically black colleges and universities. This is following the partnership with the UNCF in 2014 creating the Usher Raymond Scholarship Program, where last year he gave a student $100,000 to attend the Tuskegee University.
In 2016, Usher alongside Tyrese, Future, Ludacris, and Jeezy donated $25,000 each to the UNCF during the 33rd annual Atlanta's Mayor's Ball.
On January 31, 2018, Usher helped former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick complete his pledge to donate $1 million to oppressed communities. To complete the final $100,000 of his goal, Kaepernick launched the #10for10 campaign He made 10 donations of $10,000 to 10 different charities with 10 celebrities matching him with $10,000. Usher selected the H.O.M.E. (Helping Oppressed Mothers Endure) charity in Lithonia, Georgia to receive a combined donation of $20,000.
Quotations:
Usher told an Interview reporter, "She showed me the difference between good and evil. My dad never did. He split when I was born."
Usher told a People reporter, "That whole bad-boy thing, me frowning for the camera—that wasn't me."
He said of his own album, "When you go back and read through the lyrics it means something, it says something. That's what being a great R&B artist is to me. Thinking outside the box, and yet still making yourself available to a hip-hop nation." Usher explained to Ebony reporter Kevin Chappell, "I try to have that urban edge, but still put out real music. I listen to what the streets are saying."
Of his musical and financial success, he told a People reporter on the second day of the tour, "I don't believe in good luck, I believe in blessings."
"Strivers achieve what dreamers believe."
"The best present a man can give a woman is his undivided attention."
"I like a woman who takes care of herself - it says something about the way she'll care for me."
"As I've gone around in my life, I've kind of had to acquaintances into a family. They start out as people who are just working for you, but before you know it, you create real relationships with them."