Usher

/ush"euhr/, n.

James. See Ussher, James.

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▪ 2006

 Three Grammy awards and a place atop the Los Angeles Times's “Pop Power List” in 2005 confirmed the extraordinary popularity of the talented rhythm-and-blues superstar Usher. His Confessions album sold more than a million copies during its first week of release in March 2004, and that sprawling, hour-long collection became that year's runaway best seller (with 7,978,594 copies sold). At December's Billboard Music Awards, Usher collected 11 trophies and was named overall artist of the year. He won two prizes at the People's Choice Awards on Jan. 9, 2005, and three more at the Grammy Awards on February 13—for best contemporary R&B album, best R&B performance by a duo or group (with Alicia Keys (Keys, Alicia ) [q.v.] for “My Boo”), and best rap/sung collaboration (with Ludacris and Lil Jon for “Yeah!”). On March 1, one day after winning four Soul Train awards, Usher became a part owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers National Basketball Association franchise. On July 24 he was named pop's top artist in the Los Angeles Times poll of 21 leading industry executives.

      Usher Raymond IV was born on Oct. 14, 1978, in Chattanooga, Tenn. As a youngster he sang in church choirs but sought entry into the mainstream music industry by entering talent shows. At age 12 he moved with his mother and brother to Atlanta, and two years later he secured a recording contract with LaFace Records. Usher was released in 1994, with the 15-year-old singer moving beyond his choirboy background by proclaiming that “it's only a sexual thing” on the slow-groove single “Can U Get Wit It.” The album was not a commercial success, and Usher spent the next few years working on a follow-up.

      My Way (1997) marked Usher as a major R&B star. His singles “You Make Me Wanna” and “Nice & Slow” topped R&B charts (the latter was also a number one pop song), and the performer reached greater audiences through appearances on television shows (he had a recurring role on UPN's Moesha series). Onstage his prowess as a dancer was as notable as his fluid singing voice.

      His third studio album, 8701 (2001), further defined Usher's reputation as a smooth, seductive, and bankable artist. Music from 8701 gave Usher two number one pop hits and his first two Grammy Awards. With Confessions, Usher extended his range beyond ballads, collaborating most famously with Atlanta rappers Lil Jon and Ludacris.

Peter Cooper

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▪ American musician

in full  Usher Raymond IV 

born Oct. 14, 1978, Chattanooga, Tenn., U.S.

 

 American musician whose smooth vocals and sensual ballads helped establish him as a rhythm-and-blues (rhythm and blues) superstar beginning in the late 1990s.

      As a youngster, Usher sang in church choirs but sought entry into the mainstream music industry by entering talent shows. At age 12 he moved with his mother and brother to Atlanta, and two years later he secured a recording contract with LaFace Records. Usher was released in 1994, with the 15-year-old singer moving beyond his choirboy background by proclaiming that “it's only a sexual thing” on the slow-groove single "Can U Get wit It." The album was not a commercial success, and Usher spent the next few years working on a follow-up, My Way (1997), which marked him as a major R&B star. His singles "You Make Me Wanna" and "Nice & Slow" topped the R&B charts (the latter was also a number one pop song), and the performer reached greater audiences through appearances on television shows (he had a recurring role on UPN's Moesha series). In onstage performances, he showed prowess as a dancer that was as notable as his fluid singing voice.

      His third studio album, 8701 (2001), further cemented Usher's reputation as a smooth, seductive, and bankable artist. Music from 8701 gave Usher two number one pop hits, "U Remind Me" and "U Got It Bad," and his first two Grammy Awards (Grammy Award). He continued to make appearances in various television shows, including the period drama American Dreams (2002) in the role of Marvin Gaye (Gaye, Marvin), before releasing his fourth album, Confessions, in 2004. The album, which sold more than one million copies during its first week of release, featured Usher extending his range beyond ballads, collaborating most famously with Atlanta rappers Lil Jon and Ludacris. At the 2004 Billboard Music Awards, he collected 11 trophies and was named overall artist of the year.

      The awards continued to accumulate in 2005. Usher won two prizes at the People's Choice Awards and three more at the Grammys—for best contemporary R&B album, best R&B performance by a duo or group (with Alicia Keys (Keys, Alicia) for "My Boo" ), and best rap/sung collaboration (with Ludacris and Lil Jon for "Yeah!" ). In 2005 Usher also starred as a disc jockey who protects a mobster's daughter in the film In the Mix, though his acting, and the film as a whole, received unfavourable reviews. The following year he portrayed Billy Flynn in the long-running Broadway musical Chicago.

      In addition to performing, Usher became a part owner of the National Basketball Association's Cleveland Cavaliers in 2005. His charity work included New Look Foundation, an organization he established to help educate youths from lower-class backgrounds about the business of entertainment management. The organization was also involved in the efforts to rebuild New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina (2005).

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