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Usher Raymond IV (born National Basketball Association franchise. He also has his own record label, US Records . EARLY LIFE Usher was born to Usher Terry Raymond IV and Jonetta (O'Neal) Patton in Dallas , Texas , but spent the majority of his young life in Chattanooga , Tennessee . As a child, he joined his local church choir where he discovered his ability to sing. As early as junior high school, Usher successfully entered local talent shows imitating his idol Michael Jackson . As a pre-teen Usher was a member of a boy band, although his mother, (who was managing his career) later withdrew him from the group to concentrate on his solo work. Usher's family moved to Atlanta , Georgia , in the belief that the city would provide greater opportunities for showcasing his talent. While in Atlanta, Usher attended Haynes Bridge Middle School and the Performing Arts Magnet North Springs High School, and participated in show choir. MUSIC CAREER At age thirteen, Raymond competed on '' Star Search '', where they were spotted by an A&R representative from LaFace Records , who arranged an audition for them with L.A. Reid . A contract with the company soon followed. Usher was introduced on “Call Me A Mack,” a song he recorded for the soundtrack album to the John Singleton film, '' Poetic Justice ''. 1994-1995: ''Usher'' (Debut album) On ,” “ Think Of You ,” and “ The Many Ways .” Though the album garnered Usher some attention with urban music listeners, it was not a runaway hit and went virtually unnoticed by pop audiences; selling approximately 50,000 copies in America (and 100,000 abroad). The quasi-adult themes in ''Usher'' were, meanwhile, questioned by some critics due to the young age of the artist. Usher himself later admitted that he was not fully comfortable with the direction of the album. After graduating from high school, Usher continued to hone his skills as a stage performer and laid the groundwork for his second album. He also appeared on “Let's Straighten It Out,” a 1995 duet with fellow Atlanta teen recording artist Monica ; and on 1996's "Dreamin’", the first single from ''Rhythm of the Games'', LaFace's Olympic Games benefit album. 1997-1998: ''My Way'' Usher developed a friendship with Jermaine Dupri , with whom he co-wrote and produced several tracks for his second album, '' My Way '', released on September 16 , 1997 . The lead-off single, “ You Make Me Wanna ” was serviced to radio that summer and hit number one in its second week out—the same week that the album was released. “You Make Me Wanna” stayed on top of the R&B/Hip-Hop track charts for a total of 11 weeks (the longest-charting R&B hit in more than 3 years) and at #2 on the Pop charts for 7 weeks (second only to Elton John ’s “ Candle In The Wind .”) The single remained on the R&B chart for an unprecedented 71 weeks and became Usher's first Platinum single. The albums second single, “ Nice & Slow ,” was released in November, and in January 1998 peaked at #1 on the Hot 100 Singles Chart for two weeks, as well as #1 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart for eight weeks. The following summer, the album's eponymous single Title Track peaked #2 pop/#4 R&B. In the closing months of 1997, Usher embarked on a series of tour engagements including a spot on Puffy's ''No Way Out'' tour, dates with Mary J. Blige , and the opening spot on Janet Jackson’s ''The Velvet Rope'' tour. ''My Way'' was certified 6x platinum in the United States. Usher received his first Grammy Award nomination as ''Best Male R&B Vocal Performance'' for " You Make Me Wanna ," which was also nominated for a Soul Train Music Award as ‘Best Male R&B/Soul Single.’ Usher made his acting debut on the “Get Big On Safety” campaign, and appeared on NBC’s '' NBA Inside Stuff ''. He also participated in the NBA "Stay In School" program and performed at several of the franchise's jamborees. Raymond’s first concert album, ''Live'' was released in 1999—which featured appearances by Lil' Kim , Jagged Edge , Trey Lorenz , Shanice , Twista and Manuel Seal , and was RIAA-certified Gold. 2001-2002: ''8701'' Usher’s third studio album, originally titled ''All About U'', was slated to be released in early 2001. The first single, “ Pop Ya Collar ” (co-written and produced by Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs ), was released in late 2000 and became a #2 hit in the UK —but underperformed in America. The album was subsequently pushed back and retooled after select tracks were later leaked to the radio and Internet, and garnered a largely cold public response. After having revised the album, it was renamed ''8701'' (named for the years of his career at that point 87-20'''01'''" class="copylinks" target="_blank">{Link without Title} , and for its release date of August 7 , 2001 , or '''8'''/'''7'''/'''01'''). The first two singles “ U Remind Me ” and “ U Got It Bad ” each topped the U.S. Hot 100 Singles Chart for four and six weeks respectively in the summer and fall. In early 2002, " U Don't Have To Call ," also went top five pop. The albums final single, “ U-Turn ” was released outside of America, and became a top twenty hit in Australia and the U.K. . ''8701'' was certified 4x platinum, selling more than seven million copies worldwide. In February 2002, Usher won a Grammy for ‘Best Male R&B Vocal Performance’ for “U Remind Me.” The next year, he won the same award for “U Don't Have to Call,” making Usher the only artist aside from Luther Vandross , more than a decade before, and Stevie Wonder (in the 1970s) to win this award consecutively. In summer 2002, Usher contributed vocals to P. Diddy's “ I Need A Girl, Part I .” The year closed out with a trio of TV series appearances, all in November, on ''The Twilight Zone'', ''7th Heaven'', ''Moesha'' , and ''American Dreams'' (in which Usher portrayed Marvin Gaye ). 2004-2005: ''Confessions'' '' Confessions '', Usher’s fourth studio album, 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 singles chart and fifth week on top of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. The album's 1.1 million unit first week sales was not only the highest first week numbers ever scanned by a male R&B artist in Soundscan’s 13-year history (breaking R. Kelly 's record of 540k for '' TP-2.com '' back in 2000). The album’s second and third singles: “” Raymond released another single “Redlight” which is also shown on the ''Special Edition'' album. Usher was recognized with numerous awards, including two ), “Rap/Sung Collaboration” (for “Yeah!”) and “Contemporary R&B Album” (for ''Confessions''). In spring 2005, Usher scored a #3 Hot 100 hit as a featured vocalist on Lil' Jon's “Lovers and Friends.” In November 2005, Usher starred as a disc jockey named Darrell in the Lions Gate film, '' In The Mix ''. 2006-present: Current career activity On August 22 , 2006 , Usher took over the role of Billy Flynn in the long-running Broadway musical '' Chicago ''. Critical response to his overall performance were mixed. While his singing and dancing received more positive reviews; his acting, however, received negative notices. Usher is currently recording his fifth studio album. The album is due for release in November, as verified by Usher himself during a recent interview and in the “ Same Girl ,” video he did with fellow R&B singer R. Kelly . In June, an album was leaked onto the internet, claiming to be the singer's new album; it is however just a bootleg compilation of his previously unrealeased material. In 2007, Usher also collaborated with R. Kelly on the track “ Same Girl ,” for Kelly’s album, Double Up .1 Recently, Pussycat Dolls members Melody Thornton and Nicole Scherzinger have acknowledged that the group recorded a song with Usher for their forthcoming album. PERSONAL LIFE Usher is the godson of performer Ben Vereen . DISCOGRAPHY See Also: Usher discography Albums
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