Usher
Discography
ARTIST STATS
After LaFace executive found singer Usher Raymond at a talent show in his hometown Atlanta, they wasted no time in making his career take off. L.A. Reid, the record label’s co-founder, held an audition for the 14-year-old gospel choir boy and signed him to a recording contract. Raymond was known as just Usher and released his 1994 self-titled debut album with collaboration from Sean Puffy Combs. The first single Think of You went gold and established Usher as an international talent.
After his high school graduation in 1997, Usher released his second album My Way to show off his new mature sound and songwriting talent. He co-wrote at least six of the songs and enlisted the help of producers Combs, Babyface, and Jermaine Dupri. This album was a breakthrough for Usher and promoted him as one of R&B’s most popular artists, an earning that also allowed him to cross over into the worldwide pop market. The album stayed at the top of the charts for 11 weeks, went double platinum, and hit number two pop. The singles My Way and Nice & Slow went platinum on their own with the former single becoming a number-one R&B single for eight weeks. He also took off with an acting career, appearing in 1998’s The Faculty and 1999’s Light It Up.
Usher transitioned from a teenage pop star to a more mature R&B singer with the release of 8701 in 2001. He released the club favorite Yeah! in 2004 and released the album Confessions later in March. His highly personal album Raymond v. Raymond topped the charts in 2010 and the single Papers became a Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Single.