USHER STANDS TALL HERE I STAND IS THE #1 ALBUM IN THE COUNTRY Highest First Week Sales Of The Year For A Male Artist Scores Third Consecutive No. 1 Album On The UK Albums Chart Debuts No. 1 In Canada, Japan And Australia
USHER STANDS TALL HERE I STAND IS THE #1 ALBUM IN THE COUNTRY Highest First Week Sales Of The Year For A Male Artist Scores Third Consecutive No. 1 Album On The UK Albums Chart Debuts No. 1 In Canada, Japan And Australia
New York, NY – LaFace/Zomba recording artist Usher debuts at No. 1 on SoundScan’s Pop and R&B Albums charts with his fifth studio album, Here I Stand. This is the highest debut of the year for a male artist.
Here I Stand is the Atlanta-based singer’s second No. 1 debut on the Top 200 Albums chart and his third No. 1 debut on the R&B Albums chart. This week Usher dominates international charts as well, bowing at No. 1 in Canada, Japan (International Chart), Australia, and for the third time in a row, debuts at No. 1 on the UK Albums chart. Additionally, Here I Stand enters Top 5 on album charts in Ireland, Switzerland, New Zealand and the Netherlands.
Fans and critics have praised the singer/songwriter’s newest effort: The New York Times declares, “Usher knows what works in the suave come-ons that have made him the male R&B sex symbol for a generation;” Entertainment Weekly raves, “…Stand’s tunes deserve a place in the dance-floor pantheon;” The Los Angeles Times observes, “… [Here I Stand] a more accomplished version of “Confessions,” the hooks more effortless, the singing even better, the songwriting more consistent.”
Usher’s latest certified hit, “Love In This Club” featuring Young Jeezy, has remained a Top 10 staple on Billboard’s Hot 100 Singles chart for 14 consecutive weeks and has sold close to 3 million digital units (digital singles, ringtones and ringbacks) to date. The poignant follow-up single, “Moving Mountains” is rapidly climbing the singles charts and the riveting video, filled with breath-taking special effects, recently debuted on MTV and BET.
Usher Raymond IV started his multi-faceted career at the age of 15-years old, and over the span of his 14-year career, the five-time Grammy winning singer, songwriter, dancer, actor, and entrepreneur has sold 26 million albums worldwide.
Here I Stand is Usher’s follow-up to his history-making, 9x platinum-selling Confessions. “My goal with every album is to be as in the moment and as honest as I possibly can,” The five-time Grammy winner explains. “There have been a lot of changes in my life so I wanted to make something that really reflected that.”
Usher’s New Album “Here I Stand”
In Stores May 27th
New Album Features Collaborations with Jay-Z, will.i.am, Beyoncé, Lil Wayne And More
Platinum Digital Single “Love In This Club” Continues To Top Charts
New York, NY – LaFace/Zomba recording artist Usher will release his highly anticipated fifth studio album Here I Stand on May 27th. The album comes as Usher’s latest smash hit “Love In This Club” featuring Young Jeezy currently ranks as the No. 5 pop single in the country. The popular song has remained in the Top 5 on Billboard’s Hot 100 Singles chart for ten consecutive weeks and is in the Top 10 on various charts in the UK, Germany, France and Canada. A new version of the song titled, “Love In This Club Part II” featuring Beyoncé and Lil Wayne was recently released and is rapidly climbing the charts.
Here I Stand is Usher’s follow-up to his history-making, 9x platinum-selling Confessions. “My goal with every album is to be as in the moment and as honest as I possibly can,” The five-time Grammy winner explains. “There have been a lot of changes in my life so I wanted to make something that really reflected that.”
“Here I Stand” Track Listing (74.13):
Love In This Club featuring Young Jeezy
This Ain’t Sex
Trading Places
Moving Mountains
What’s Your Name featuring will.i.am
Something Special
Love You Gently
Best Thing featuring Jay-Z
Before I Met You
His Mistakes
Appetite
What’s A Man To Do
Lifetime
Love In This Club Part II featuring Beyoncé and Lil Wayne
Here I Stand
Will Work For Love (Hidden Track)
The Tennessee-born, Atlanta raised performer, songwriter, producer, dancer, actor started his multi-faceted career at the age of 15-years old and has achieved what few other contemporary entertainers have ever accomplished. Over the span of his 14-year career, Usher has sold close to 26 million albums worldwide and combining all of his single, album and DVD sales, he’s sold in excess of 36 million units globally.
He will be making special high-profile appearances and performances to promote Here I Stand including: MTV’s The Hills, Saturday Night Live, Dancing With The Stars, Ellen DeGeneres, Good Morning America, BET and more.
Two weeks from tomorrow, the highest anticipated album of the year will hit stores…check out the official album tracklist for Usher’s “Here I Stand.”
and..
Usher performs on Good Morning America on May 30th at Bryant Park in NYC. Scroll down for details!
*There will be a listening session this Thursday afternoon at the Jive offices. Please send me your request if you or someone from your outlet would like to attend for Jive to approve, as space is limited. Thanks!
Here I Stand Album Tracklist:
1. Intro
2. Love In This Club
3. This Ain’t Sex
4. Trading Places
5. Moving Mountains
6. What’s Your Name
7. Prayer For You Interlude
8. Something Special
9. Love You Gently
10. Best Thing
11. Before I Met You
12. His Mistakes
13. Appetite
14. What’s A Man To Do
15. Lifetime
16. Love In This Club Part II
17. Here I Stand
USHER Jive Records Here I Stand IN STORES MAY 27
Please join Good Morning America at Bryant Park in New York City!
Bryant Park Summer Concert Information
Date: May 30, 2008
Address: Bryant Park(41st and 6th Avenue)(Behind the New York Public Library)
Suggested Arrival Time: 6:00a.m. or earlier (How early is up to you)
We DO NOT recommend before 5:00 a.m.
Good Morning America airs from 7:00 - 9:00 a.m. The concert is over at 9:00 a.m.
No reservations required. The concert is free and open to the public.
Procedure: When you arrive at Bryant Park stand on the general audience line that has formed at the back entrance of the park.
AVILA BROTHERS IN STUDIO THIS WEEK WITH USHER! GRAMMY WINNING PRODUCERS/SONGWRITERS BREAK OUT ON THEIR OWN WITH USHER, ANTHONY HAMILTON, TABOO, SEAN GARRETT & MORE
Bobby and IZ Avila, the producing/songwriting brothers who this year won Grammys for Best R&B album and Best R&B Song, have been in the studio this week with USHER working on material for his upcoming album. The Avila brothers brought the superstar to the legendary Marvin Gaye studios in Hollywood for its feeling of peace. “You can channel the creative spirit,” said Bobby. When Usher walked in, says IZ, “He said ‘I feel the spirit, we are making magic again!’” This is not their first work with the platinum superstar: The Avila Brothers produced and wrote five songs on CONFESSIONS and three on RHYTHM CITY.
The brothers recently formed The Avila Brothers Inc., after working for several years as part of the Flyte Tyme team. Since striking out on their own, they have produced and written for Anthony Hamilton, Sean Garrett, Frankie J., Jah Free and Taboo of Black Eyed Peas on upcoming projects.
Although they are only in their early 30s, the Brothers have worked with a long list of superstars including Mary J Blige, Missy Elliot, Aretha Franklin, Beyoncé & Bilal, Janet Jackson, Gwen Stefani, Mariah Carey, Patti LaBelle and others. They have also produced music for Shark Tale, The Gap and the NBA. Their work with Chaka Khan as producers and songwriters for FUNK THIS, earned them a Grammy for Best R&B album and Best R&B song written by the brothers which featured Chaka Kahn & Mary J. Blige.
Bobby and IZ are as close as brothers can be. They still lived in the Inland Empire in which they were raised and their houses are only a few blocks from one another. They even ride to work together when they are not working out of the Avila Brothers Studios.
The Avila Brothers studios near their home features a combination of the same vintage and state of the art equipment like the Marvin Gaye studios they so admire.
Noel Gourdin - Debut album After My Time coming Summer ‘08 - EPIC RECORDS
BIO
A gritty, working class city outside of Boston, Brockton is best known as where legendary fighters the late Rocky Marciano and Marvin Hagler grew up. Unlike Detroit, Memphis, New Orleans or Philly, Brockton doesn’t spring to mind when name checking soul music’s breeding grounds. Yet it’s there that 24 year-old Noel Gourdin first fell under R&B’s spell and his hometown’s tenacity is the force behind his stunning Sony Urban Music/Epic Records debut.
Blessed with roughhewn, down-home vocals that hark back to when rhythm and blues repped for both those components, influences ranging from hip-hop to gospel and songs that are nakedly emotional and truthful, Noel Gourdin states his case on his refreshingly heartfelt debut CD. Featuring production from Kay Gee (Jaheim/Zhané), Raphael Saadiq (D’Angelo/Angie Stone), Mike City (Brandy/Sunshine Anderson), Dre & Vidal (Jill Scott), Butta (Usher), Eddie F (Heavy D), RLES and Trackaddix, Noel’s debut release is soul at its best. Speaking to the vibe he offers, Noel divulges, “It’s about the emotions of the average man. My intention is putting my feelings on the track and leaving everything I’ve got in the recording booth. I want people to think; this is a man that you can feel. That you can slow dance with, have a drink with and cry with. It’s real music that affects your life.”
That’s apparent on the richly moving “The River.” Produced by Kay Gee, “The River” conjures up vivid images of family, faith, tradition and the journey towards becoming your own man. “I had a track, and Noel and his co-writer [Balewa] said they wanted something that sounded like an old-styled ballad,” recalls Kay Gee of their seamless creative process. “I said, `Well, I have the perfect beat for you.’ So, I gave them the beat and they were like, `Alright…bet.’ Before I knew it, they had written `The River,’ which is a great record. A lot of people are scared to do one of those kinds of songs right now, so I think they took a chance and came up with something great.” “We wanted to make a modern-day Negro spiritual,” concludes Noel, of the song’s inspiration. “Both my grandparents lived in Mississippi about 3 hours from Biloxi and I spent every summer with them, so I really soaked up that atmosphere and history. My grandfather had just died and I was really thinking about him, and in the Deep South the river represents something spiritual. The song means a lot because it’s so close to home.”
Emotions also guide the jazzy “Hurts Like Hell”, produced by Trackaddix. “That’s a real pride record. He still loves her but it’s not working out. A lot of fellows wont admit it, but after they’ve broken up they say, `She’s not gonna see me crying.’ That’s real.” So too is the sultry “Summertime,” produced by Dre & Vidal. Featuring lines like “Just cause it’s cold outside/let’s make it summertime,” this is a soft and wet ode that Noel calls “just crazy. In some ways the vibe reminds me of `Let’s Get It On.’” There’s also a hint of a more contemporary singer – namely, D’Angelo — and Noel acknowledges the influence. “I hear the comparison; our voices are similar but you can tell us apart. I get inspiration from a lot of artists: Marvin Gaye, Sam Cooke. There’s also a real big Prince undertone. I just filter it all through my own way of seeing things and hopefully come up with something hot.” Hot also describes the up-tempo “Clap 4 That,” produced by Butta. “That’s a `have fun party record’ that I loved doing it.”
The youngest of three kids, Noel grew up singing in church and fully absorbed his father’s classic soul and older brother’s New Jack Swing records. From Otis Redding and the Chi-Lites to Teddy Riley and Jodeci, Noel loved it all, so much so that in middle school he had begun to write his own songs, drawing from what he’d heard coming up. “Listening to so much music from so many different eras really helped me put my style together.”
By high school, Noel was performing in local talent shows, parties and events sponsored by the city. “We’d always keep it true, trying to put it down for the home town,” he fondly recalls. “It was a pleasure performing in Brockton. I did shows for the Boys and Girls Club to help keep the kids motivated.” It was also while in school that Noel hooked up with a local producer, who sensing his talent took Noel to a small studio. While the recording facilities might have been modest, the pay off was enormous as Noel recalls: “I had somewhere to get the music off my chest and after a year I had a bunch of tracks together, doing all the music and writing all the lyrics.”
Following graduation, Noel focused even more on music and further strengthened his commitment to his community by working at a local group home for battered kids. “It was a passion of mine, being able to affect a kid’s life and trying to be a positive role model.” By 2002, Noel and Stalin Entertainment owner Larry “Lucky” Fernandes had built their business relationship and sealed their artist management deal with a handshake. After a year of writing and producing new songs — following a club date in Providence, RI — Lucky introduced the Noel project to producer/artist Tommy Olivera, who, with songwriter Balewa Muhammad, now make up Noel’s production team. Tommy also had a wide range of industry contacts, among them former Naughty By Nature DJ / producer Kay Gee, who is best known for his production work for Jaheim, Zhané and Next. Within no time, Noel was working with Kay Gee at his New Jersey studio. In 2004, Kay Gee asked him to contribute a song to The Cook Out soundtrack; Noel cut “Family Reunion,” which by his own admission signaled a new musical direction. “Working with everyone had really opened up my horizons and I started looking at concepts and listening to music in a different way. I wanted to come up with something that wasn’t out there.” With that in mind, Noel kept writing and amassed close to an album’s worth of material, which he and his team sent out to taste-makers in the music industry. He also met with label executives, which resulted in an introduction to Sony Urban Music’s V.P. of A&R, Chad Elliott in June 2005. Armed with a slew of tracks, including early versions of “Hurts Like Hell” and “The River,” Noel caught Elliot’s ear and by the end of the summer a showcase was set up for the young singer/songwriter. By the fall of that year, Noel was offered a record deal. “Getting signed was unbelievable. I’m very family oriented, so to be able to make them proud meant everything to me. Plus, I think my deal showed other Brockton musicians that it’s not just a pipe dream.”
That dedication comes through on Noel’s emotionally-stirring debut CD, something his seasoned producers recognized early on and played up. “I know a lot of people say this, but I think he’s just a breath of fresh air [right now],” explains Kay Gee. “I think the fact that we haven’t heard singers like him in a while, mixed with the sound of his falsetto, lets us know that there’s something missing in the music industry right now. I think there’s a lane open for his sound.” Raphael Saadiq wholeheartedly agrees, adding, “Noel’s a young soul who can sing in all kinds of different areas. He’s from Mississippi but lives out in Boston, so he’s bringing a certain flavor from both places. His style is really soulful. He’s very competitive and cool, but also has that energy that you need out there in the urban world.” Asked to describe his soulful collection and Noel straightforwardly replies, “It’s emotional and vulnerable, but still strong and secure. More than anything, I wanted to make music that was real, relatable…and timeless.”
Chicago’s, One Chance (Mic, Courtney, Rob, and Jon) continue to make headlines as the next group to break mainstream. Signed to J Records (via Usher’s label imprint, US), One Chance is destined to follow in the footsteps of such legendary R&B acts as Boyz II Men, New Edition, Jodeci, etc. The group can also be seen in Usher’s latest video, “Love In This Club”.
Check out the single that is currently hitting major air waves, “U Can’t” (remix), featuring Bad Boy Records, Yung Joc.
Jesse McCartney’s lead single, “Leavin” has been steadily added to the rotation of several urban radio stations all across the country.
Check out this exclusive performance during the first leg of his promo run. In the video, Jesse performs a live acoustic version for Kiss FM in Phoenix / Tucson, Arizona. Also, an official remix page has been launched for “Leavin” which allows fans to pick their favorite remix of the track.
Video: Jesse McCartney Kiss FM Phoenix / Tuscon, Arizona Acoustic Version
Jesse McCartney
Departure available May 20
Hollywood Records
Departure Collaborating producers listed below
“Leavin’”
Tricky & The-Dream
Best known for their work on Rihanna and Jay-Z’s single “Umbrella”, which became a #1 hit and J. Holiday’s “Bed”.
“Rock You” Featuring; Sean Garrett, “How Do You Sleep” & “Into Ya”
Sean Garrett
“London Bridge” Fergie; “Buttons” The Pussycat Dolls; “Ring The Alarm” Beyonce’ ; “Yeah” Usher; “Goodies” Ciara; “Run It” Chris Brown; “Check On It” Destiny’s Child; “Grillz” Nelly; “Ping-Pong S
