Since signing with LaFace Records as a teenager in 1994, Usher has become one of Atlanta’s most popular rhythm and blues (R&B) singers, selling millions of albums. His gold and platinum albums include his debut, Usher, and six follow-up recordings.
Usher Raymond IV was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, on October 14, 1978. He honed his vocal skills as a member of the St. Elmo’s Missionary Baptist Church choir. After moving to Atlanta with his mother, Jonnetta Patton, in 1990 to pursue a record deal, Usher began performing in amateur singing competitions. In 1991 his performance at a talent show caught the attention of Antonio “L.A.” Reid of LaFace Records. Reid invited Usher to an audition and signed the fourteen-year-old to a recording contract.
In 1994 Usher released Usher, an album coproduced by Reid and New York rap magnate Sean “P. Diddy” Combs. The album’s first single,”Think of You,” spearheaded the disc into gold status and established Usher as an up-and-coming R&B star. Between 1994 and 1997 Usher worked on several solo and collaborative projects, recording a jingle for Coca-Cola, forming R&B vocal group Black Men United to produce the single “You Will Know,” and generally building fan support for his next album. In 1997 he released My Way under the guidance of Reid and well-known producers Jermaine Dupri and Babyface. A popular crossover effort driven by the songs “You Make Me Wanna” and “Nice and Slow,” My Way reached multiplatinum sales.
My Way offered Usher new opportunities to extend his status as a celebrity. In 1998 Usher briefly stopped recording to appear in several feature films, most notably Light It Up (1999). He then released a collection of live recordings entitled Live (1999) before returning to the studio to record All About U (2000).
Another platinum release, All About U received mixed reviews from critics who questioned Usher’s longevity as an R&B artist. The success of his 2001 follow-up, 8701, however, quieted that criticism. Signed with Arista Records, Usher sold more than 8 million copies of 8701, which includes the party song “U Remind Me” and the soulful “U Got it Bad.” In the following year Usher won a variety of awards for 8701, including two Grammy Awards and three Billboard Music Awards. In 2004 Usher again rose to the top of the charts with Confessions, a record defined by the tracks “Yeah!” “Confessions,” and “Burn.” Confessions earned multiplatinum sales and won eleven Billboard Music Awards in late 2004.
Usher also continues to pursue an acting career. In addition to making numerous guest appearances on television shows, he starred in the ensemble cast of Texas Rangers (2001) and as the lead in In the Mix (2005). In August 2006 he began a six-week stint on Broadway, playing the part of Billy Flynn in the musical Chicago.
In 2008 Usher released his seventh album, Here I Stand, which sold nearly 450,000 copies to become the number one album in the week of its debut.
Even as his recording output slowed in the 2010s, Usher remained commercially viable, with successful stints on reality television programs and a pair of Las Vegas residencies that proved immensely profitable. Then, in 2024, he retook pop music’s center stage, performing at halftime of the Super Bowl. The performance, which included guest appearances from fellow Atlanta luminaries Lil Jon, Ludacris, and Jermaine Dupri, was both a return to form and a love letter to his hometown. An album, Coming Home, which was co-produced by his longtime friend Antonio “L.A.” Reid, was released at the same time.
At a ceremony just three days later, where he received a Phoenix Award, the highest civic honor awarded by the city, Usher explained that the Super Bowl performance was a tribute to Atlanta and its growing cultural cache. “I wanted the world to understand this amazing culture that Atlanta has,” he said. “This is officially the United States of Atlanta.”
