African Celebrities: American singer-songwriter

Showing posts with label American singer-songwriter. Show all posts

Thursday, 27 February 2014

Lil' Kim

Kimberly Denise Jones, popularly known by her stage name Lil' Kim, is an American rapper, singer-songwriter, record producer, model, and actress.

She was born on July 11, 1974 in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of the New York City borough Brooklyn, to parents Linwood Jones and Ruby Jones (now Ruby Jones-Mitchell). At the age of 9 her parents separated, and her father raised her until he expelled her form home when she was a teenager. Thus she lived with her friends and even on the streets.

Lil' Kim has earned numerous honors and awards. He debut album Hard Core (1996) was certified Double Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and is considered a classic hip-hop album. Throughout her career Lil' Kim has sold over 11 million albums worldwide and has earned several accolades for her work. Pop culture have given her titles such as Queen bee and Queen of Hip-Hop.

In February 2014, Lil Kim announced she was pregnant with her first child.

Lil' Kim with her mother Ruby Jones Mitchell, at her mother's wedding

Lil' Kim (left) with her mother Ruby Jones Mitchell (right)

Friday, 14 February 2014

T - Pain

Faheem Rasheed Najm better known by his stage name T-Pain, is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer, and actor. He was born on 30th of September 1985 in Tallahassee, Florida, where he also grew up. His stage name is short for "Tallahassee Pain" and was chosen because of the hardships he experienced while living there.

His debut album, Rappa Ternt Sanga, was released in 2005. T-Pain released his second studio album Epiphany in 2007, which reached number one on the Billboard 2000. In 2008, he realesed his third studio album, Thr33 Ringz. T-Pain has earned two Grammy Awards alongside artists Kanye West and Jamie Foxx.

T-Pain is the founder of the record label Nappy Boy Enrtainment, established in 2005. Throughout the years of 2006 - 2010 T-Pain was featured on more than 50 chart topping singles, his most successful feature to date was in Flo Rida's debut single "Low" which has since been certified 6x Platinum.

T-Pain

T-Pain and family

T-Pain and Keri Hilson

Saturday, 8 February 2014

Chaka Khan

Yvette Marie Stevens popularly known as Chaka Khan is an American singer-songwriter whose career has spanned four decades, beginning in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk bank Rufus.

Chaka Khan was born on March 23, 1953 in Chicago, Illinois. She is the eldest of five children to Charles Stevens and Sandra Coleman.

Her sister Yvonne Stevens later became a successful musician in her own right under the name Taka Boom. Her only brother, Mark Stevens, who formed the funk group Aurra, also became a successful musician. She has two other sisters, Zaheva Stevens and Tammy McCrary, who is her current manager.

Chaka Khan has been married twice and is the mother of two children, daughter Indira Milini and son Damien Holland. Her first marriage was to Hassan Khan in 1970, when she was 17. They divorced a short time later. Milini's birth was the result of a relationship between Chaka Khan and Rahsaan Morris.

Chaka Khan married her second husband, Richard Holland, in 1976. Chaka Khan and Richard Holland divorced in 1980.

Chaka Khan married her third husband Doug Rasheed in 2001.