Jazmine Sullivan

Jazmine Sullivan
Jazmine Sullivan in 2009.
Background information
Born	(1987-04-09) April 9, 1987 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Genres	R&B, soul
Occupations	Recording artist, actress
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	2003—present
Labels	J Records, Arista, RCA Puppy Love
Website	JazmineSullivanMusic.com

Jazmine Marie Sullivan (born April 9, 1987) is an American recording artist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is also the protégée of rapper Missy Elliott. Her debut single "Need U Bad" reached number one on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, while her second single, "Bust Your Windows" peaked at number four. Elements of reggae, dub, pop, jazz, Neo soul and doo-wop can be heard in her work. Jazmine cites singers Kim Burrell, Lauryn Hill, Brandy, Dorinda Clark Cole, Lady Saw, and Changing Faces as her biggest influences and inspirations.^[1]

Early life

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Jazmine Sullivan grew up the middle sister La'Vita between an older brother Donnell and younger brother Andre. Her mother Pam is a former backup singer for Philadelphia International Records. When she was 5 years old, her father landed a position as a curator for the city's Historic Strawberry Mansion in the Strawberry Mansion section, and her family moved into the historical landmark. Sullivan struggled to assimilate at school. She is a 2005 graduate of the Philadelphia High School for the Creative and Performing Arts where she was a vocal music major.^[2] Sullivan began singing as a contralto in the children’s choir, then a few years later in the adult choir. Sullivan’s exposure to secular music was initially limited, "I was doing solos in church and someone wanted me to sign to a gospel label when I was eleven but I wasn’t ready to do that," she recalls. "Then when McDonald’s had a competition for kids in major cities, I got a chance to perform 'Accept What God Allows' on It's Showtime at the Apollo and the audience responded really well".^[3] She sang with Stevie Wonder at his grandson's birthday at the age of 13. Sullivan was initially signed to Jive Records at the age 16. There, she recorded an entire album titled Break My Little Heart, but the album was never released and Sullivan was dropped from the label. She maintained a working relationship with Missy Elliott, who had produced some of the tracks for Heart, and continued writing songs until she landed her current deal at J Records.

Music career

Songwriting and career beginnings (2004–present)

Before releasing her debut album, a song that Jazmine had written and recorded with producers Cool & Dre titled "Say I" was given to Dre's then-girlfriend Christina Milian for her third album, So Amazin'. The song became the lead single, peaking at #13 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart as well as #21 on the Hot 100. After achieving her own success (she co-wrote her entire debut), Jazmine went on to pen songs for Jennifer Hudson, Tamia, Monica and Fantasia Barrino.

2008–2009: Fearless

Sullivan first appeared on the music mainstream scene with her debut single "Need U Bad", released in May 2008. The song, which featured additional vocals by Missy Elliott and Sandy "Pepa" Denton of Salt-n-Pepa fame, went to number one on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and also peaked at number thirty-seven on the Billboard Hot 100. Sullivan's debut album Fearless was released on September 23, 2008. Sullivan wrote every song on the album, and she served as a producer alongside Missy Elliott, Salaam Remi and Peter Edge. The album received production from Elliott, Remi, Stargate, Carvin & Ivan, Jack Splash, and Fisticuffs. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart and debuted at number six on the Billboard 200. The album is nearing an RIAA Gold certification, as the album has sold 510,000 records in the US so far. Sullivan followed up her successful debut single with the second single from Fearless, "Bust Your Windows", which was released in September 2008 and reached number four on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and number thirty-one on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming her most successful single on that chart to date. "Bust Your Windows" was also nominated for a Grammy for Best R&B Song, though it did not win the award. "Lions, Tigers & Bears" was released as the album's third single in December 2008. It scored her third consecutive top ten on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, reaching number ten on that chart, and garnered some mainstream success by reaching number seventy-four on the Billboard Hot 100. Sullivan later pursued success in the UK when she released "Dream Big" as her first official UK single in February 2009, though it failed to chart there. The song was later released as the fourth US single from the album in April 2009, but also failed to chart there. The album's fifth and final single, "In Love with Another Man", was released in August 2009 and was only moderately successful by reaching number thirty-seven on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. A sixth single, "Switch!", was going to be released in November 2009, though its release was later canceled. Sullivan was featured on a song entitled "Smoking Gun" with Jadakiss on his 2009 album The Last Kiss. She was also a supporting act for R&B singer Maxwell on his highly successful 2008 U.S. tour and was the opening act for Ne-Yo's 2009 Year of the Gentleman Tour. She additionally appeared on Ace Hood's second album, Ruthless, on a song called "Champion". She also participated in the Essence Music Festival in June 2009 and headlined a few dates leading up to her Essence Festival performance with support from R&B singer/producer Ryan Leslie. In 2009, Sullivan appeared in commercials for Cotton Incorporated. Additionally, Sullivan made a guest appearance on Snoop Dogg's tenth studio album Malice n Wonderland on the song "Different Languages".

2009–11: Love Me Back

Sullivan began working on her second album, Love Me Back, in 2009.^[4] Producers contributing to the album included Ne-Yo, Los da Mystro, Ryan Leslie, Lamb, Missy Elliott^[5] and Salaam Remi,^{[citation needed]} who produced the majority of Fearless. Songs recorded for the album include "Blow", "Don't Make Me Wait" (a tribute to Prince), and a reported sequel to "Bust Your Windows" titled "You Get On My Nerves", which was co-written by Ne-Yo.^[5] The album was completed in June 2010 and released on November 30, 2010.^[4] The album has been preceded by the lead single, "Holding You Down (Goin' In Circles)", which was released on July 10, 2010. The single has reached number 3 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The album's second single, "10 Seconds", was released to radio airplay in late September, and has since then peaked at a position of 31 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. The song was at first to be released on October 25, but was released on November 22 ; the music video for the single was released on November 12. In early December 2010, Billboard honoured Sullivan as the 'Rising Star' for 2010.^[6]

2011–present: Third studio album

Currently, Jazmine is working on her third studio album.^[7]

On October 7, 2011, RCA Music Group announced it was disbanding J Records along with Arista Records and Jive Records. With the shutdown, Sullivan (and all other artists previously signed to these three labels) will release her future material on the RCA Records brand.^[8][9]

Discography

• Fearless (2008)
• Love Me Back (2010)

Awards/nominations

• Billboard Awards: Women in Music
  • 2010, Billboard Rising Star Award (Won)
• BET Awards
  • 2009, Best Female R&B Artist (Nominated)
  • 2009, Best New Artist (Nominated)
  • 2009, BET Centric Award (Winner)

• Grammy Awards
  • 2009, Best New Artist (Nominated)
  • 2009, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance: "Need U Bad" (Nominated)
  • 2009, Best R&B Contemporary Album: "Fearless" (Nominated)
  • 2009, Best R&B Song: "Bust Your Windows" (Nominated)
  • 2009, Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance: "In Love With Another Man" (Nominated)
  • 2010, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance: Lions, Tigers & Bears (Nominated)
  • 2010, Best R&B Song: Lions, Tigers & Bears (Nominated)
  • 2011, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance: "Holding You Down (Goin' In Circles)" (Nominated)

• Image Awards
  • 2009, Outstanding New Artist (Nominated)

• Soul Train Awards
  • 2009, Best New Artist (Nominated)
  • 2009, Best R&B Song, Lions, Tigers and Bears (Nominated)

• ASCAP Award
  • 2011, R&B/Hip Hop Song, "Holding You Down (Goin' In Circles)" (Winner)

Filmography

• The Ellen DeGeneres Show' (2008) Herself
• The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (2008) (TV series) - Herself
• "106 & Park" (2008) (TV series) - Herself
• "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" (2009) (TV series) - Herself
• "Jimmy Kimmel Live! (2009) (TV series) - Herself^[10]
• "Good Morning America" (2009) (TV series) - Herself
• Red Tails (2012) - Deborah "Love Bunny" Gannett

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jazmine Sullivan.

• Official website
• Jazmine Sullivan interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' September 2009
• Allmusic page
• Music Review - Jazmine Sullivan - Singing That Sweet Soul Music at S.O.B.’s at New York Times
• Myspace page