Lyfe Jennings

Lyfe Jennings (born Chester Jermaine Jennings on June 3, 1978)^[1][2][3] is a platinum-selling American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, record producer, and instrumentalist. He plays the guitar, bass, and piano which he integrates into his music. The New York Times referred to him as a "socially minded R&B singer".^[4]

His love for music led him to join a group that included two of his cousins and his older brother. After splitting, Lyfe continued his interest in music. As stated in the songs "Ghetto Superman" and "More Than A Girl" from The Phoenix, Lyfe lost his father at a young age. Lyfe went to prison for ten years at the age of 14.^[5] Lyfe's 6th studio album "Tree of Lyfe" will be released summer of 2015.

Private life

In 1992, Lyfe Jennings went to prison for arson.^[4] As Jennings refers to many times in his music, he turned his life around while in prison. There, Jennings continued to write music and rekindle his faith in God. Jennings served a little over 10 years behind bars. The numbers "268-192" attached to the end of his debut album represent the identification number he was given while incarcerated. Then Lyfe appeared on Showtime at the Apollo.^[4]

With his former-manager and ex fiancé Joy Bounds,^[6][7] Jennings has two sons, Elijah Jennings and Phoenix Jennings.

His youngest child, Lyfe Jennings, was born in 2011 with his 3rd children's mother.^[8][9]

Tree of Lyfe

On his new album, Tree Of Lyfe, Lyfe Jennings describes it as his most personal work to date and produced the majority of the album at his home studio. When asked about his current musical mindset, Lyfe Jennings response is one of reflection and experience, “Everybody feels like they have to reinvent themselves. I don’t think you can reinvent the truth. It is what it is. I’m not focused on reinvention. I want to go deeper. This album reaffirms the reasons why people started loving this music in the first place.” ^[10][11]

Singles

“Pretty Is” is an affectionate anthem of sorts with Lyfe’s gritty vocals adding that distinct flavor his fans have come to love. Of the song, Lyfe says “…it’s ok to struggle if you’re struggling with purpose and with dignity cause it’s not what you do that makes you ugly, it’s what you don’t do that makes you pretty.” The video for “Pretty Is” tells the story of one young woman’s struggle and it’s a story many can relate to. ^{[12] [13] [14] [15]}

“Gold” is a song Lyfe used to perform in his early days but never finished writing. As a thank you to all his true Lyfe fans for their support since Day 1, Jennings completed the song and gives us a powerful new visual. Known for his “keep it real” lyrics, in “Gold” Lyfe is talking to his younger self with the message that says you can’t take back the things you do but learning the lesson and doing better is the gold. The clip premiered exclusively with Centric.com ^{[16] [17] [18] [19]}

Discography

Studio albums

• 2004: Lyfe 268-192
• 2006: The Phoenix
• 2008: Lyfe Change
• 2010: I Still Believe
• 2013: Lucid
• 2015: Tree Of Lyfe"

Singles

• 2004: "Stick Up Kid"
• 2005: "Must Be Nice" (Produced by Lyfe Jennings)
• 2006: "Hypothetically" (featuring Fantasia)
• 2006: "S.E.X." (featuring La La Brown)
• 2006: "Let's Stay Together" (Produced by Lyfe Jennings)
• 2008: "Cops Up" (Remix) (featuring Jim Jones)
• 2008: "Never Never Land" (Produced by Lyfe Jennings)
• 2008: "Will I Ever" (Produced by Lyfe Jennings)
• 2009: "Haters got it all effd up"
• 2009: "Work" (featuring Fabolous)
• 2009: "If I Knew Then"
• 2010: "Busy"
• 2010: "Statistics" (Produced by T-Minus)
• 2013" "Boomerang" (Produced by G2G and LaShaunda Carr)
• 2015: "Pretty Is" (Produced by Shaun "ShaunnyMac" Williamson)
• 2015: "Gold" (Produced by Lyfe Jennings)