In 2008 and 2009, Jazmine Sullivan was nominated for seven Grammy Awards, including best new artist and best R&B song for not one, but two tracks off her highly touted 2008 debut album, "Fearless" (J Records). The set debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and has sold more than 500,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
But the R&
powerhouse was prepping recently for her first acceptance speech - after being n amed Billboard's Rising Star for 2010.
Video: Highlights from the Dec. 2, 2010 Women In Music event.
It's an honor she's so delighted about that she began plotting what she would say as shortly as she got the news.
Fergie, Jazmine Sullivan, Lea Michele Honored At
Billboard's Women In Music Event
"I actually started writing it, I did," the singer/songwriter says with a chuckle about her planned discourse. "I don't know yet just what I'll say, but it'll be my maiden speech, so it'll be special."
Born in Philadelphia, the 23-year-old artist says she found out almost the testimonial in early November while attending the Soul Train Music Awards in Atlanta, and "completely freaked out."
"It's Billboard, which has to do with your actual records that you put out and where they are situated amongst your peers," she says. "To be considered somebody who is going places and recognized for my medicine is an honor."
Going places indeed. Lady Gaga was last year's recipient. "It's all you had to say roughly that accolade for me to be completely geeked," Sullivan says. "I absolutely love her."
But this award isn't about those who have come before her. It will be a festivity of Sullivan's own triumphs and where her bright future will certainly lead her. "Jazmine Sullivan is more than just her excellent and ever-growing catalog of R&B hits," Billboard editorial director Bill Werde says. "She brings incredible soul and flavor to her music. She came out of the gate with a debut album that merited critical acclaim and mass appeal, and her second album shows her place and her staying power. We can bear to see a lot more from this rising star."
A 'FEARLESS' INTRODUCTION
Sullivan debuted in September 2008 with "Brave" and has continued to make her fan base since. The album spawned four top 40 hits on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs tally, led by the chart-topping first single "Need U Bad," which reigned for 4 weeks.
"Need U Bad" was followed by "Bust Your Windows," which peaked at No. 4; "Lions, Tigers & Bears," which reached No. 10; and "In Bed With Another Man," which topped off at No. 37. Now, slightly more than two days later, Sullivan is second with her follow-up album, "Love Me Back" (Nov. 30), which she describes as a natural progression since her debut. The set features production from collaborators Missy Elliott and Salaam Remi, as good as No I.D. Bei Maejor and Ne-Yo.
Jazmine Sullivan, "Holding You Down (Goin' in Cirlces)"
"The inaugural album was really much based off a kinship that I had only gotten out of, and it was not healthy at all, which is where songs like 'Bust Your Windows,' among others, came from," she says of the album. "There was a lot of pain and wrath on that set, and a lot of songs reflected that. But this album shows a much softer side of me. I wanted to express a different, more positive face of relationships, especially since I'm in one that's a little healthier than the old one."
Still, first single "Holding You Down (Goin' in Circles)," which reached No. 3 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, describes a female reflecting on her choice to stay in an unhealthy relationship. Sullivan says the ground for it is that although she's much happier now, "there is conflict in every relationship, and I have a very realistic approach to my music."
It's this down-to-earth, relatable attitude that makes Sullivan so sympathetic to her fans and peers. "One of the things that makes her so special is that mass can refer to her music and the words in her songwriting," J Records senior VP of marketing/product manager Carolyn Williams says. "That's why I'm so mad about this album - it's her best influence to see because she's grown so often as a vocalist and a songwriter. She continues to meet her core fan base, which is females."
Other songs on the album include second single "10 Seconds," which finds Sullivan giving a cheating boyfriend exactly 10 seconds to give before she loses her cool. The video recently debuted and Sullivan says she's more mad about her visual creativity this time around because she's more involved with the process.
"I put a lot of concentrated work into the videos in comparison to the inaugural album because I take a clearer sight of what I wish them to be," she says. And often care the overall vibe of the set, Sullivan says, the time for "Keeping You Down (Goin' in Circles)" is "younger, more fun, because that's who I am. I wanted to get that so I made certain to produce a few suggestions."
Other tracks include "Famous," which Sullivan describes as not only about being a lead but "missing to look special and crucial to somebody."
There's also the love song "Excuse Me," which Sullivan says is in arguing to be the album's third single. "It's a great, feel-good, classic love song that you're going to love forever," she says. "It's release to be one of those that's going to be here for a while."
What's next for the artist? Fresh off Mary J. Blige's Music Saved My Life tour, Sullivan will enter on a promotional run, which kicks off in a pair of weeks. The judge has been posting two new tracks per week on Sullivan's Facebook page since early November, Williams says. In addition, a MySpace album premiere will establish the week before street date, and the set will be available for streaming on her site.
Video: Jazmine Sullivan, "10 Seconds"
Meanwhile, Sony Music U.K. executives are focussing on giving Sullivan a large British new year. "Holding You Down (Goin' in Circles)" will be promoted to British audiences at the number of 2011, with a Jan. 16 release date scheduled. The "Love Me Back" album is due Nov. 29 in the United Kingdom.
Matt Ott, publicist with RCA Label Group in London, says a U.K. visit by Sullivan is plotted for the 2nd quarter.
"The new tracks are absolutely breathtaking," he says. "This album should give out to those who've supported Jazmine from the beginning, while looking to cover over to a more mainstream audience. We look ahead to her coming over to our shores in the spring."
Sullivan made her first foray into the U.K. market when, some nine months after her U.S. launch, "Dream Big" became her first British single in Feb 2009. She made her initial European visit the next September, playing three successive nights at London's Jazz Cafe, coinciding with the U.K. release of the "Brave" album and another one from the set, "Bust Your Windows."
Media coverage at the time included such specialist press as Blues & Soul magazine and a live session for MTV U.K. Sullivan's spring will admit not only sight of promotion but also concert dates.
Back in the United States, in gain to the Facebook rollout, an album preorder on iTunes has been run since October. Sullivan also shot a picture with Ne-Yo, titled "Red Tails," and is planning another turn in the coming year.
But for now, Sullivan has a few things on her immediate checklist: "I wish to be a family name. I wish to inspire great music and be known for that," she says.
Additional reporting by Paul Sexton in London.
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