Lyfe Jennings
| Lyfe Jennings | |
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Lyfe Jennings performing "Cry" live at Howard Theatre
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Chester Jermaine Jennings |
| Born | June 3, 1978 |
| Origin | Toledo, Ohio, United States |
| Genres | R&B, soul |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, record producer, instrumentalist |
| Instruments | guitar, bass, piano |
| Years active | 2003–present |
| Labels | Sony Music Entertainment, RED Warner Bros. Records, Asylum Records, eOne Music |
| Associated acts | |
| Website | http://www.lyfeonline.com |
Lyfe Jennings (born Chester Jermaine Jennings on June 3, 1978) 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".
Lyfe Jennings was born on June 3, 1978, in Toledo, Ohio. He was born to working-class family and was the middle of five kids. He first began singing in church. As stated in "Ghetto Superman" and "More Than A Girl" from The Phoenix, Lyfe lost his father at a young age. When he was a teenager, Lyfe Jennings started to perform with the group called “The Dotsons”. "The Dotsons" consisted of himself, his brother, and two cousins. In the beginning of the 90s, however, the band disbanded. During this time, Lyfe began to get into legal trouble and his musical career came to a halt when he was sent to prison at then age of 14. In 2002, after serving 10 years in prison, Lyfe returned to his musical aspirations. Two days after his December 2002 release from prison, he recorded a four-song demo CD.After a month post release, he performed at the Apollo. He was booed as he walked onto the stage with an acoustic guitar, but when the Apollo audience heard his gritty falsetto and lyrical songwriting, they were swayed to the tune of five amateur-night victories in a row. Lyfe sold about 1,000 copies of his four-song demo CD during his Apollo "residency." His growing success, influenced Lyfe to move to New York City and pursue a major-label deal. Columbia Records had the right offer and released his debut, Lyfe 268-192 in August of 2004. A year after its original release, the album was reissued with a new version of "Hypothetically," featuring American Idol winner Fantasia added as a bonus track. The more hip-hop-oriented follow-up The Phoenix arrived in August 2006, with Three 6 Mafia and Young Buck making guest appearances. Lyfe Change released in April 2008, featured a handful of new production associates as well as a verse from T.I. Jennings. Lyfe moved to Warner Bros. and began working on another album, tentatively titled Sooner or Later, which he stated would be his last. It finally appeared in August 2010 as I Still Believe and featured guest spots from Bryan-Michael Cox, Warryn Campbell, Fabolous, Bobby Valentino, Ludacris, Anthony Hamilton, and Jazmine Sullivan. He did another prison stint for his actions in a 2008 domestic dispute and returned to music in October 2013 with Lucid, released on the Mass Appeal label. Like all of his previous studio releases, it peaked in the Top 10 of Billboard's R&B chart. Tree of Lyfe, recorded primarily in his home studio, followed in June 2015.
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