Keri Lynn Hilson
(born 1982) is an American recording artist signed to Zone 4, Mosley Music Group and Interscope Records. She is part of a collective of writers and producers known as The Clutch. Through the early and late 2000s, Hilson wrote songs for multiple rappers and singers, including Britney Spears and Ludacris. In 2007, she guest performed on Timbaland's hits "The Way I Are" and "Scream" and began a solo singing career. Hilson has made cameos in music videos for Usher, Ne-Yo and Nelly, amongst others. Her debut album, In a Perfect World...
, was released in early 2009, spawning singles "Energy", "Return the Favor", "Turnin' Me On" and "Knock You Down".
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KERI HILSON TICKETS
EVENT | DATE | AVAILABILITY |
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Life and career
Early life
Keri Lynn Hilson was born in 1982 in
Decatur, Georgia.
[1] During her adolescence, Hilson studied piano and singing,
and she joined the girl group D'Signe when she was 14.
[2] She became a songwriter and backing vocalist while in high school, and she attended
Emory University, where she majored in
theater.
[3]
2001–2007: Songwriting and backing vocals
Hilson began songwriting in 2001 and would go on to write tracks for
Britney Spears,
Ciara,
Usher and
Ludacris.
In 2004, she was featured on
Xzibit's single, "
Hey Now (Mean Muggin)".
[4] In 2006, Hilson signed as an artist with
Timbaland's label,
Mosley Music Group and appeared on a track on
Diddy's
Press Play
. Hilson was also featured on "
Help", the second single from
Lloyd Banks'
Rotten Apple
; the single peaked at number 77 on the
Billboard
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
[5]
While Hilson was working with
Polow da Don in a studio, he asked her "What producer do you think could take you where you want to go as an artist?" She replied with
Timbaland, who was in search of a
black female solo
R&B artist. After singing for Timbaland over the phone, they began recording at
The Hit Factory the following weekend.
[6] [7] In 2007, Hilson made several appearances on Timbaland's solo effort
Shock Value
, including on the singles "
The Way I Are" and "
Scream". "The Way I Are" reached number three on the
Billboard
Hot 100 chart in the U.S.
[8] She performs the song along with Timbaland and
OneRepublic on the
soap opera One Life to Live
in October 2007.
[9] Furthermore, she was featured on the track "Lost Girls" on Zone 4-labelmate
Rich Boy's debut album and its second single "Good Things" and was credited as a writer and
backing vocalist on
Britney Spears's album
Blackout
.
Hilson also played the lead role in
Usher's music video for "
Love in This Club", (as well as co-writing its "Pt. II" remix) appeared as one of the "independent women" in
Ne-Yo's music video for "
Miss Independent".
[10] Later in the year, Hilson performed on
Nas' debut single "
Hero" from his controversial
untitled album; it reached number 97 on the Hot 100 and number 82 on the R&B/Hip-Hop charts.
2008–present: In a Perfect World...
After many pushbacks, Hilson's debut solo album
In a Perfect World...
was released on March 24, 2009.
[11] In A Perfect World...
debuted at number 4 on the
Billboard
200 and number 1 on the
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.
[12]
The midtempo ballad "
Energy" eventually became her first world single and was released as a digital download on May 27, 2008. The video premiered on July 14, 2008. It charted at number 78 on the
Billboard Top 100, number 21 and 72 on
R&B 100 and
Pop 100 respectively. The single performed best in
New Zealand where it charted at number 2 but failed to significantly chart elsewhere. The song is being released on CD on September 14, 2009 as the third UK single.
[13]
"
Return the Favor" was released officially as the second US single on October 7, 2008. The video premiered soon afterward on October 23, 2008 but failed to chart. In the UK, Europe and Australia the single was released from April 10, 2009. "Return the Favour" became a Top 20 hit in the UK, German and Irish Singles charts and a Top 10 hit in the UK R&B Singles Chart.
thumb in
Vancouver in January 2009.
"
Turnin' Me On" (featuring
Lil Wayne) was released as the third North American single (second in New Zealand) on November 25, 2008.
[14] The single peaked at number 15 on the
Billboard
Hot 100, number 2 and 28 on
R&B 100 and
Pop 100 respectively. It was also the first single to chart in
Canada, although it only reached number 80.
"
Knock You Down" (featuring
Kanye West and
Ne-Yo) is the 4th US single from the album as confirmed by Hilson on her . The video premiered on March 23, 2009 on
Ne-Yo's official YouTube channel. The single has been Hilson's most successful solo offering to date as it reached number 3 on the
Billboard
Hot 100 and 1 on
R&B/Hip-Hop 100. On 18th May 2009, "Knock You Down" became Hilson's first number one single in the New Zealand Singles chart as lead vocalist and held onto the top spot for six consecutive weeks.
[15] Elsewhere, "Knock You Down" peaked at number 5 and number 2 on the UK Singles Chart and UK R&B Singles Chart respectively based on digital sales alone.
She also appeared on rapper
Asher Roth's debut album,
Asleep In the Bread Aisle
on the song "She Don't Wanna Man".
Recently Hilson recorded several performances for
Walmart's-
Soundcheck
promotion where she performed "Alienated", smash hits "Knock You Down" and "Turnin' Me On" as well as new US single "
Slow Dance" and new international single "Energy". The performances can be purchased as Walmart exclusive EP.
[16] Additionally, during an Hilson revealed she will be touring for a third time in 2009 as the opening act for the international leg of
Ne-Yo's
Year of the Gentleman Tour
.
Discography
- In a Perfect World...
(2009)
Awards
- BET Awards
- *2009, Best New Artist (Winner)
- *2009, Viewer's Choice: "Turnin Me On" w/ Lil Wayne (Nominated)
- *2009, Best Collaboration: "Turnin Me On" w/ Lil Wayne (Nominated)
- *2009, Best Female R&B Artist (Nominated)
- Urban Music Awards
- *2009, Best Album (Nominated)
- *2009, Best Female Act (Nominated)
- MOBO Awards
- *2009, Best International Act: (Nominated)
- *2009, Best R&B/Soul Act: (Nominated)
- MTV Video Music Awards
- *2007, Monster Single of the Year: "The Way I Are" w/ Timbaland (Nominated)
- Teen Choice Awards
- *2007, Choice Rap Single: "The Way I Are" w/ Timbaland (Winner)
References
- Keri Hilson - Biography
- Breaking: Keri Hilson
- There's two sides to every story and the R&B siren knows both of them
- Keri Hilson
- Lloyd Banks featuring Keri Hilson - Help
- Keri Hilson
- Timbaland Protege/ Justin Timberlake Collaborator Keri Hilson: You Need To Know Me
- Timbaland featuring Keri Hilson and D.O.E. - The Way I Are
- Todd Gets Custody! - One Life To Live Daily Updates
- Ne-Yo: "Miss Independent"
- Keri Hilson 'Grateful' For Debut LPs Many Delays
- Artist Chart History - Keri Hilson - Albums
- http://www.radio1.gr/music/forthcoming_uk_singles.htm
- Amazon MP3 - Turnin' Me On
- RIANZ
- Soundcheck - Keri Hilson