Jeremih vs. R. Kelly
versus
tue 8/25/2009
| name | Jeremih Felton. | Robert Sylvester Kelly. |
| hometown | Chicago, Illinois. | Chicago, Illinois. |
| birthdate | July 17, 1987. | January 8, 1967. |
| style | R&B and pop. | R&B, soul and hip hop. |
| also known as | Mih. | Kells. |
| early start | Born into a family of musicians. Taught himself to play the drums, piano and saxophone. | Started singing in church at age eight. In his teens, he formed the groups MGM and Public Announcement. |
| championed by | LA Reid and Def Jam. | Clive Davis and Jive Records. |
| signature look | Sunglasses, V-neck shirt and leather jacket. | Sunglasses, cornrows and lots of jewelry. |
| smash debut single | Birthday Sex (2009). | Bump N' Grind (1994). |
| baby-making music | That Body. | Your Body's Callin'. |
| killer collab | My Time with Fabolous. | Same Girl with Usher. |
| controversy | Sparked protests in Chicago for his role in a back to school campaign. | Sued Jay-Z and acquitted of pedophilia. |
| most recent release | Self-titled debut. | Untitled is scheduled for release at the end of the year. |
| the critics | The Examiner: "Jeremih… deserves more than being a recycled Rhythm & Blues act. The music industry already has its' own Akon, Justin Timberlake and Avant." | Allmusic: "While he created a smooth, professional mixture of hip-hop beats, soul-man crooning, and funk, the most distinctive element of Kelly's music is its explicit carnality." |
| in their own words | "I wanna appeal to the masses, not just be boxed in as the R&B cat. I make good R&B music because, growin’ up, that’s what I listened to, just love songs. With this first song, 'Birthday Sex,' it’s been a privilege… even my 75-year-old granddad bumps with it." - Jeremih | "People can say whatever they want about you without knowing the facts. They can criticize you without even knowing you, and hate you when they don't even know you. All of a sudden, you're, like, the Bin Laden of America." - R. Kelly. |
| webprops | 124,694 friends on official MySpace. | 229,711 friends on official MySpace. |
| best video moment | Fighting the recession in Imma Star. | Reminiscing about the past in If I Could Turn Back The Hands Of Time. |
Jeremih "Birthday Sex"
best video moment
fri 7/31/2009
Artist: Jeremih
Song: "Birthday Sex"
Album: Jeremih
Director: Paul Hunter
What to watch for: Jeremih seduces the camera with his eyes before surprising his blindfolded boo with a tasty treat: strawberries and cream.
Watch this video now on One Nation, 18 and Over, The mun2 Shuffle and video mixes L'Creme and Unwind.
Jeremih
as seen on myspace
thu 6/18/2009
Do high school band geeks ever make it in the music industry? Jeremih is about to.
Birthday Sex, a smoldering slow jam by R&B singer Jeremih (pronounced Jer-em-eye), became a surprise hit earlier this year, getting national radio play, over 60 million plays on MySpace and, most recently, a spot on iTunes' Top 100 singles. "I had no clue that it would ever get this big," admits Jeremih, who attributes the song's success to the simple fact that "it's someone's birthday every day." (It probably helped that he didn't go with the original title: "Birthday Text.)
The 21-year old has been compared to The-Dream as well as fellow Windy City native R. Kelly for both his vocal style and raunchy storylines. With lyrics like "1-2-3, I think I've got you pinned/don't tap out/fight until the end," Jeremih shows he's got Kells' knack for wrapping up borderline cheesy lines with a solid hook: "l don't need candles and cake/just need your body to make/birthday sex." A self-taught musician who has played drums, keyboards and saxophone since his days at Morgan Park High School, Jeremih is grateful for his stroke of good luck. But the self-described rapper-turned singer says there's more to him than one catchy song: "I'd hate for people to think… you're gonna hear twelve 'Birthday Sexes' on my album."
Jeremih's self-titled debut is scheduled for release at the end of this month.
See: myspace.com/jeremih
touch my body
daily dos
mon 6/1/2009
Jeremih doesn't need "candles and cake, just a body" in a new video, "Birthday Sex."
"RiCkY" Says:
