Yet Cole had an edge over her peers - a street edge.

Plus, she got the chance to collaborate with one of her inspirations, Eve, for a song on the Barbershop 2 soundtrack, “Never,” which was released as a single in early 2004.When Interscope/Geffen/A&M was ready to release The Way It Is in the spring of 2005, Cole found herself positioned alongside fellow young R&B women like Brandy, Monica, and Beyoncé. rapper Chink Santana, and veteran producer E-Poppi. And to work she went on her debut album, The Way It Is, co-writing a number of songs and working alongside a number of hitmakers: the trendiest talent in hip-hop at the time, Kanye West, collaborated with her on “I Changed My Mind,” the album’s lead single, and other big-name collaborators included 112 group member DaRon, Murder Inc. In Los Angeles she quickly impressed many with her golden soprano voice and thus made plenty of industry contacts, among them A&M Records president Ron Fair, who immediately signed her to a solo deal.

So when she discovered that her then-boyfriend had cheated on her, she immediately packed her bags and never looked back. Jones, also in 2001.įollowing Bay Area opportunities such as these, she began contemplating a leap for the big time: Los Angeles. In particular, she sang on Messy Marv’s “Nubian Queen” remix in 2001, and Tony! Toni! Toné! member Dwayne Wiggins featured her on his soundtrack to the film Me & Mrs. Her singing aspirations really began to take flight during the early 2000s, however. For instance, she did some recording with fellow Bay Area resident MC Hammer way back in the day, when she was only 12 or so. Born on the other side of the California Bay - the often tough and troubled streets of Oakland - Cole aspired from an early age to make music her life, so much so that she started working the angles while still a preteen. One of the more genuine R&B singer/songwriters to emerge in the 2000s, Keyshia Cole worked her way up the industry ladder diligently yet quickly, making her major-label debut in 2004 at age 21.

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