b. Jaheim Hoagland, 26 May 1978, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA. This urban R&B singer’s 2001 debut tapped into the stateside success of neo-soul artists such as Joe and Carl Thomas. Raised in the projects of New Brunswick, Hoagland escaped the tribulations of his upbringing owing to his faith in music and a vocal ability, which was already in evidence in his early teenage years. His demo tape was heard by producer Kay Gee (of Naughty By Nature), and led to a joint contract with Gee’s new Divine Mill label and Warner Brothers Records. Gee oversaw the production of Jaheim’s debut album, which featured material composed predominantly by Jaheim and BLACKstreet’s Eric Williams. Crossing the boundaries between classic soul and hip-hop, Jaheim’s fluid baritone and street swagger earned widespread praise from followers of both old and new school R&B. His debut single, ‘Could It Be’, was a national US radio hit during summer 2000, paving the way for the Top 10 and double platinum success of Ghetto Love.
The follow-ups Still Ghetto (2002) and Ghetto Classics (2006) were solid collections that did not stray too far from the artist’s proven formula. The former generated the superb Top 20 hit ‘Fabulous’ while the latter provided Jaheim with his first mainstream US chart-topping album. The 2007 release The Makings Of A Man was the singer’s first for new label, Atlantic Records.
