Untitled Document

Famous as:
R&B singer
Birth Name:
Keyshia Cole
Birth Date:
October 15, 1981
Birth Place:
Oakland, California, USA

Having a hard childhood is not an excuse for Keyshia Cole to become somber and ignore her talent. Coming out of the shell, the singer manages to get the title being the first female artist on Nielson BDS-based urban chart to have three consecutive #1 singles in the history of the 14-year old chart. All thanks to her debut album 'The Way It Is' and the recently released sophomore album 'Just Like You'. The latter was dropped on September 25, 2007, and was poised to have a successful number of sale after the first single 'Let It Go' feat. Missy Elliott and Lil' Kim charted so well in Billboard Hot 100. Back in July 2007, the single might enter the chart at #74 but it slowly gained recognition before finally peaking at #7 in September. It was even heavily requested on radio outlets like Z100 that DJs started rotating the song again two months after its release.

Cole was born on October 15, 1981 but she hardly tasted the love of her biological parents for she was then adopted by Yvonne Cole at the age of five. Her love of singing has started since childhood, especially with the influence coming

from his brother Sean Cole who was said to be very close friends to the late Tupac Shakur. At the age of 12 she even convinced MC Hammer to give her an experience of recording for the first time. Four years later, the passion still hadn't burnt off. Instead, it was fueled by the painful fact that she discovered about her boyfriend. After she caught him cheating with another girl, the 16-year-old took her car, left Bay Area where she was raised to seek a better future in Los Angeles.

It wasn't long until her charisma reached the ear of A&M Records executive Ron Fair who then introduced her to Jimmy Iovine. She was then signed to the label in December 2002 and started working on a debut album. Her story wasn't always sweet as it sounded. In the first attempt to launch her career, the first single from her album called 'I Changed My Mind' didn't receive the kind of success that she had expected. Even her second single '(I Just Want It) to Be Over' that was released in April 2005, was not enough to lift up her name. The album was then re-worked before finally put on

shelves in June 2005. It was apparently a wise decision because from then on, her singles continuously gained high chart positions, started with 'I Should Have Cheated' that peaked at #4 in Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart and followed by her most successful single at that time 'Love'. The latter song was the piece that she used as an ammo to win Iovine's heart before she was signed. She claimed to always knew that it would someday be the song that will bring her the kind of success she pictured.

'The Way It Is' went gold within 17 weeks and reached platinum status 8 weeks later. With such reputation, Keyshia Cole was no longer considered a newcomer. Many offers poured down the line including a reality show with BET called 'Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is'. The six-episode series proved to be high rated that executives decided to shoot the second season of the show, focusing on Cole's recording sessions for second album and her mother being released from jail. MTV also offered her a slot to make an appearance in their movie 'How She Moves' as herself. All the while, she kept her mind straight in music path. A second

album 'Just Like You' was released on September 25, 2007. She earned a supporting act slot in R. Kelly's 'Double Up' tour to promote this album but the best is yet to come. In December 2007 when the 50th Grammy nominations were announced, Cole was told that she snatched not only one but two at a time. She was on for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for 'Let It Go' and Best Contemporary R&B Album for 'Just Like You