Keyshia Cole
Keyshia Myeshia Cole (née Johnson; born October 15, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, television personality, and actress. Born and raised in Oakland, California, she emerged in the mid-2000s as a prominent figure in contemporary R&B, known for her emotionally direct vocal style and autobiographical songwriting, with critics often dubbing her the "Princess of Hip-Hop Soul".
Cole began pursuing music professionally in the early 2000s after relocating to Los Angeles, working with Bay Area artists and producers before signing with A&M Records. Her debut studio album, The Way It Is (2005), marked her commercial breakthrough, debuting within the top 10 of the US Billboard 200 and receiving platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA); it spawned the hit song "Love". The album's success led to the creation of the BET reality television series Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is, which chronicled her personal life and career.
Her second album, Just like You (2007), yielded the pinnacle peak of Cole's career, debuting at number two on the Billboard 200 and selling over one million copies in the United States. Three of its singles peaked at number-one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart: "Let It Go" (featuring Lil' Kim and Missy Elliott), "I Remember", and "Heaven Sent". Four of Cole's subsequent albums—A Different Me (2008), Calling All Hearts (2010), Woman to Woman (2012), and Point of No Return (2014)—debuted within the Billboard 200's top 10.
Alongside her recording career, Cole has maintained a long-running presence in television. She starred in multiple BET reality series, including Keyshia & Daniel: Family First and Keyshia Cole: All In, and joined the main cast of Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood during its fourth season in 2017. That same year, she released her seventh studio album, 11:11 Reset, via Epic Records. In the 2020s, Cole expanded her activities to include hosting the Fox Soul–syndicated talk show One on One with Keyshia Cole, launching her independent imprint Hearts and Stars in partnership with BMG, competing on The Masked Singer, and executive-producing and starring in the Lifetime biographical film Keyshia Cole: This Is My Story (2023).
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