Donell Jones (born May 22, 1973) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is most notable for the

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

s "

U Know What's Up "U Know What's Up" is a song by American R&B singer Donell Jones. It was written by Edward "Eddie F." Ferrell, Darren Lighty, Clifton Lighty, Balewa Muhammad, Anthony Hamilton, Clifford Harris, and Veronica McKenzie for his second studio album, ...

", " Where I Wanna Be", and his

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

's "

Knocks Me Off My Feet "Knocks Me Off My Feet" is a song written and performed by American recording artist Stevie Wonder, from his 1976 album ''Songs in the Key of Life''. It was not released as a single, though it was released as a B-side to "I Ain't Gonna Stand for I ...

". Jones' first studio album '' My Heart'', was released in 1996, but he is best known for his late 1990s release of his second album '' Where I Wanna Be''.

Life and career

Jones is the son of Renee Byrd and gospel singer Roy Jones. He was raised in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

. He later met DJ Eddie F of

Heavy D & the Boyz Dwight Arrington MyersCuda, Heidi Sigmund Keeping it reel. ''Vibe'' ("born Dwight Arrington Myers")Samuels, Anita M. (January 12' 1996)Heavy D, the C.E.O. ''New York Times'' (May 24, 1967 – November 8, 2011), known professionally as Heav ...

and signed with Untouchables and

LaFace Records LaFace Records was an American record label based in Atlanta, Georgia, that operated as a unit of Sony Music Entertainment from 2008 to 2011 and was historically a part of Bertelsmann Music Group from 1989 to 2004. It was most active and achie ...

, writing hits for Usher and

702 __NOTOC__ Year 702 ( DCCII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 702 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era b ...

1996–2007: Breakthrough with LaFace

In June 1996, Jones released his debut album, '' My Heart'', on

. While most of the album was produced by Jones himself, it also featured help from Eddie Ferrell's Untouchables Entertainment production team, involving Mookie, Marks Sparks, Kenny Tonge, and Darin Whittington. A moderate commercial success, it peaked at number 30 on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

''s

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated J ...

chart, but failed to reach the upper half of the US ''Billboard'' 200. Its first two singles, "In the Hood" and a cover of

's 1976 ballad "

", became top thirty hits on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart as well as the

New Zealand Singles Chart The Official New Zealand Music Chart ( mi, Te Papa Tātai Waiata Matua o Aotearoa) is the weekly New Zealand top 40 singles and albums charts, issued weekly by Recorded Music NZ (formerly Recording Industry Association of New Zealand). The Music ...

. In 1999, Jones enjoyed major success with the release of his second album, '' Where I Wanna Be''. Boosted by its hit single "

", which peaked at number seven on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. "U Know What's Up" was a global hit, peaking within the top ten of the charts in Belgium (Flanders), the Republic of Ireland, and the United Kingdom. In the latter country, "U Know What's Up" entered and peaked at number two on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, where it remained for two consecutive weeks behind " The Masses Against the Classes" by

Manic Street Preachers Manic Street Preachers, also known simply as the Manics, are a Welsh Rock music, rock band formed in Blackwood, Caerphilly, Blackwood in 1986. The band consists of cousins James Dean Bradfield (lead vocals, lead guitar) and Sean Moore (musician ...

and "

Born to Make You Happy "Born to Make You Happy" is a song by American singer Britney Spears from her debut studio album, '' ...Baby One More Time'' (1999). It was released on December 6, 1999, by Jive Records, as the fourth single from the album in Europe. Spears—wh ...

" by

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

. "Where I Wanna Be" peaked at number six on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums in the United States. The album produced three further singles, including "Shorty (Got Her Eyes On Me)" and " Where I Wanna Be," the latter of which reached number two on ''Billboard''s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and was eventually certified platinum by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA) for sales in excess of 1.0 million copies. In 2000, Jones recorded the song " I'll Go" for the

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

of the romantic drama film ''

Love & Basketball ''Love & Basketball'' is a 2000 American romantic sports drama film written and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood in her feature film directorial debut. The film is produced by Spike Lee and Sam Kit and stars Sanaa Lathan and Omar Epps. It tells ...

'', which earned him a

Black Reel Award The Black Reel Awards, or BRAs, is an annual American awards ceremony hosted by the Foundation for the Augmentation of African-Americans in Film (FAAAF) to recognize excellence of African Americans, as well as the cinematic achievements of the Afr ...

nomination for Best Original or Adapted Song. The same year, he was also awarded an

American Music Award The American Music Awards (AMAs) is an annual American music awards show, generally held in the fall, created by Dick Clark in 1973 for ABC when the network's contract to air the Grammy Awards expired, and currently produced by Dick Clark Produc ...

in the Favorite Soul/R&B New Artist category. Jones reteamed with his regular team of contributors, including

Eddie F Edward "DJ Eddie F" Ferrell (born March 25, 1968) is an American producer, DJ, songwriter, executive and entrepreneur. He is co-founder and partner of the rap group Heavy D & the Boyz. He is also mostly known for his various work and projects ser ...

, Sheldon Goode, Jamie Hawkins, G-Wise, Kyle West, and

Darren Lighty Darren Lighty (born April 6, 1969 in Paterson, New Jersey) is an American hip-hop and R&B record producer and songwriter. Lighty got his initial start in the industry as part of the group The Flex, which also included his brother Cliff Lighty ...

to work on his third album '' Life Goes On''. Released in June 2002, it debuted number 3 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and at number three on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, becoming his highest-charting effort yet. A steady seller it earned gold status from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Its three singles were less successful however, though lead single " You Know That I Love You" became a top twenty hit on the R&B charts. Jones' fourth album, '' Journey of a Gemini'' was released in 2006 and marked his first album to include a diverse roster of collaborators including production credits from

Tim & Bob Tim & Bob (Tim Kelley and Bob Robinson), also known as Funktwons, were a songwriting and production duo. Tim & Bob have discovered and or worked on some of the biggest artists in the music industry and has helped develop the Atlanta music scene ...

Sean Garrett Garrett Robin Hamler, known professionally as Sean Garrett, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is responsible for a series of chart-topping compositions, most notably Usher's " Yeah!" which ranks second on the ''Billboa ...

Ryan Leslie Anthony Ryan Leslie (born September 25, 1978) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and entrepreneur from Washington, D.C. He has produced singles for a number of prominent artists in a variety of genres, ranging from R&B, hip hop ...

Tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engin ...

Mike City Mike City (born Michael Flowers) is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for producing the singles "I Wish" for Carl Thomas, " Heard It All Before" for Sunshine Anderson, "Full Moon" for Brandy and "One Woman M ...

, and The Underdogs. It became Jones' highest-charting album on the ''Billboard'' Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, where it topped at number one, while entering the top 20 on the ''Billboard'' 200.

2009–present: Independent releases

In 2009, Jones released '' The Lost Files'', a collection of unreleased songs that were recorded between 1996 and 2004, through his own label Candyman Music Inc and

TuneCore TuneCore is a Brooklyn, New York–based independent digital music distribution, publishing and licensing service founded in 2005. TuneCore principally offers musicians and other rights-holders the opportunity to distribute and sell or stream the ...

. Serving as prelude to his next studio album, ''The Lost Files'' failed to chart. ''

Lyrics Lyrics are words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist. The words to an extended musical composition such as an opera are, however, usually known as a "libretto" and their writer, a ...

'', Jones' fifth regular album, was released in September 2010 via Candyman and

eOne Music MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch", formerly known as Koch Records and eOne Music) is a New York City-based independent record label and music management company. It was formed in 2009 from the music assets of Koch Entertainment, which had b ...

. Chiefly produced by Jones' himself, it debuted and peaked at number 28 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and at number nine on the

chart, becoming his fourth entry on the latter chart. ''Lyrics'' produced two singles, including " Love Like This" which reached the top five of ''Billboard''s

Adult R&B Songs The Adult R&B Songs chart (formerly called Adult R&B Airplay) is an airplay chart that is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The chart tracks and measures the airplay of songs played on urban adult contemporary radio stations, whose playl ...

chart. Jones' sixth album ''

Forever Forever or 4ever may refer to: Film and television Films * ''Forever'' (1921 film), an American silent film by George Fitzmaurice * ''Forever'' (1978 film), an American made-for-television romantic drama * ''Forever'' (1992 film), an American ...

'' was released in July 2013. Another project conceived under Candyman and eOne Music, it debuted and peaked at number 20 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and reached number eight on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The album spawned two singles. Its title track which peaked at number 14 on ''Billboard''s Adult R&B Songs chart. In 2016, Jones premiered the single "Never Let Her Go", a collaboration with rapper

David Banner Lavell William Crump (born April 11, 1974), better known by his stage name David Banner, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Born in Brookhaven, Mississippi, Banner's family moved to Jackson, Mississippi, where he was raised. Ban ...

. In support of the single, he went on a promo tour during spring 2017. In 2018, Jones provided vocals, produced, and co-wrote on "23" by

Jacquees Rodriquez Jacquees Broadnax (born April 15, 1994), better known as Jacquees (pronounced jah-kwees), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper from Decatur, Georgia. In 2015, he signed a recording and management contract with Cash Money Reco ...

off the album ''

4275 ''4275'' is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Jacquees. It was released on June 15, 2018, by Cash Money Records. It features guest appearances from Birdman, Trey Songz, Chris Brown, Dej Loaf and Young Thug, among others. ...

'' (2018). In 2019, Jones collaborated with Jon B. on the duet "Understand". He also announced plans for an upcoming album to release in 2019 during an appearance on the SoulBack R&B Podcast. The project, called ''100% Free'', was expected to be released in December 2020, but eventually came out on digital services (and for free on his official website) on February 14, 2021.

Discography

;Studio albums * '' My Heart'' (1996) * '' Where I Wanna Be'' (1999) * '' Life Goes On'' (2002) * '' Journey of a Gemini'' (2006) * ''

'' (2010) * ''

'' (2013) *''100% Free'' (2021)

References

External links

Donell Jones Music Videos
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Donell 1973 births LaFace Records artists Living people 20th-century African-American male singers Record producers from Illinois American contemporary R&B singers Singers from Chicago Guitarists from Chicago American male guitarists 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers 21st-century American singers 21st-century American guitarists 21st-century American male singers African-American songwriters African-American guitarists 21st-century African-American male singers