Neo-Soul Music Stars

Jill Scott
Birthname: Jill Heather Scott
Origin: North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Association(s): The Roots (She co-wrote and performed on their song 'You Got Me')
Notable Tracks: 'A Long Walk,' 'He Loves Me (Lyzel in E Flat),' 'Golden,' and 'Hate On Me.' NBA legend Michael Jordan helped finance Hidden Beach Recordings, who released her debut opus, 'Words & Thoughts: Vol. 1'
Factoid: The three-time Grammy Award winner's first theatrical film role was as music pioneer Big Mama Thornton in the controversial film, 'Hounddog.'

Neo-Soul Music Stars

Ledisi
Birthname: Ledisi Anibade Young
Origin: New Orleans, Louisiana
Association(s): Oran 'Juice' Jones (Ledisi joined the Def Jam Records veteran for a cover ofhis hip-hop soul classic 'The Rain' on an all instrumental Def Jam tribute project.)
Notable Tracks: 'Kitchen,' 'Coffee,' 'Devotion,' 'Feeling Orange But Sometimes Blue,' 'In The Morning.'
Factoid: Ledisi made her feature film debut in the 2008 George Clooney movie 'Leatherheads,' where she appeared as a jazz club singer.

Neo-Soul Music Stars

Maxwell
Birthname: Maxwell Gerard Menard Rivera
Origin: Brooklyn, New York
Association(s): Leon Ware (The legendary Motown Records songwriter worked on Maxwell's debut album, 'Urban Hang Suite.')
Notable Tracks: 'Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder),' 'Fortunate,' 'Lifetime' and 'This Woman's Work.'
Factoid: Though a media darling, Maxwell has never won a Grammy Award despite being nominated five times for the coveted honor.

Neo-Soul Music Stars

Joi
Birthname: Joi Gilliam
Origin: Nashville, Tennessee
Association(s): D'Angelo (A fellow labelmate. A pregnant Joi appeared in the music video clip for D'Angelo's remix of 'Lady.')
Notable Tracks: 'Sunshine In The Rain,' 'Freedom,' 'Move On,' 'Ghetto Superstar,' and 'Missing You.'
Factoid: The eclectic music dynamo replaced ex- En Vogue singer Dawn Robinson as the female vocalist in the hit-making trio Lucy Pearl, which also included Raphael Saadiq and Ali Shaheed (from A Tribe Called Quest.)

Neo-Soul Music Stars

Raphael Saadiq
Birthname: Charlie Ray Wiggins
Origin: Oakland, California
Association(s): Tony! Toni! Tone! (Formed with his brother Dwayne Wiggins, and his cousin Timothy Christian, the trio enjoyed breakout success in the late 1980s with their brew of new-school R&B)
Notable Tracks: 'Ask of You,' 'Get Involved (with Q-Tip)' and 'Be Here' (with D'Angelo)
Factoid: One of the most sought-after R&B producers today, Saadiq has produced songs for John Legend, Mary J. Blige, Earth, Wind & Fire, Kelis, and Joss Stone, among others.

Neo-Soul Music Stars

D'Angelo
Birthname: Michael Eugene Archer
Origin: Richmond, Virginia
Association(s): Angie Stone (Not only is the neo-soul diva the mother of his oldest son, she also was his chief writing collaborator on his breakthrough debut opus, 'Brown Sugar.')
Notable Tracks: 'Brown Sugar,' 'Lady,' 'Cruisin,' 'Untitled (How Does It Feel?),' and 'Devil's Pie.'
Factoid: As a young songwriter, one of the first major projects he conceived was the song 'U Will Know,' performed by Black Men United a collective of urban music superstars of the time including Tevin Campbell, Keith Sweat, Al B Sure, Boyz II Men, Aaron Hall, LL Cool J and Usher, among others which was featured on the soundtrack to the 1994 movie 'Jason's Lyric.'

Neo-Soul Music Stars

Amel Larrieux
Birthname: Amel Larrieux
Origin: New York City, New York
Association(s): Groove Theory, Sweetback, The Roots
Notable Tracks: 'Tell Me,' 'Keep Tryin',' 'Baby Luv,' 'For Real,' 'Get Up'
Factoid: In the past Larrieux received a Grammy nomination alongside Glen Lewis in the Best R&B Performance category for their cover of Stanley Clarke's 'Where is the Love.'

Neo-Soul Music Stars

Amy Winehouse
Birthname: Amy Jade Winehouse
Origin: Enfield, Middlesex, England
Association(s): Salam Remi (The acclaimed producer of The Fugees and Nas joined Mark Ronson to produce Winehouse's critically-acclaimed sophomore opus, 'Back to Black.')
Notable Tracks: 'Valerie,' 'You Know I'm No Good,' 'Rehab,' and 'Love is a Losing Game.'
Factoid: Once signed to a deal, Winehouse hired New York soul singer Sharon Jones's longtime band, the Dap-Kings, to back her up in the studio and on tour, giving the group its first real taste of the limelight.

Neo-Soul Music Stars

Raheem DeVaughn
Birthname: Raheem DeVaughn
Origin: Beltsville ,Maryland
Association(s): DJ Jazzy Jeff, Kenny Burns (former Roc-A-Fella Records A&R)
Notable Tracks: 'Guess Who Loves You More,' 'You,' 'Woman,' 'Customer,' 'Marathon'
Factoid: Early on in his career the Grammy-award nominee toured with legendary entertainer Doug E. Fresh, in which he learned the art of being a stage performer.

Neo-Soul Music Stars

Angie Stone
Birthname: Angela Laverne Brown
Origin: Columbia, South Carolina
Association(s): The Sequence (She was a member of the very first female rap group to hit the charts.) Vertical Hold (She was the female vocalist for the 90s R&B trio.) Lenny Kravitz (She sang background on his album, '5.')
Notable Tracks: 'No More Rain (In This Cloud),' 'Everyday,' 'Brotha,' 'I Wanna Thank Ya' and 'Baby' (with Betty Wright).
Factoid: Angie Stone made her film debut in the movie 'The Fighting Temptations' and also starred in the Broadway musical, 'Chicago.'

Neo-Soul Music Stars