B Howard
Brandon Howard, also known as B. Howard, is an American singer, record producer and songwriter.[1][2][3] His album Genesis was released in 2010.[3][4][5] Howard was credited as songwriter and producer on the song "I Ain't Gotta Tell You" from Ne-Yo's album In My Own Words, which topped the Billboard 200 chart in 2006.[6] Howard was also credited as a songwriter on "Can't Get Tired of Me" from the album Face Off, a collaborative album by Omarion and Bow Wow, which debuted at number 11 on the Billboard 200 in 2007.[7] In 2016, Howard's single, Don't Say You Love Me, hit number 11 on Billboard's Top Dance charts.[8]
B. Howard | |
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Howard in 2014 | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Brandon Howard |
Born | Los Angeles, California. U.S. |
Genres | |
Occupation(s) | Singer–songwriter, dancer, producer |
Instruments | Vocals, piano |
Years active | 2002–present |
Labels |
|
Associated acts | |
Website | bhowardofficial |
Early life
B. Howard was born Brandon Howard in Los Angeles.[1][9] He was raised between Los Angeles and Chicago.[1] Howard's mother, Miki Howard is also a successful singer-songwriter.[10] Joe Jackson, the patriarch of the Jackson family, was Miki's manager in the '80s.[1][9][11][12][13] His grandmother was Josephine Howard of The Caravans, the first group to have a gospel song played on secular radio.[14][15] B. Howard said he first considered working in finance. He was inspired by MTV videos of A-ha and Tears for Fears, instead choosing a career in music. He adopted the artist name "Sonik" and first worked with Gerald Levert in Cleveland, Ohio.[8]
Music career
Howard has been working as a record producer since 2003.[1] In the 2000s, Howard worked with multi-platinum producers Teddy Riley, Jordan "Infinity" Suecof, Mario Winans, Jerry "Wonda" (Du Plessis) & Wyclef Jean, Mateo "The Auracle" Laboriel, and Ciara. He also worked with composers and performing artists Lupe Fiasco, Emily King, Jason Derulo, Ne-Yo, Vanessa Hudgens, Miguel, Akon, Marques Houston, Stomy Bugsy, Chief Keef, Luke Christopher, Rich White Ladies, Daniel Skye, and Koda Kumi.[8] In an interview with Huffington Post, Howard explained the turning point in his career: "I was at Quad Studios in New York mixing a song for the LSG project, my first platinum," he mentioned casually of his work with Rufus Blaq and the Grammy Award-winning Prince Charles Alexander. "I met up with these guys who were working with Puff Daddy and Jennifer Lopez, and [hearing our song] they were like, 'Who did this?' Kanye West was in the room having a meeting. He said he was inspired and invited me to be in his photograph of all the hot producers and writers in New York."[8]
B. Howard embarked on a solo career in 2010 following the success of his single, "Dancefloor."[1] In 2010, B Howard emerged as an artist when he collaborated with Wyclef Jean and Jazmine Sullivan to revamp the song "Ke Nako" as a tribute to Nelson Mandela.[16]
Howard has produced songs for Wyclef Jean, Ne-Yo, Chris Brown, Ciara, Trey Songz, Omarion, Ginuwine, Marques Houston and others.[5][11][13][17] In 2010, Howard released his album Genesis in Japan through Universal Music International under the 6 Point Entertainment label.[1][3][4][5] The first single from Genesis, "Super Model" was released via iTunes on February 8, 2011.[18] The second single, "Dancefloor" made its US premiere on Wednesday, June 8 (2011) on iTunes and across all digital platforms.[19][20] Howard performed in Japan to support this release.[21] Howard's single "Dancefloor" featured contributions by James Poyser, Benjamin Wright and Questlove.[17] Howard is currently working on his upcoming American EP, Official.[4] His single "I Do It" was co-produced by Remo the Hitmaker and release in 2013.[4][22][23]
Songwriting and Production
Howard was the songwriter for Ginuwine's 2003 single "Love You More," which reached number 78 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 23 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.[24][25][26][27] In 2003, he also co-wrote "Good Luck" from the album MH by Marques Houston. In 2004, Howard was a songwriter of "Ya Kiss" on Kevin Lyttle’s eponymous debut album. "Ya Kiss" entered the Billboard 200 at number 8. Howard produced "Cover Girl" And "Taste of Dis" on Brooke Valentine’s 2005 album Chain Letter. Later that year, Howard served as the songwriter and producer for "Marriage" and "Cheat" on Marques Houston’s album Naked.[24][25]
In 2006, Howard was a songwriter and producer for Ne-Yo’s "I Ain’t Gotta Tell You" from the album In My Own Words which topped the Billboard 200.[24][25] He also was the songwriter and producer for the songs "Kick Push II" and "What It Do" for Lupe Fiasco's Food and Liquor, which debuted at number 8 on the Billboard 200 in 2006.[24][25][28] Howard worked on vocal arrangement for Emily King's "Never be Lonely" from East Side Story released in 2006.[24][25] Omarion and Bow Wow released a collaborative album, Face Off, in 2007 which debuted at number 11 on the Billboard 200 and included Howard as a songwriter for the song "Can’t Get Tired of Me."[24] Howard worked with Marques Houston again in 2007 as producer for the song "Favorite Girl" on Houston's album Veteran. Vanessa Hudgens released the album Identified in 2008 which included the song "Gone With The Wind," which Howard co-wrote.[24][25] In 2011, Howard was a vocalist, producer and songwriter for Koda Kumi's song "Passing By" on the album Dejavu. La Toya Jackson released single "Feels Like Love" in 2014 with Howard as producer.[25] In 2015, Howard released his debut North American album, "Nothing To Prove".[29] Howard's single, Don't Say You Love Me, hit number 11 on Billboard's Top Dance charts in January 2016.[30] In 2018, Howard joined China's virtual star festival in Beijing.[31]
Michael Jackson comparisons
Howard's similarities to the late pop icon Michael Jackson have been a source of speculation, and in 2014 FilmOn.com[32] claimed to have evidence that proved paternity. However, Howard released his own video via Facebook saying that he:
- "did not put out a story"
- "has never self-proclaimed to be Michael Jackson’s son"
- "makes his own cash"
- "is not suing the Michael Jackson estate" and
- "had a DNA test which had nothing to do with 'the media craze.'"
The tests have subsequently proven to be inconclusive.[33] In March 2014, singer Akon gave an interview with Larry King in which he, as a recording artist who has worked with both Howard and Jackson, claimed to believe Howard was Michael Jackson's son.[34] In January 2018, Howard Portrayed Michael Jackson in the Lifetime Biopic A Tale of Two Coreys.[35]
Discography
Production and songwriting
Song Title | Artist | Album | Release Date | Credit |
---|---|---|---|---|
"Pass me by" | Dru Hill | Dru World Order | 2002 | Producer |
"Good Luck" | Marques Houston | MH | 2003 | Songwriter |
"Love You More" | Ginuwine | Single | 2003 | Songwriter |
"Wide Open" | LSG | LSG2 | 2003 | Producer |
"Lesson Learned" | LSG | LSG2 | 2003 | Producer |
"Ya Kiss" | Kevin Lyttle | Kevin Lyttle | 2004 | Songwriter |
"Taste of Dis" | Brooke Valentine | Chain Letter | 2005 | Writer and Arrangement |
"Marriage" | Marques Houston | Naked | 2005 | Producer |
"Covergirl" | Brooke Valentine | Chain Letter | 2005 | Producer |
"Cheat" | Marques Houston | Naked | 2005 | Songwriter and producer |
"What it Do" | Lupe Fiasco | Food & Liquor | 2006 | Songwriter and producer |
Real Lyfe | "Say Boo" | Young Lyfe | 2006 | Songwriter and producer |
"Kick Push II" | Lupe Fiasco | Food and Liquor | 2006 | Songwriter and producer |
"I Ain't Gotta Tell Ya" | Ne-Yo | In My Own Words | 2006 | Songwriter and producer |
"Enough" | Howard Hewett | If Only | 2007 | Composer |
"Favorite Girl" | Marques Houston | Veteran | 2007 | Producer, Songwriter and Instruments |
"You Should've Been Told Me" | Tichina Arnold | Soul Free | 2007 | Songwriter and Vocal Arranger |
"Never Be Lonely" | Emily King | East Story | 2007 | Songwriter and Vocal Arranger |
"Can't Get Tired of Me" | Bow Wow | Face Off | 2007 | Songwriter |
"Gone With the Wind" | Vanessa Hudgens | Identified | 2008 | Songwriter |
"Bedroom" | Donnie Klang | Just a Rolling Stone | 2008 | Writer |
"Dr. Love" | Donnie Klang | Just a Rolling Stone | 2008 | Co-writer |
"Portrait of Love" | Cheri Denis | In and Out of Love | 2008 | Songwriter |
"Tonight" | Marques Houston | Mr. Houston | 2009 | Songwriter |
"Now that I'm here" | Jackie Boys | Love and Beyond | 2009 | Songwriter and producer |
"Truth" | W-inds | Single | 2009 | Songwriter and producer |
"Let it Go" | Double | Single | 2009 | Songwriter |
"Ke Nako" | Various | Listen Up! The Official 2010 Fifa World Cup Album | 2010 | Producer |
"Back to life" | Olivia Ong | Romance | 2011 | Co-Producer |
"Eventually" | Double | Woman | 2011 | Producer |
"Passing By" | Koda Kumi | Dejavu | 2011 | Songwriter and producer |
"Demon" | Jay Park | Single | 2011 | Songwriter[24][25] |
"Fly" | 2Face Idiba | The Unstoppable | 2011 | Songwriter and producer |
"One Night" | Keita Tachibana | Slide 'n' Step | 2013 | Producer |
"Searching" | Keita Tachibana | Slide 'n' Step | 2013 | Producer |
"Pretty Girl" | Keita Tachibana | Slide 'n' Step | 2013 | Producer |
"Feels Like Love" | Latoya Jackson | Single | 2014 | Producer |
"Ain't Missing you" | Chief Keef | Ain't Missing you – Single | 2015 | Producer |
"Champagne" | Charisse Mills ft. French Montana | Single | 2015 | Songwriter |
"Blown Away" | Joe EL | Timeless | 2015 | Songwriter & ft. Artist |
"DSLYM" | self | Nothing to Prove | 2015 | Songwriter & Artist |
"Necessito Tú Amor" | Fabio Legarda ft. B. Howard | Single | 2017 | Songwriter & Artist |
"You and Me" | Alex To | Single | 2017 | Songwriter & Producer |
"Crazy" | Bibi Zhou | Single | 2017 | Songwriter |
Artist
Genesis (released 2010)
Guest vocalist
Song Title | Main Artist | Album | Release Date |
---|---|---|---|
"Let it Go" | Double | Single | 2009 |
"Ke Nako"[38] | Various | Listen Up! The Official 2010 Fifa World Cup Album | 2010 |
"Demon" | Jay Park | Single | 2011 |
"Passing By"[39] | Koda Kumi | Dejavu | 2011 |
"In Love" | Patrick Toussaint | Single | 2014 |
"I'm Fly"[40] | Stomy Bugsy | Single | 2015 |
"Necesito tu Armor" | Fabio Legarda | Single | 2017 |
"You and Me" | Alex To | Single | 2017 |
Singles
Title | Release Date | Album | Billboard rank |
---|---|---|---|
"Super Model" | 2011 | Genesis | – |
"Dancefloor" | 2011 | Genesis | – |
"I Do It" | 2013 | Single | – |
"DSYLM", "Don't Say You Love Me" | 2015 | Nothing to Prove | No. 11 |
"Necesito tu Amor – Version Trap" | 2017 | Single | No. 3, Latin charts |
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
"A Tale Of Two Coreys" | 2018 | Michael Jackson | TV Movie |
References
- "International Sensation B. Howard Releases 'Dancefloor' Single & Video". Top40 Charts. August 6, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
- Aaron Robinson (December 14, 2012). "Child of Industry". Consciousness Magazine.
- "B. Howard / Bio". ReverbNation. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
- "B. Howard Releases New Single, "I Do It"". The Source. November 14, 2013. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Artist Bio". B.Howard. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Billboard 200". billboard. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- Katie Hasty (December 19, 2007). "Groban Remains No. 1, Becomes '07's Best-Seller". Billboard. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Don't Say Michael Jackson. "Don't Say You Love Me" is B. Howard's Hit". Huffington Post. Retrieved December 23, 2015.
- Nadine DeNinno (March 7, 2014). "Who Is Miki Howard And Is She The Mother Of Michael Jackson's Alleged Love Child, Brandon Howard?". International Business Times. Retrieved February 3, 2015.
- "Fred discusses Clay Aiken, Miki Howard and more". Billboard.com. Retrieved March 11, 2014.
- Jeff Timmons (October 13, 2014). "Interview with B. Howard". The Celebrity Cafe. Archived from the original on February 4, 2015. Retrieved February 3, 2015.
- Yolanda Sangweni (March 14, 2014). "Exclusive: Miki Howard Denies Having a Son with Michael Jackson, Says 'I Am Brandon Howard's Father'". Essence. Retrieved February 3, 2015.
- "Interview: Jackson Family Protege B. Howard "Here I Am. Listen With Your Heart, Not Your Eyes"". You Know I Got Soul. September 2, 2011. Retrieved February 3, 2015.
- Anthony, Heilbut (1997). The Gospel Sound: Good News and Bad Times. Limelight Editions. ISBN 0-87910-034-6.
- "Black Gospel Blog". Archived from the original on March 11, 2014. Retrieved March 9, 2014.
- Martin Myers (June 29, 2010). "It's time for Ke Nako as jpre collaborates with international superstars". Martin Myers. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Sound Check: B. Howard – Taking It to the Dance Floor". Soul Train. August 12, 2011. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Super Model (U.S. Single) – Single". iTunes. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "International Sensation B. Howard with 'Dancefloor'". The Sop. June 11, 2011. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Dancefloor – Single". iTunes. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "MTV Live Wire – B.Howard". MTV. October 14, 2010. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "B. Howard Official, B. Howard I Do It". Soundcloud. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Interview with King Empire Entertainment's B. Howard". Shift Magazine. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
- "Brandon Howard". Discogs. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Brandon Howard". AllMusic. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "The Hot 100 Week of December 13, 2003". billboard. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". billboard. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- Brooke Foster; Paul Friswold; Roy Kasten; Dan LeRoy; Andrea Noble; Randall Roberts; Christian Schaeffer; Annie Zaleski (December 27, 2006). "2006: The Year in Music". Riverfront Times. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "B. Howard's Ottawa Connection". The Epoch Times. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
- "B.Howard Exclusive Interview". One West Magazine. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
- "Brandon Howard, a member of the Mike family, appeared on the scene of China's virtual star festivals". Time China (Huan Qui). Retrieved January 21, 2018.
- "Cleveland Native Michael Jackson's Son? TMZ Calls DNA Results 'Bogus'". Fox8.com. Retrieved March 9, 2014.
- "Cleveland Native Michael Jackson's Son? TMZ Calls DNA Results 'Bogus'".
- "Akon Tells Larry King Brandon Howard Is Michael Jackson's Son, Interview This Week". TheGlobalDispatch.com. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
- "'A Tale of Two Coreys': Corey Haim and Corey Feldman Are Getting a Lifetime Biopic". SlashFilm.com. Retrieved October 11, 2017.
- "Genesis". Last.fm. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Genesis (U.S.)". iTunes. Archived from the original on August 17, 2014. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Various – Listen Up: The Official 2010 Fifa World Cup Album". Discogs. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- "Koda Kumi* – Dejavu". Discogs. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
- Louis Ritot (February 17, 2015). "Stomy Bugsy Duet with the Alleged Son of Michael Jackson" (in French). Closer Magazine. Retrieved February 23, 2015.