Where Are They Now: Jon B

Jon B, born Jonathan David Buck, was born in Rhode Island, but his family decided to move to California and raise him there. Jon B’s father was a music professor and his mother was a pianist. His two siblings also played instruments as well. Jon B first started so sing at the age of four and was taught how to play both piano and keyboard; he was a pro at both by the age of nine. In 1992, Jon B had already started his career on his own. He had created his own demo and ended up becoming a songwriter for Yab-Yum records, a recoding label that was ran by Babyface’s wife. Jon B wrote songs for artists such as Michael Jackson and Toni Braxton.

On May 23, 1995, Jon B released his first album Bonafide; it was a hit with ten hits and was nominated for a Grammy. When Jon B released his second album Cool Relax in September of 1997, it gave Jon B even more exposure. Known as one of the best R&B albums, it went platinum. Cool Relax also had his most known song “They Don’t Know”. Since then, Jon B has recorded multiple albums. Pleasures You Like was released in 2001, but did poorly in sales due to its promotion. It did not stop Jon B – in 2004 he released Stronger Everyday, which was also an amazing album with singles featuring mainstream artists such as Beenie Man, Tank, and Scarface, but also did poorly in sales due to promotion.

Jon B just released his sixth album on February 14, 2012 named Comfortable Swag off of his independent record label. In 2006, he was also featured in a song called “Solider Never Dies” with rapper Invincible. His songs were also featured in a TV series on Showtime and he has released a few songs off of his album on iTunes.

By Nyla Wissa