The singer who recently made headlines for cutting off all his facial hair, was spotted with the Neptunes head and the Philly DJ putting in work in the studio.

In addition to Doplo and Williams, Jim Jonsin, the creator of Lil Wayne's "Lollipop" was also seen working with Usher.

Check out a few pictures of the producers and Usher below.

No word on when he'll release a new album.

Usher, Pharrell, Diplo

Pharrell, Jim Jonsin, Usher

]]> http://hiphopwired.com/2011/11/07/pharrell-diplo-hit-the-studio-with-usher-photos/feed/ 0 http://hiphopwired.com/2011/10/17/usher-splits-his-pants-while-performing-for-bill-clinton-video/ http://hiphopwired.com/2011/10/17/usher-splits-his-pants-while-performing-for-bill-clinton-video/#comments Mon, 17 Oct 2011 15:27:07 +0000 Danielle Canada http://hiphopwired.com/?p=121722 Usher's Embarrassing Wardrobe Malfunction

CEO Peter Edge and COO Tom Corson told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview that they were shutting down Jive and Arista immediately, and focusing on the RCA brand. Well as they cleverly put it, "the artists are the brand."

Which is a good way of saying they're going to downsize and they have no clue how to continue to thrive in the business so they'd much rather keep the heavy hitters and get rid of the excess.

“The concept is that there is value in branding RCA and not having it confused or diluted by other labels,” Corson said.

Jive, which was the home to Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and A Tribe Called Quest was run by Barry Weiss for years, who is now over at Def Jam. Arista gave birth to Usher, Whitney Houston and the Bad Boy label at one point. Even the J Records roster is falling under RCA.

There was no full list of who is staying and who's going, but they were a bunch of employee cuts and of course some acts were let go. American Idol season 9 winner Lee DeWyze was one of those artists that got the axe.
Edge said,  "The big initiative here is to spend more money on artist development, making more records and making better records and less on all of the other stuff."

Do you believe?

Tinie Tempah Is Giving Away An iTunes Gift Card & More... Register Now!!!

CEO Peter Edge and COO Tom Corson told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview that they were shutting down Jive and Arista immediately, and focusing on the RCA brand. Well as they cleverly put it, "the artists are the brand."

Which is a good way of saying they're going to downsize and they have no clue how to continue to thrive in the business so they'd much rather keep the heavy hitters and get rid of the excess.

“The concept is that there is value in branding RCA and not having it confused or diluted by other labels,” Corson said.

Jive, which was the home to Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and A Tribe Called Quest was run by Barry Weiss for years, who is now over at Def Jam. Arista gave birth to Usher, Whitney Houston and the Bad Boy label at one point. Even the J Records roster is falling under RCA.

There was no full list of who is staying and who's going, but they were a bunch of employee cuts and of course some acts were let go. American Idol season 9 winner Lee DeWyze was one of those artists that got the axe.
Edge said,  "The big initiative here is to spend more money on artist development, making more records and making better records and less on all of the other stuff."

Do you believe?

Tinie Tempah Is Giving Away An iTunes Gift Card & More... Register Now!!!

Usher Raymond is the latest artist to get hit by the lawsuit bug.

According to Billboard Magazine, the superstar singer allegedly stole his platinum 2004 hit "Burn," off of Usher's multi-platinum Confessions album, from a songwriter named Ernest Lee Straughter.

Billboard states:

Last month, a California federal judge found there to be sufficient possibility that Usher and co-defendants who produced the song had access to Slaughter's work, "Reasons," created in 1998.

The judge accepted a musicologist's report that noted substantial similarity between the songs and denied a motion to dismiss the case on summary judgment. That means a jury might have the rare opportunity to listen to two songs and determine if the Usher song was stolen.

Straugther alleges he wrote the a song entitled "The Reasons Why," for the R&B group Reel Tight in late 1998, under the name "No More Pain."

After listening to that...c'mon, son. That song sounds nothing like Usher's "Burn."

Usher "Burn":

Attorneys for the defense of Usher, producer Jermaine Dupri, EMI April Music, Sony Music, Arista Records, and others filed a motion on Friday, asking U.S. District Court Judge Christina Snyder to reconsider her August order denying summary judgment.

Straughter needs to show that the defendants had access to his work and there is similarity in the songs.

Good luck with that, Straughter.

Everyone, including Judge Snyder knows Usher was singing that song about Chili. Or was he?

We'll see how this plays out.

R&B singer Toni Braxton was inducted in to the Georgia Music Hall of Fame, Friday (September 17) during 33^rd annual award show.

The Braxton sisters were scheduled to perform during Toni's induction but allegedly canceled only hours before the event.

Braxton is actually from Baltimore, Maryland but has been living in Georgia since the early ‘90s and said “I consider myself a peach,” before performing, “Georgia on My Mind.”

Also in attendance were singers Justin Bieber and Usher.

Their vocal coach Jan Smith was honored the 2011 Chairman's Award.

Actress Jasmine Guy also made an appearance at the event, singing a solo for famed Broadway director, Leon.

Peep the pics of the event below (courtesy of iluluonline):

We guess since 50 Cent got a piece of Chelsea Handler, Usher figured he has a shot too, and during his appearance this week on Chelsea Lately, the R&B star spent most of his interview flirting with the late night talk show host.

Usher was supposed to be promoting his Belvedere Red campaign, but that came secondary to smooth talking Chelsea.

Watch below:

Peep More New Videos Here

Usher Working With Kelly Rowland On U.K. X-Factor

Kelly Rowland is set to unite with one of her fellow R&B singers for the U.K. version of the X-Factor.

The singer, whose been named a judge on the Simon Cowell production, is reportedly collaborating with Usher to mentor finalists from the TV show.

In the coming weeks Rowland will fly out to Miami where she'll begin the “Judges' House stage – a time when the final eight acts compete for the final four places.

Usher will reportedly be on hand to interact with the talent and lend them tips.

A source tells Britain's The Sun that Usher's amped to be part of the program.

"Kelly has a lot of friends in high places but has asked Usher to be her wingman.  He loves the show as he's been on it a few times and gets on well with Simon Cowell and the top brass. Plus, he knows a thing or two about finding new talent as he was the man who discovered Justin Bieber. It's fair to say Bieber has done pretty well for himself since."

 

Rappers P Diddy, Nelly and Jay-Z, along with dance star David Guetta, have also been approached in case Usher says he can't make it.

Jay-Z has been named as the closing act at the iHeartRadio Music Festival, taking place on September 23-24 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Jigga will perform at the MGM Grand event with a star studded line up that includes, Nicki Minaj, Alicia Keys, Usher, Lady Gaga, Coldplay, Steven Tyler, Black Eyed Peas, Jennifer Lopez, Carrie Underwood, Kenny Chesney, Jane's Addition, John Mayer, David Guetta, Rascal Flatts, Bruno Mars, Kelly Clarkson, Sublime with Rome and Sting.

Hosted by Ryan Seacrest, iHeartRadio Music Festival, is a two-day music event created by Clear Channel Radio that will mark the biggest live concert festival in radio history.

Live audio and video streams of the iHeartRadio Music Festival will be available online, via mobile devices at www.iHeartRadio.com

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