Gearing up to release his long-delayed eighth album, Usher has been honored with a star on Hollywood Walk of Fame.
- Sep 12, 2016
AceShowbiz - Usher Raymond IV, or best known simply as Usher, has returned to quench fans' thirst for new music from him, since he released his seventh studio album "Looking 4 Myself" in June 2012. Having been teased since 2014, his eighth record was delayed indefinitely before it was announced to be called "Flawed" in January this year.
The album was eventually retitled to "Hard II Love" and is due out September 16 under RCA Records. As a preview of the upcoming set, he released the first single "No Limit" feat. Young Thug on Tidal on June 9, followed by the second single "Crash" on June 10 for all digital platforms. "No Limit" has peaked at No. 10 at Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, while "Crash" is more well-received in Australia, entering the top 10 of the country songs chart.
Nearing the due date, the 37-year-old singer/songwriter released two more tracks of the album, "Missin U" and "Champions", the latter of which is featured in upcoming boxing film "Hands of Stone" where Usher portrays boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard.
"When we created 'Champions', I wanted it to represent two icons standing toe-to-toe fighting for their countries," Usher said of the song, which he co-wrote with Ruben Blades, Raphael Saadiq and Taura Stinson, "There's such a relationship that happens within that ring...between Sugar Ray Leonard and Roberto Duran. And I wanted to capture that. I wanted Ruben Blades' interpretation of it to be as pure so he wrote his part and the dialect to go between Spanish and English. I wanted it to be as authentic as possible to offer some hope."
"Hard II Love" additionally boasts "Rivals", a collaboration with Future.
An eight-time Grammy-winning musician, Usher finally got his own star at Hollywood Walk of Fame earlier this month. "This is the first time in history that I've ever come in 2,588th place -- and it felt like No. 1," he said of receiving the honor. He dedicated the honor to everyone who has supported him since the start of his journey, including L.A. Reid who signed him to his LaFace Records when he was 14 years old.
Not forgetting his root, Usher returned to his hometown of Chattanooga on Friday, September 9 to perform a free show at Dalewood Middle School, which he attended as a boy. During a visit to the Studio Everything art space on Thursday, the "Yeah!" hitmaker urged people in town to donate to art programs and he pledged to match the donations raised during the event.
