J.Hollins

Artist Information

Biography

J.Hollins is a Chicago native, whose smooth vocals, often laced with heavy harmonies, create an ingenious musical sound. He masterfully fuses the traditions of gospel, funk, hip-hop, blues, and soul, while keeping his lyrics fresh and reflective. As the lead singer of a local group, J.Hollins landed a lucrative recording deal with a major record label. As a writer he went on to enjoy success in the UK, after releasing a 4-song EP and contributing to a compilation album entitled Urban Anthems. After years of feeling creatively unfulfilled and fed up with making records to please everyone at the label J.Hollins opted to walk away from it all. Armed with nothing but his own creativity, J.Hollins set out in search of a new start. Enter long time friend and colleague Rhasheem Mohammed PKA “The Grind King”. In January 2004 he and J.Hollins started B.B.E. North America L.L.C. Mohammed and Hollins set out to make their company about bringing quality creative music into the mainstream market. B.B.E. North America L.L.C. released J.Hollins debut mixtape “This is Me” in May of 2004. This mixtape offered a deep look into the life of J.Hollins and touched on all of his experiences (good and bad) growing up in LeClaire Courts (a low-income housing project located on Chicago’s southwest side). “This is Me” is considered a classic by many and sold over 4000 copies to date. In November 2005 J.Hollins first full length album “The Chronicles” was released to rave reviews and stellar sales for an upstart indie label. Using club DJs and live performances as the main marketing and promotional tool “The Chronicles” has sold more than 12,220 copies to date. In June of 2008 the highly anticipated “Untitled” the second full length album from J.Hollins was released. Shortly thereafter J.Hollins and his associates realized that some of those same influences that he had opted to walk away from in the past were rearing their head once again. Now fresh from a 6 month hiatus J.Hollins is back with new found vigor. Off to a running start with a soulful radio/club friendly love song “Because of You” produced by super producers Emmaculate and Jamahl Rashid. This song is the first offering from J.Hollins upcoming project “The Soul Renaissance LP” J.Hollins states “I wanted to get back to what I do best, what the people and the DJs came to love about my music. I know I do my best work when I’m doing what’s in my heart. That’s what “The Soul Renaissance LP” is about, I’m a soul singer no question about it. No matter what I’m singing you can hear the soul in it, the renaissance part is more of a personal thing. I feel like I’m going through a renaissance as a person right now as well as creatively”. The term you’ll hear to best describe J.Hollins lately is “Rock n Soul Star” he thinks it’s hilarious but willingly accepts the title because he says “There are widespread opinions about many artists, a lot of those opinions aren’t good ones! If “Rock n Soul Star” is the collective opinion about me, then I’m not doing too bad, I gladly accept!” “The Chronicles” and “Untitled” available on itunes & cdbaby.com NOW!!! “The Soul Renaissance LP” AVAILABLE NOW! www.jhollinsmusic.com OWN IT TODAY! www.myspace.com/jhollins, http://music.blackplanet.com/jhollins, http://twitter.com/jhollins

Instrumentation

Discography

2004 "This Is Me" (mixtape)
2005 "The Chronicles"
2006 "The Chronicles 1.5" (mixtape)
2008 "Untitled"
2010 "The Soul Renaissance LP"

Official Website

http://www.jhollinsmusic.com

Links

• Facebook
• MySpace
• Twitter
• YouTube

Audio

• Because of You
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• Her High f/JUICE
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• I Wish
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• Toast
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Video

J Hollins Soul Renaissance _WEB_HD

Photo Gallery

Press

• J. Hollins free album leads new music update [+ Show ]
  

  Chicago R&B singer headlines this new music post with a free album, The Soul Renaissance LP. You can...Chicago R&B singer headlines this new music post with a free album, The Soul Renaissance LP. You can already sense the versatile sounds from the LP given a few of the leaks already and through just one listen of the entire body of work, the versatility theme is indeed prevalent. J. Hollins has a lot of chill, yet uplifting jams to check out that sort of take you through his growth along the way. He explains:
  
  This album explores the growth process that a young man goes through to become a grown man. "In order to become a grown man one must go through a renaissance of sorts, this includes mind, body and soul...hence the title of my album."
  - J. Hollins
  
  Add in guest stars like Chicago emcee Juice and acoustic/soul songstress Isis Rose and it only adds to the aforementioned versatility found on The Soul Renaissance LP. Follow the links above to download the album or simply stream it.

• J Hollins workin' it, underground [+ Show ]
  

  The R&B crooner, formerly an artist on the Universal music label, has been there, and now considers ...The R&B crooner, formerly an artist on the Universal music label, has been there, and now considers himself a champion of the underground. “What's garnering my fans right now is the non-watered down taste of what I do; musically, my sound, what I write about--that's what draws people to it. I've put too much work in to relinquish control,” said J Hollins, who describes his sound as a fusion of house, techno and blues.
  
  DJs on WPWR-FM/Power 92.3 and WGCI-FM/107.5 have declared his latest single, the sultry "When Was the Last Time," a hit song, and it has remained on the top 10 college charts for weeks. A second single, "So Chicago," is getting airplay on Latin station La Kalle. Power 92.3 and Kiss FM have sponsored listening parties for his latest album "Untitled"--a gesture normally reserved for major artists.
  
  J Hollins (short for Jerome Hollins) is co-owner of and has released his albums on Block Bleeders Entertainment. But 10 years ago, he was signed to Mary J. Blige's Mary J. Blige Entertainment after she saw his trio, Laid Back, perform at a local club. The group was whisked to New York, where A&Rs pressured them into developing a commercial sound that was good for radio. But their promotions budget ran out, and they were shipped to another subsidiary--Urban Essentials in Atlanta.
  
  It wasn't long before things fell apart, and a 20-year-old Hollins returned to Chicago determined to take his career into his own hands. In November 2005, he released his first album, "The Chronicles," on iTunes, CD Baby and Rhapsody, and was surprised when thousands of people bought copies. The album has sold 50,000 copies so far.
  
  “I didn't expect it to take off like it took off because of the horror stories you hear about the Chicago area, and being an independent artist here,” Hollins said. He took a similar route with "Untitled," released on June 17, a collection of songs about the subtleties of love and relationships.
  
  The album has sold 1,000 copies to date. Major labels have again cast an eye in Hollins' direction--and he is considering--but for now he is a fixture on the underground: a mix of club DJs, urban and suburban, Black, Asian and white fans who want more than what radio is playing. “I have a fearlessness, a total and complete fearlessness in the way that I make my music, and I've learned not to do what everyone else is doing. What's out there is what's out there. I can't give you a bunch of what's already out there. I can only give you me,” Hollins said.
  
  Leila Noelliste can be reached via e-mail at lnoelliste@chicagodefender.com.

• CX Proudly Introduces J. Hollins [+ Show ]
  

  We are pleased to announce the release of our client, Rock & Soul Star, J. Hollins new hit single ‘B...We are pleased to announce the release of our client, Rock & Soul Star, J. Hollins new hit single ‘Because of You’. We are very excited about this record, hopefully, you will be too! Produced by Emmaculate (Never Leave My Girl - Ben One co-producer) and Jamal (So Gone - Monica producer), written and arranged by J.Hollins, we feel this record has a very legitimate shot to be a chart topper. I’d like to ask you all for your support in breaking this record and making it what it should be!
  
  HISTORY: J.Hollins is a Chicago native, whose smooth vocals, often laced with heavy harmonies, create an ingenious musical sound. He masterfully fuses the traditions of rock, gospel, funk, hip-hop, blues, and soul, while keeping his lyrics fresh and reflective. J.Hollins debut mixtape. After forming Block Bleeders Ent., J. Hollins released “This is Me” in May of 2004. This mixtape offered a deep look into the life of J.Hollins and touched on all of his experiences (good and bad) growing up in LeClaire Courts on the Southside. “This is Me” is considered a classic by many and sold over 4000 copies to date. In November 2005 J.Hollins first full length album “The Chronicles” was released to rave reviews and stellar sales for an upstart indie label. Using club DJs and live performances as the main marketing and promotional tool “The Chronicles” has sold more than 12,220 copies to date. In June of 2008 the highly anticipated “Untitled” the second full length album from J.Hollins was released.
  
  “The Chronicles” and “Untitled” available on ITunes & CDBaby.com NOW!!!
  
  ‘BECAUSE OF YOU’: Now fresh from a 6 month hiatus J.Hollins is back with new found vigor. Off to a running start with a soulful radio/club friendly love song “Because of You” produced by super producers Emmaculate and Jamahl Rashid. This song is the first offering from J.Hollins upcoming album entitled "The Soul Renaissance LP"
  
  

• Revealed | The Music of J. Hollins + The Soul Renaissance LP [+ Show ]
  

  If you are searching for a smooth R&B album to spice up your iPod, you must add The Soul Renaissance...If you are searching for a smooth R&B album to spice up your iPod, you must add The Soul Renaissance LP by J. Hollins. J. Hollins, a Chicago native, has been compared to the likes of John Legend and Anthony Hamilton, but it is clear that he has a style all of his own. The Soul Renaissance LP is more than a sultry romantic mix of tracks, it is a biographical sketch of a young man’s journey to become a grown man. JohnSimonDaily caught up with J. Hollins to discuss his current release.

• Featured music
  

  Featured music J.Hollins Because Of You

Setlist

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