Guide Note

R&B/soul singer Blu Cantrell was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Performance for her hit single "Hit Em Up Style (Oops)".

Fast Facts

1. Birth name: Tiffany Cobb
2. Birth date: October 1, 1976
3. Origin: Providence, Rhode Island
4. Years active: 2001-Present
5. Record label: Arista Records
6. Was supposed to appear in Playboy Magazine in 2003, but backed out at the last minute
7. The video release of the song "The Cha Cha" was shelved after a production agreement dispute that would have left Cantrell without profit gain

After backing such famous artists as Diddy, Faith Evans and Truth Hurts, Cantrell was discovered by Tab and Laney Stewart of Red Zone Entertainment in 2000. She was quickly introduced to L.A. Reid and signed to his record label, Arista Records. 2001 saw the release of her debut album, So Blu, which hit #8 on the Billboard 200 Album Chart. The album was certified platinum and eventually sold over 800,000 copies in the United States. The album also saw her enter the whistle register on the song "Waste My Time".

In 2003, Cantrell released her second album, Bittersweet. Though it did not achieve the success that So Blu did, it did earn Cantrell a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Album and entered the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop album chart at the #8 position. In 2007, Cantrell starred in the play Gossip, Lies and Secrets with LisaRaye McCoy and former Miss USA Kenya Moore.

• 2001: So Blu
• 2003: Bittersweet

"I am a role model, definitely and I definitely support women."

"I am disappointed in the music business, I feel like a lot of people in the music business are phoney, there's a lot of people who will abuse and take my kindness."

"Posing nude is not making porn."