J.J. Johnson

Laid-back Washington, D.C.-based R&B vocalist J. Holiday (born Nahum Grymes) signed to Capitol and released the Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins-produced single “Be with Me” in 2006. The full-length Back of My Lac' followed in October 2007 and was a major success due to singles like “Bed” and “Suffocate,” both of which were co-written by the-Dream and topped the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Capitol re-released Back of My Lac' at the height of its popularity, in February 2007 — the album topped the R&B/Hip-Hop chart — adding three tracks to the original sequence as well as a DVD containing a handful of videos. Holiday’s second album, the more romantic Round 2, was released in March 2009. Rather than retrace steps, he collaborated with this time with a mostly different set of songwriters and producers, including Maurice "Big Reese" Sinclair, Ne-Yo, and the Platinum Brothers. ~ Andy Kellman