Chrisette Michele

Fun Facts: Chrisette Michele was discovered by India I. Arie at the Village Underground in New York City. Arie offered her a gig to be her opening act.

Claim to Fame: In 2006 Michele was featured on Jay Z’s “Lost Ones” followed by “Can’t Forget about You” by Nas. Her debut album “I Am” was released in 2007.

Chrisette Michele Payne, known professionally as Chrisette Michele, is an American R&B and soul singer?songwriter on the Island Def Jam Music Group. She won a Grammy Award for Best Urban/Alternative Performance in 2009 for her song "Be OK".


Michele was born in Central Islip, New York, and grew up in Patchogue to parents who worked as deacons to their church. This connection inspired her to reflect on childhood memories in her own debut album. She sings in a jazz style reminiscent of singers such as Esther Phillips, Sarah Vaughn, Jill Scott, Macy Gray, Erykah Badu, and Ella Fitzgerald.

The daughter of a deacon father and choir director mother, she led gospel choirs in high school. She attended Five Towns College in Dix Hills, New York, and graduated with a vocal performance degree.



Michele has been featured on several popular hip hop albums. Most recently she was featured on The Game's album LAX on "Let Us Live". On Jay-Z's Kingdom Come she was featured on the second single "Lost One", while on Nas' Hip Hop Is Dead, she was featured three times: on the album's second single "Can't Forget About You", the Kanye West-produced "Still Dreaming", and the final track "Hope". Recently she also appeared on the bonus track "Slow Down", from Ghostface Killah's The Big Doe Rehab.


Michele's debut album, I Am, was released on June 18, 2007. The song "Your Joy" was released on iTunes as a free single of the week. The album spawned four singles: "If I Have My Way", "Best of Me", "Be OK", and "Love Is You". The album's lead single "If I Have My Way" charted at number four on Billboards Hot Adult R&B Airplay and number twenty-four on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. Following its success, "Best of Me" charted on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks at number twenty-one. In December 2007, "Be OK" was released as the third single, charting at number sixty-four on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and number twenty-one on the Hot Adult R&B Airplay. In 2008, "Love Is You" was released as the album's fourth and final single on the album; it reached number ninety on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and number twenty on the Hot Adult R&B Airplay.

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