Anthony Hamilton

Anthony Cornelius Hamilton (born January 28, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Hailing from Charlotte, North Carolina, he signed to Jermaine Dupri's So So Def Recordings prior to the release of his second studio album Comin' from Where I'm From (2003). The album received platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and was preceded by its lead single of the same name and its follow-up, "Charlene". He released his third and fourth albums, Ain't Nobody Worryin' (2005) and The Point of It All (2008) to continued success and gold certification by the RIAA. His fifth and sixth albums, Back to Love (2011) and What I'm Feelin' (2016), were released through RCA Records.

He's received a Grammy Award from 12 nominations and is also known his song "Freedom" (with Elayna Boynton) which he co-wrote and performed for the soundtrack album of the 2012 film Django Unchained.

Career

Hamilton started singing in his church's choir at age 17. He attended South Mecklenburg High School where he sang in their award-winning choir under the direction of Mark Setzer. In 1992, he met producer Mark Sparks who encouraged Hamilton to leave Charlotte and head to New York City where he signed with Andre Harrell's Uptown Records. Hamilton co-wrote the 1999 hit "U Know What's Up" for singer Donell Jones. In 2000, he joined soul singer D'Angelo's international tour in promotion of the Voodoo album, on which he was a backup singer. On March 25, 2016, he released his sixth studio album What I'm Feelin' featuring guitarists Gary Clark, Jr. and Vince Gill with tracks produced by Mark Batson, Salaam Remi, and James Poyser. After one week, the project ranked number two on the Billboard R&B chart, representing his highest career debut. Hamilton works with the background singers the HamilTones, often performing soul renditions of hip-hop tracks.

Nappy Roots

Hamilton was first introduced to mainstream audiences with his singing of the chorus of Nappy Roots 2002 single "Po' Folks" which earned a Grammy Award nomination for "Best Rap/Sung Collaboration" in 2003. "Po' Folks" is the second single from the multi-platinum Watermelon, Chicken & Gritz album. Hamilton followed up with three collaborations on Nappy Roots next Atlantic Records release Wooden Leather with "Sick & Tired", "Push On", "Organic" and then one feature on The Humdinger on the single "Down N' Out". Nappy Roots and Hamilton have a song together called "Bluegrass Stain'd" with Mark Ronson that was released through Elektra Records.

2002–present

Hamilton made a guest appearance on Tupac Shakur's posthumous album Better Dayz (2002)—on the album's second disc version of "Thugz Mansion." He guest featured on Jadakiss' 2004 single "Why," which peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. Hamilton's first compilation album, Soulife was released in June 2005 and was composed of songs recorded during the early part of his career. Ain't Nobody Worryin', his third studio album, was released on December 13, 2005, and received gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Hamilton guest appeared on a song from The RH Factor's 2003 album Hard Groove—"Kwah/Home". He appeared on Angie Stone's "Stay For A While" in 2004. He made a guest appearance on blues singer-guitarist Buddy Guy's 2005 album Bring 'Em In, contributing vocals to a cover version of Bob Dylan's 1969 "Lay Lady Lay," which featured Robert Randolph.

At the 2006 BET Awards, Hamilton won the BET J "Cool Like That" Award. Comedian Dave Chappelle had Hamilton as a musical guest on his show Chappelle's Show in episode 6, Season 2 which premiered on Comedy Central. In later 2006, he guest performed on Tupac Shakur's "Dear Mama (Frank Nitty Remix)." He made a guest appearance on the UPN show All of Us in Season 2. Hamilton made a cameo as a soul singer in the film American Gangster, to whose soundtrack he contributed. During the 2008 BET Awards, Hamilton performed Al Green's "Tired of Being Alone" during a tribute to Green's career. Later in 2008, he was featured on Jeezy's album The Recession, which peaked atop the Billboard 200.

In July 2011, Jill Scott released her hit single "So In Love" featuring Hamilton. The track spent 19 weeks at the number one spot on the Urban AC charts. In 2012, Hamilton made guest appearances in two successful releases for Def Jam Recordings artists: Big K.R.I.T.'s Live from the Underground and Life Is Good by Nas, the latter of which debuted at number 1 on Billboard 200. Hamilton also co-performed on the soundtrack to Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained with his song "Freedom", a duet with soul singer Elayna Boynton. British DJ Ben Pearce sampled vocals from Hamilton's song, "Cornbread, Fish & Collard Greens" in his 2013 song, "What I Might Do".

In February 2015, Hamilton made a cameo appearance on the television series Empire, where he performed "Point of It All" as part of the main character Luscious Lyon's proposal to his girlfriend. The episode aired on February 4, 2015. In August 2015, Hamilton made a guest appearance on the song "That One", the first single from Teedra Moses' second album Cognac & Conversation.

On February 24, 2016, Hamilton performed at the last "In Performance at the White House" hosted by President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle as part of a tribute to iconic singer Ray Charles. On March 25, he released his 6th studio album "What I'm Feelin", which he describes as an "emotional" cleanse reflecting on some of the hurdles he has faced. Hamilton partnered with Cracker Barrel Old Country Store to release a deluxe version of the album sold online and in stores across the country. On March 28, 2016, Hamilton performed on NPR's critically acclaimed Tiny Desk Concerts where he performed his new singles "Amen," "Best of Me," "Cool," and "Charlene." Chris Brown recruited Hamilton to perform on the "Legends" remix to his hit single "Back to Sleep," which was released on April 10, 2016. On April 21, 2016, Hamilton embarked on a nationwide tour with Fantasia.

In 2017, Hamilton co-performed on the song "Carnival" for the virtual band Gorillaz from their fifth album Humanz. On May 15, 2020, Hamilton released the single "Back Together" featuring Rick James through Hamilton's label My Music Box, in partnership with BMG. The song was co-written by Hamilton and Ed D. Kane, and produced by 9th Wonder. It served as the lead single from his eighth album, Love Is the New Black, released on September 24, 2021.