Keyshia Cole

Keyshia Myeshia Cole (née Johnson; born October 15, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, television personality and actress. Born and raised in Oakland, California, she began her career as a backing vocalist for MC Hammer before signing with A&M Records to release her debut studio album, The Way It Is (2005). It received platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), spawned the Billboard Hot 100-top 20 single "Love," and earned two nominations at the 2006 Soul Train Music Awards. Established by the album's success, Cole filmed a reality television series for BET documenting her career, family and personal life titled Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is; the show ran for three seasons, and became one of the most-watched programs in the network's history.

Cole's second album, Just Like You (2007) was supported by the Billboard Hot 100-top ten single "Let It Go" (featuring Missy Elliott and Lil' Kim), as well as the top 40 singles "I Remember" and "Heaven Sent". The album received four Grammy Award nominations, peaked at number two on the Billboard 200, and received platinum certification by the RIAA. Her third album, A Different Me (2008), was met with continued success, also peaking at number two on the Billboard 200 and receiving platinum certification. Cole's fourth and fifth albums, Calling All Hearts (2010) and Woman to Woman (2012) both peaked within the top ten of the chart and saw continued praise; the latter was led by the single "Enough of No Love" (featuring Lil Wayne), the only song of the albums to enter the Billboard Hot 100. Her sixth and seventh albums, Point of No Return (2014) and 11:11 Reset (2017) were released by Interscope and Epic Records, respectively, and both met with critical and commercial declines.

Dubbed by critics as the "Princess of Hip-Hop Soul", Cole is best known for her soulful voice. Her work has earned her several awards and accolades, including an ASCAP Award and a Billboard Music Award. Following the release of Woman to Woman, she starred in the reality series Keyshia & Daniel: Family First. From 2019 to 2020, she hosted the Fox Soul syndicated television talk show, One on One with Keyshia Cole.