Brandy Norwood

At the start of her music career she dated Kobe Bryant, a Los Angeles Lakers player, but the couple soon broke up. Later she dated singer Wanya Morris and then went on to date the American rapper Mase.

At the start of her music career she dated Kobe Bryant, a Los Angeles Lakers player, but the couple soon broke up. Later she dated singer Wanya Morris and then went on to date the American rapper Mase.

She was also been linked with the rapper Flo Rida in 2010.

Brandy Rayana Norwood was born on 11th February, 1979 to Christian parents, Willie Norwood and Sonja Bates in McComb, Mississippi. Her father was a popular gospel singer while her mother, Sonja, worked as a former district manager for ‘H&R Block’.

She grew up alongside her younger brother, William Ray Norwood Jr., who later became known as ‘Ray J’. Ray J showed the same interest in music as his sister did.

She first began singing along with her father in the church choir. Later in 1983, she relocated to Los Angeles, California, with her parents. There she attended the ‘Hollywood High Performing Arts Center.

She was spotted by Teaspoon Productions and was quickly made a backing vocalist for Chris Stokes and Earl Harris’ boy band ‘Immature’. Her parents then assisted her in signing a recording deal with ‘Atlantic Recoding Corporation’.

Her mother left a prolific job to spare time to manage Norwood. Thus, Brandy left school and studied with a home tutor. Before she commenced her music career, she played a secondary character in the ABC TV show ‘Thea’ which opened to much acclaim but after its initial ratings began to fizzle out, it was later cancelled.

Her debut album was crafted under the mentorship of Keith Crouch and the R&B Group ‘Somethin’ for the People’. The album was self-titled and comprised of a street-like breezy hip-hop edge to rhythm-and-blues.

The album ‘Brandy’ was launched in 1994 and did magnificently well. She booked the twentieth spot on the ‘U.S. Billboard 200’ chart. The album sold six million copies, with the singles ‘Baby’ and ‘I Wanna Be Down’ holding a place in the top 10 rankings of ‘Billboard Hot 100’.

She was the opening act at the ‘Boyz II Men’s’ national tour and even sang for the Hollywood movies ‘Batman Forever’ and ‘Waiting to Exhale’ in 1995.

In 1996, she starred in a main role in the sitcom ‘Moesha’. She worked alongside Sheryl Lee Ralph and William Allen Young in the teenage series. The show aired for six seasons and provided impetus for a spin-off titled ‘The Parkers’.

Her second album ‘Never Say Never’ released in 1998. The album’s duet ‘The Boy Is Mine’ became her first song to top the ‘U.S. Billboard Hot 100’. The same year she went on a world tour to promote her album.

By 2002 her third album ‘Full Moon’ was in music stores. It failed to garner as much success as her previous two albums. ‘Afrodisiac’ released in 2004 to much critical applause and managed to put her back amongst the best in the music industry.

With continuous success as a singer and actress, she became the first choice to judge the talent hunt show ‘America’s Got Talent’ alongside David Hasselhoff and Piers Morgan in its first season.

Simultaneously, she began work on her fifth album ‘Human’ under the label of ‘Epic Records’. The album’s lead single ‘Right Here (Departed)’ topped the ‘Hot Dance Club Play’ music chart.