Musicians not quite known to a wider audience are usually advised to seek the affirmation of their counterparts who have achieved huge success. This is because a co-sign on their work from such people would help expose them to a greater audience and allow them to achieve commercial success. American singer Jon B clearly followed this rule although it can be argued that he did not have to seek the affirmation of people like Babyface and Tupac Shakur, rather it was the quality of his music that attracted them to him.
Since 1994, Jon has blessed R&B and Soul music lovers with soothing ballads that have prompted people like Tupac to describe him as a personal favorite. In addition to his singing, the multi-instrumentalist has also worked as a songwriter and record producer. All these have certainly contributed to making the California native a fortune and so, we are here to find out which of his brainchildren has yielded him the most money vis-a-vis other ancillary facts about the musician.
How Jon B Rose to Become a Successful Singer
Before we look at Jon B’s highest-grossing albums, it seems wise for us to take a look at his musical career generally. How has he come to be here and what has he been up to career-wise.
Well, imagine growing up and all you see around you is music. That’s what Jon B’s upbringing was like. He was born to a music professor father named David who worked at California State University while his mom Linda earned a living as a concert pianist. Born as the second of three kids, both Jon’s elder sister Deborah and his younger brother Kelvin have also taken to music.
Jon B sang in the choir of his church while growing up. Later on in life, before getting to release his own music, he began working as a songwriter. This stage of his career brought him face to face with some of the biggest names in music such as Michael Jackson and Tony Braxton who he notably wrote for. You can imagine the amount of boost his career must have received from such icons.
Breakdown of His Albums and Singles
Jon B made his professional singing debut in 1995 when he released the platinum-selling album, Bonafide. His debut body of work featured singles like ‘Pretty Girl’ and the Grammy-nominated hit, ‘Someone To Love’. Two years later, the singer put out his second album titled Cool Relax, which spawned singles like ‘Cool Relax’, ‘Are U Still Down’ (featuring Tupac), ‘Don’t Say’, and ‘They Don’t Know’.
Jon dropped his third studio album titled Pleasures You Like in 2001. In 2004, he followed it up with Stronger Everyday before dropping Holiday Wishes From Me To You in 2006, Helpless Romantic in 2008, and Comfortable Swagg in 2012.
In 2019, it was reported that Jon B was working on yet another album. A song titled ‘Understand’ (featuring Donell Jones) was the single from the unnamed album that is yet to see the light of day.
Which of His Albums were Commercially Succesful?
The title of Jon B’s fourth studio album, Stronger Everyday, proved to be ironic because according to statistics, the singer has been on a downward spiral ever since the body of work was released. His most critically acclaimed releases were his first three albums which were all certified platinum. Among the three, his second album Cool Relax stood out the most.
Cool Relax is considered the most successful of his albums, both commercially and critically. Firstly, it is the only one of his albums that have been certified double Platinum. Two singles from the album; ‘Are You Still Down’ and ‘They Don’t Know’ have further received huge critical acclaim with both of them making it to the number 2 spot on the US R&B chart.
Bonafide, his first album, also performed well enough. While it may not have performed the best on the chart, it’s single titled ‘Someone To Love’ was a huge success, peaking at #10 on the US Billboard Hot100. It also featured on the soundtrack of Michael Bay’s 1995 buddy cop action comedy film, Bad Boys. The third album Pleasures U Like peaked at #6 on the US Billboard 200 and at #3 on the US R&B Chart. It sold over 99,000 copies in its debut week and became the artists’ first top 10 release.
How Much Wealth Has Jon B Made From His Career?
Jon B’s net worth was estimated at over $5 million as of early 2020. He has made a huge chunk of his money from the sales of his music, going on music tours across America and elsewhere, and from royalty payments.
Apart from singing, Jon has also earned money from songwriting and producing records. He began producing music after his third album when he had to leave his original label, Epic Records, to join Sanctuary Records which soon folded up. This left the musician with no option but to produce his own music which he has since done for both himself and others.
What We Know About Jon B’s Wife
Although Jon B is white, he grew up in a black community and attended a black church while growing up. This probably explains his relationship with black people and his love for black women as he has dated quite a good number of them in the past. The first woman he dated to be publicly recognized is singer Musiic K. Galloway who featured in his debut album, Bonafide. The pair wedded in 1999 but eventually went their separate ways without producing a kid.
In 2007, Jon B married another black woman named Danette Jackson. This marriage looks to be all that the singer hoped it would be as the couple appears to be loving life with each other. They have gone ahead to bring in two kids to the world – L’Wren and Azure.
Also Read: Top 10 Richest People in the world with full biography and details.
