Usher Halts Concert For Al B. Sure And Thanks Him For Early Career Support
Usher is part of a massive musical family of some of the best songwriters, producers, and music industry talents across many decades. As such, he has a lot of people to thank for his incredible success, and often takes the chance to give everyone their due. Moreover, during a recent concert, the R&B superstar embraced Al B. Sure! in the crowd, the new jack swing sensation who worked as a writer and producer during the Dallas native’s rise. They even started to dance and sing together after the Confessions creative’s remarks, which is now a staple of his live performances.
“Aye, man, y’all don’t really understand,” Usher’s words for Al B. Sure! began. “This is A-1 for real right here. My first album, Usher, this man showed me the ropes. He wrote songs for me, was patient with me. Long nights in the studio, I was going through vocal changes and all kind of s**t. We made some incredible moments together. But more than anything, you’re a big brother to me, and I just want to say thank you, bro. I love you more.”
Usher Pays Tribute To Al B. Sure!
As far as other members of this musical family, though, the controversies roll in pretty fast. For example, Suge Knight recently accused Diddy of molesting Usher and Justin Bieber, as the Bad Boy mogul was one of the industry titans who introduced the 46-year-old to the world. “Everybody knows what Puffy did,” the Death Row boss alleged. “There’s not one person that didn’t know that Puffy was f***ing Usher. […] Usher spent the night with him and Puffy being in the same bed when they did an album. They never put out one song at that time.”
Meanwhile, Al B. Sure! has a complicated relationship with his son Quincy Brown, whose mother Kim Porter ended up dating Diddy. As such, many of these moving parts and crossovers have a darker context underneath, but that doesn’t mean some genuine love, care, and appreciation can’t shine through. Usher reflected that with this mid-show shoutout, even if the online whirlwind around the Sean Combs scandal and all its alleged connections continues to ravage.
About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a staff writer for HotNewHipHop. He joined HNHH while completing his B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication at The George Washington University in the summer of 2022.
Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Gabriel treasures the crossover between his native reggaetón and hip-hop news coverage, such as his review for Bad Bunny’s hometown concert in 2024. But more specifically, he digs for the deeper side of hip-hop conversations, whether that’s the “death” of the genre in 2023, the lyrical and parasocial intricacies of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle, or the many moving parts of the Young Thug and YSL RICO case.
Beyond engaging and breaking news coverage, Gabriel makes the most out of his concert obsessions, reviewing and recapping festivals like Rolling Loud Miami and Camp Flog Gnaw. He’s also developed a strong editorial voice through album reviews, think-pieces, and interviews with some of the genre’s brightest upstarts and most enduring obscured gems like Homeboy Sandman, Bktherula, Bas, and Devin Malik.
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