Brian Mcknight

A Grammy-nominated American singer, songwriter, arranger, producer, pop and R&B musician, Brian McKnight was born on June 5, 1969 in Buffalo, New York. He can play nine instruments: piano, guitar, bass guitar, drums, percussions, trombone, tuba, French horn and trumpet.

Biography
McKnight's musical career began with his childhood; he was a member of the church choir and a band leader in high school at Sweet Home High School in Amherst, NY. His older brother Claude's band encouraged him, Take 6, getting a record deal, McKnight sent out demo tapes and, at the age of 19, signed his first recording deal with Mercury Records. He released his first album, Brian McKnight, in 1992. He went on to release three more albums for Mercury records before moving to Motown Records. His final album with Mercury Records ?Anytime' sold over two million copies and was nominated for a Grammy.

In 1999, McKnight released ?Back at One' which sold over three million copies. he has collaborated with a variety of musicians including Ma$e, Sean Puffy Combs, Mary J. Blige, Justin Timberlake, Vanessa Williams, Kirk Franklin, For Real, Canibus, Quincy Jones, Boyz II Men, Christina Aguilera, Shoshana Bean, St.Lunatics, Mariah Carey and Regine Velasquez during his career.

McKnight is divorced and has two sons and currently lives in Los Angeles, California.

Brian currently hosts a radio show, The Brian McKnight Morning Show with Pat Prescott on KTWV, The Wave in Los Angeles, CA.

He has presently ended the European tour with Boyz II Men in support of his 2006 release Ten and has started the U.S leg. Opening acts are Sunshine Anderson & Joe.

Vocal ability
Brian McKnight has mastered his voice. Though it's never said that Brian took speech level singing or studied with Seth Riggs, he have found a way to develop his mixed voice. He sings, like Vandross and many other artists, with no strain while going up into his higher notes. The skill to produce higher tones is not entirely falsetto; McKnight applies head voice with his falsetto and sounds stylistically different.

Brian McKnight has a four-octave range and is able to maintain his voice in higher registers. The transition between his falsetto and head voice is also smoother than most singers.

Brian McKnight is still creating beautiful music fifteen years after releasing his self-titled debut. The secret of Brian McKnight's rhythmic patience comes down to his ability to create everlasting music.

With the release of Ten, McKnight's first disc for his new label Warner Bros Records, the Grammy-nominated singer could not be more pleased with the outcome. Having penned and completed about thirty-three new songs before signing on the dotted line, McKnight was more than ready. Right now, I am optimistic of what I can do in my new situation.

The landscape of soul music has gotten younger, but that fact did not hinder McKnight's creative process. Brian says I'm not going to be dancing on BET, but at the same time I believe my material will appeal to everyone from teenagers to older folks.

After 16 million albums sold since his self-titled debut, but on ?Ten' he artist in himself felt the need to be more revealing. As a songwriter my biggest challenge has always been finding new ways to say old things, Brian says

Working on a variety of projects including a talk show and soundtracks for two upcoming Tyler Perry projects, the veteran soul singer could not be happier with the outcome of Ten. When I finish a record, I listen to it from beginning to end, McKnight says. Truthfully, I think this is the best record I've done in years.