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Bobby Valentino
Performing at Southeast Missouri State University during the Xi Gamma chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha's Miss Black And Gold Pageant in 2006.
Background information
Birth name	Bobby Wilson
Also known as	Bobby V, Bobby V-Tino
Born	February 27, 1980 (1980-02-27) (age 28)
Origin	Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Years active	1996–present
Label(s)	Disturbing tha Peace/Def Jam (2003–2008) EMI/Blu Kolla Dreams (2008-present)
Associated acts	Mista
Website	Bobby Valentino's official website

Bobby Wilson (born on February 27, 1980),¹ better known by his stage name Bobby Valentino, is an American R&B singer (his nickname being "Valentino" because he was due to be born on Valentine's day).² He is known as Bobby V or Bobby V-Tino in the United Kingdom due to a lawsuit³ involving a British musician who had been recording continuously under the same name⁴ since 1975.

Music career

Born in Jackson, Mississippi, Bobby moved to Atlanta, Georgia where he attended North Atlanta High School. He later returned to his old high school appearing on the debut episode of MTV's Once Upon A Prom, which aired on May 19, 2007. Bobby entered the music scene in 1996 as a member of the R&B youth quartet Mista. Under the production of Organized Noize (TLC’s "Waterfalls"), the group released their self-titled debut album, which produced the chart topping single, "Blackberry Molasses." Unfortunately, the album didn't follow in the same success and despite a second album being produced by Tim & Bob, it was never released. Due to management issues the group split in 1997. Bobby later enrolled at Clark Atlanta University majoring in Mass Communication's and pledged Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. While in school, Bobby continued to record in his free time in hopes of one day returning to the stage.⁵ In the spring of 2002 he auditioned for season one of American Idol, but was booted off.⁶

After graduating in 2003, Bobby decided to focus on music again. Armed with three albums of demos, he set out to pursue his music career dream. The demos reached Poon Daddy who then forwarded them onto Ludacris and Disturbing Tha Peace president Chaka Zulu, and "the rest is history" as Bobby says.⁷ Soon after being signed as the first R&B artist on Disturbing Tha Peace Records, Bobby was featured on the hit single "Pimpin' All Over the World," off of Ludacris' multi-platinum selling album The Red Light District in 2004.⁸

Disturbing Tha Peace Presents Bobby Valentino and Special Occasion

Bobby Valentino was released in the spring of 2005 through Island Def Jam and Ludacris' Disturbing tha Peace label. His first single, "Slow Down", became a top 10 hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, receiving a large amount of radio and TV airplay. Also in 2005, Bobby joined Bow Wow, Omarion, Marques Houston, B5 and Pretty Ricky on the Scream Tour IV. After the success of "Slow Down," Bobby released a second single titled "Tell Me (Remix)" featuring Lil Wayne. The album's third and final single, "My Angel," was released in the fall of 2005, however it gained little popularity.

Gearing up for the release of his 2007 sophomore effort Special Occasion, Valentino released the album's first single titled "Turn the Page" with mixed reviews. His second single, "Anonymous" featuring Timbaland, was released on April 9, 2007. Overall, the album received positive reviews from critics and audiences, and has since been certified gold.

Underground Love

Valentino returned to the studio in late 2007 to begin working on his third album. In January 2008, Valentino announced that he was putting the finishing touches on his upcoming album Underground Love, that was to be released in Spring 2008.

The album's first single titled "Your Smile" featuring Lil' Wayne was released in early 2008 and the album was scheduled to be released in August or early September 2008. Another single titled "Sexy Girl" was leaked to the internet in anticipation for the new album, however, Valentino's departure from DTP/Def Jam and the announcement of his new album "The Rebirth" through EMI/Blu Kolla Dreams, has stalled the project and the concept has since been scrapped.

Come With Me

On April 29, 2008, Come with Me was released through digital outlets and featured the single "Another Life".

Departure from Disturbing tha Peace

In early 2008 Valentino confirmed that he was no longer signed to either Def Jam or Disturbing The Peace during an interview with DJBooth.net. He stated:

Despite Special Occasion's gold certification, Valentino was reportedly frustrated with the album's delays and less than expected sales, culminating in his decision to leave the labels.¹⁰ Although business ties have been severed, Valentino maintains positive relationships with CEO Chaka Zulu, Ludacris and the DTP/Def Jam staff.

Blu Kolla Dreams & The Rebirth

In July 2008, just 3 months after being dropped from Def Jam Recordings and leaving Disturbing tha Peace Records, Valentino signed a new deal with EMI, which will house his imprint Blu Kolla Dreams.¹¹ In regards to the new label Bobby's manager and co-CEO of Blu Kolla Dreams Courtney "Colt Luv" Stewart stated:

In addition, Bobby announced the release of a new album titled The Rebirth. When asked about his powerful new album Bobby stated:

The Rebirth is scheduled to be released on February 10, 2009, which was revealed in an interview on MyFox Atlanta's Good Day Atlanta morning show. The album's first official single "Beep" featuring Yung Joc was released via iTunes on October 7, 2008. The album will feature production by Big Fruit, Raphael Saadiq, LOS Da Maestro and Tim & Bob. Valentino was also recently featured on "Mrs. Officer" from Lil' Wayne's multi-platinum album Tha Carter III.

Discography

Main article: Bobby Valentino discography

Albums

• Bobby Valentino (2005)
• Special Occasion (2007)
• The Rebirth (2009)

EPs

• Come with Me (2008)

Compilations

• The Next of Both Worlds (2005)

Awards and nominations

• NAACP Image Awards
  • 2006, Outstanding New Artist (Nominated)

• Soul Train Awards
  • 2006, Best R&B/Soul Single, Male: "Slow Down" (Nominated)
  • 2006, Best R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist (Nominated)

• Vibe Awards
  • 2005, Reelest Video: "Pimpin' All Over the World" (Nominated)

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References

External links

• Bobby Valentino's Official Website
• The original Bobby Valentino
• Bobby Valentino on MySpace