Lyfe Jennings, born Chester Jennings in Toledo, Ohio, is an African American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, record producer and instrumentalist. He sings and plays guitar, bass and piano, and often folds those instruments into his own recordings.

Early life and musical beginnings

Jennings starts singing as a child in a church choir in Toledo. He later joins The Dotsons with two cousins and his older brother, Jay. After the group breaks up in the early 1990s, he returns to music while serving a ten-year prison sentence for an arson-related offence. While in prison, he begins a music programme there, and he cites Erykah Badu’s album Baduizm as one of the reasons he rediscovers music.

Solo career

After his release from prison in December 2002, Jennings pursues a solo career. In January 2003, he performs in Showtime In Harlem at The Apollo. Later that year he independently releases his first EP, What Is Love. He then moves to New York City, where he performs at Nelly’s concert at Radio City Music Hall, at an NAACP convention, and at the Cafeteria in Chelsea during the blackout on 14 August.

Recordings and releases

Jennings signs with Columbia Records and releases his debut album, Lyfe 268-192, in 2004. The title refers to his inmate number. The album includes his single “Stick Up Kid”, which gains attention after the album appears, and the hit single “Must Be Nice”. His second album, The Phoenix, follows, with the first single “S.E.X.” featuring his protégé, singer LaLa Brown.

Style and role

Jennings works as a singer-songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist within R&B and soul.