Alonzo Mario Stevenson, (born September 3, 1981) professionally known as Novel, is an American hip-hop/soul artist based in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. He is a Grammy Award winning songwriter, singer, rapper and producer with also 5 Grammy nominations. He is the son of Motown's

William "Mickey" Stevenson William "Mickey" Stevenson (born January 4, 1937) is an American former songwriter and record producer for the Motown group of labels from the early days of Berry Gordy's company until 1967. Life and career He was born William Stevenson and, a ...

and the grandson of soul pioneer Solomon Burke. Novel has collaborated with artists such as

Lauryn Hill Lauryn Noelle Hill (born May 26, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. She is often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, as well as being one of the most influential musicians of her generation. ...

and

Talib Kweli Talib Kweli Greene (; born October 3, 1975) is an American rapper. He earned recognition early on through his collaboration with fellow Brooklyn rapper Mos Def in 1997, when they formed the group Black Star. Kweli's musical career continued with ...

, and worked with other musicians including Royce Da 5'9', Joss Stone,

David Guetta Pierre David Guetta ( , ; born 7 November 1967) is a French DJ and music producer. He has over 10 million album and 65 million single sales globally, with more than 10 billion streams. In 2011, 2020 and 2021, Guetta was voted the number one D ...

India.Arie India Arie Simpson (born October 3, 1975), also known as India Arie (sometimes styled as india.arie), is an American singer and songwriter. She has sold over five million records in the US and ten million worldwide. She has won four Grammy Awards ...

, Tweet,

Stacie Orrico Stacie Joy Orrico (born March 3, 1986) is an American singer, songwriter and occasional actress. After signing to ForeFront Records, Orrico recorded her first album, '' Genuine'' (2000), which sold 13,000 units in its first week of release. Af ...

and Smokey Robinson and others. He has received over 5 Grammy nominations and 1 win in all different categories and is considered very versatile for writing & producing in the Pop genre, Alternative, Rock, Hiphop, R&B, even Jazz, Dance, Electronic, Including gospel, and currently working on country.

Biography

Alonzo Mario Stevenson was born in Los Angeles, California, son of

, Motown singer/songwriter/producer and the label's first A&R executive, and Melanie Burke, a background singer for Chaka Khan. Stevenson, also the grandson of soul music pioneer Solomon Burke, grew up with his mother in Atlanta, Philadelphia, and North Carolina, sometimes staying in shelters because they had no money. A friend of Stevenson's in Philadelphia nicknamed him "Novel" because he always carried a notebook. After running away from home at age 14, Novel returned to California where his father set up a recording studio for him. He released a single, "Peach", on

Rawkus Records Rawkus Records was an American hip hop record label known for starting the careers of many rappers. Rawkus started in 1995 with releases in hip-hop, drum and bass and fun-dustrial (Dystopia One). Label heads Brian Brater and Jarret Myer then si ...

in 2003. The video for the song features Smokey Robinson, a longtime family friend and Novel's godfather. ''

Vibe ''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down producti ...

'' called the song's melody "infectious" and Novel's vocals "seductive", but Novel almost didn't release the single because he "felt it was

bubble gum Bubble gum or bubblegum is a type of chewing gum, designed to be inflated out of the mouth as a bubble. Bubble gum flavor While there is a bubble gum "flavor" – which various artificial flavorings including esters are mixed to obtain – it ...

". His debut album ''The Word'' was set to be released in 2003 but was ultimately cancelled when Rawkus split from

MCA Records MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group. Pre-history MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 w ...

, which folded that year. Novel spent the next several years writing and producing for other artists, including

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...

Beyoncé Knowles Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

, Joss Stone,

Kelis Kelis Rogers-Mora (; born August 21, 1979), known mononymously as Kelis, is an American singer, songwriter and a professionally trained chef. At age 14, she was admitted to New York's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Perform ...

, and

Leona Lewis Leona Louise Lewis (born 3 April 1985) is a British singer, songwriter, actress and activist. Born and raised in the London Borough of Islington, she attended the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology in Croydon. Lewis achieved nationa ...

. He signed to

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Rowdy Records Rowdy Records is a record label distributed through Motown. It was founded by record producer Dallas Austin in 1992, and the precursor to his entertainment company, Freeworld Entertainment. History Formed in 1992 by producers Dallas Austin a ...

in 2007 and released an EP, ''I Am... (Future Black President)'', the following year. The single "I Am", featuring

and Spree Wilson, contains a sample of the 2001 Ben Folds song " The Luckiest". Folds also provides pianos and vocals on the track. Novel's debut full-length album, ''The Audiobiography'', was announced in early 2009. '' Spin'' wrote that Novel's "innate talents ooze" on the album and that it contains a "series of slinky funk jams", but it also "sounds a little too well-oiled at times". Novel wrote and featured on the

song, "Missing You", from Guetta's 2009 album ''

One Love One Love may refer to: Music * One Love (record producer), Timothy Sommers, American record producer, half of the duo Kinetics & One Love * ''One Love: The Bob Marley Musical'', a 2015 stage musical Albums * One Love (Blue album), ''One Love'' (B ...

''. The song peaked at number 85 on the

French singles chart French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...

. Novel and rapper Joell Ortiz released a collaborative album, ''Defying the Predictable'', in 2010.

Discography

Albums and EPs

* "Quality" Talib Kweli * "Sound Bombing III" * "Mr. Jones" Tom Jones * "Diary Of A Mad Black Woman" Soundtrack * "A Beautiful Awakening" Stacie Orrico * "Change" SugaBabes * "Kelis Was Here" Kelis * "Introducing Joss Stone" Joss Stone * "Sammie" Sammie * "8 Days A Weekend" Dallas Austin * "Testimony Vol.2" India Arie * "Love, Tweet" Tweet (Unreleased) * "Spirit" Leona Lewis * "I Am" Alicia Keys * "The Hits" Lemar * "Eyes For You" Esmee Denters & Justin Timberlake * "Echo" Leona Lewis * "One Love" David Guetta * "Back To Me" Fantasia * "For True" Trombone Shorty * "Slaughter House" Slaughter House * "BraveHeart" Ashanti * ''The Word'' (Cancelled) (2002, Rawkus/MCA) * ''I Am (Future Black President) The EP'' (2008, Rowdy/Capitol) * ''Calligraphy'' (TBA/2012, Lost Poets Music) * ''Under Water, Overwhelmed'' (Currently on iTunes) (2012–13, Unsigned/Lost Poet) Entire Project Produced by Justin Kahler except for (A song For River Produced By Novel & Alex Naylor) * ''Documentary 2'' The Game (2015) * ''Black In America'' (2016) * ''Unreligious'' (2016, Independently) * ''Goodbye August'' (2016, Independently) * ''Dedication'' (2017,Independently) * ''No Dope On Sundays'' Cyhi Da Prince

Mixtapes

* ''Chapter One'' (2008) * ''808's and Mixtapes'' (2009) * ''Suspended Animation'' (2009) * ''Defying the Predictable (with Joell Ortiz)'' (2010) * ''Legato Blues Summer'' (2010) * ''Grant Me Serenity'' (2011) * ''Red Wine & Ambien'' (2012) * ''Red Wine & Ambien ii'' (2014)

Production and writing

References

External links

* * *Production and writing credits (partial list; via Allmusic

http://www.allmusic.com/artist/novel-mn0002082946/credit

{{DEFAULTSORT:Novel 1981 births American male rappers American male singers Record producers from California Living people Rappers from Los Angeles Songwriters from California 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians American male songwriters