Alonzo Mario Stevenson, (born September 3, 1981) professionally known as Novel, is an American hip-hop/soul artist based in Los Angeles, California. He is a Grammy Award winning songwriter, singer, rapper and producer with also 5 Grammy nominations. He is the son of

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

's William "Mickey" Stevenson and the grandson of soul pioneer

Solomon Burke Solomon Vincent McDonald Burke (born James Solomon McDonald, March 21, 1936 or 1940 – October 10, 2010) was an American singer who shaped the sound of rhythm and blues as one of the founding fathers of soul music in the 1960s. He has been ...

. Novel has collaborated with artists such as Lauryn Hill and Talib Kweli, and worked with other musicians including Royce Da 5'9',

Joss Stone Joscelyn Eve Stoker (born 11 April 1987), known professionally as Joss Stone, is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She rose to prominence in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, ''The Soul Sessions'', which made the 2004 Merc ...

, David Guetta, India.Arie, Tweet, Stacie Orrico and

Smokey Robinson William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive director. He was the founder and front man of the Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he was also chief ...

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 William "Mickey" Stevenson,

singer/songwriter/producer and the label's first A&R executive, and Melanie Burke, a background singer for

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan (), is an American singer. Her career has spanned more than five decades, beginning in the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus. Known as the " Qu ...

. Stevenson, also the grandson of soul music pioneer

, 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 in 2003. The video for the song features

, a longtime family friend and Novel's godfather. '' Vibe'' 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". His debut album ''The Word'' was set to be released in 2003 but was ultimately cancelled when Rawkus split from MCA Records, which folded that year. Novel spent the next several years writing and producing for other artists, including Alicia Keys, Beyoncé Knowles, India.Arie,

, Kelis, and Leona Lewis. He signed to Dallas Austin's Rowdy Records in 2007 and released an EP, ''I Am... (Future Black President)'', the following year. The single "I Am", featuring Talib Kweli and Spree Wilson, contains a sample of the 2001

Ben Folds Benjamin Scott Folds (born September 12, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and composer, who is the first artistic advisor to the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., since May 2017. Folds was th ...

song "

The Luckiest ''Rockin' the Suburbs'' is the debut studio album by American alternative rock singer-songwriter Ben Folds. His first solo album after leaving his band Ben Folds Five, ''Rockin' the Suburbs'' was recorded in Adelaide, Australia, where Folds was ...

". Folds also provides pianos and vocals on the track. Novel's debut full-length album, ''The Audiobiography'', was announced in early 2009. ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

'' 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 David Guetta song, "Missing You", from Guetta's 2009 album '' One Love''. The song peaked at number 85 on the French singles chart. Novel and rapper

Joell Ortiz Joell Christopher Ortiz (born July 6, 1980) is an American rapper and a former member of the group Slaughterhouse. Ortiz grew up in the Cooper Park Houses in the East Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, New York, formerly signed to Dr. Dre's Afte ...

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

)'' (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