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Ari Lennox

Ari Lennox is an R&B singer known for her solo work, as well as her collaborations with hip-hop artists like J. Cole and Nasty C. Born as Courtney Shanade Salter on March 26, 1991, she was raised in the suburbs of Washington, DC, and released her debut mix tape, Five Finger Discount, in 2013. Her first EP, Ariography, followed later that year. Ari Lennox signed with J. Cole's label, Dreamville Records, in December 2015, celebrating the partnership with an appearance on the label's Top 40 collaborative album, Revenge of the Dreamers II. Her label debut, Pho, followed in October 2016, peaking at Number 20 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Two months later, she appeared on J. Cole's hit single "Change," which cracked the Top 10 of the American rap charts and climbed to Number 21 on the Hot 100. Following her subsequent collaborations with artists like EarthGang and Bas, Ari Lennon released her first full-length album, Shea Butter Baby, in 2019. A Top 10 hit on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, Shea Butter Baby was named the year's best album by Vibe and Associated Press, its popularity boosted by its platinum-certified title track and the gold-certified single "BMO." Ari Lennox then made an appearance on Dreamville's Revenge of the Dreamers III, which topped the Billboard 200 upon its release in July 2019, and continued collaborating with other artists during the subsequent two years, appearing on Jazmine Sullivan's "On It," Nasty C's "Set Him Up," and Queen Naija's "Set Him Up."