There’s Something About Cheri

Rewind to 2006 when Bad Boy Recording artist Cheri Dennis’s hit single “I Love You” played two times an hour on every urban radio station and flooded the streets with a million remixes. Cheri was everywhere. She did shows overseas, appeared in sold-out concerts and did countless video shoots, radio interviews and college homecomings.

But somewhere between then and now, Cheri lost us. There was no second single, no follow-up video, no more interviews (other than to discuss the details of her off-season arrest), no more touring and no album. Fans were left wondering, ‘Where did Cheri go?’

Bloggers and magazine columnists went crazy with possibilities of her disappearance, among them being another example of Diddy doing what Diddy does to artists not named Diddy. But that’s not completely true. Plain and simple, Cheri decided to go back to the lab.

“I feel like I was a little iffy about some of the song selections and the creative direction of the album,” explains Cheri during her latest promotional tour. “So we went back in and did some more music. We got a whole body of work and chose the best songs. From that body of work I just feel confident that I can be 100% proud of the music this time around.” The original untitled debut album was to be released on June 13, 2006, but Cheri wasn’t going to misrepresent herself in her music. She says that while she’s not opposed to singing songs written by someone else, she has to have a connection with the song.

“For me to sing a song I didn’t write, I need to feel like I could have written it or that there is something that relates to me or my life or something I have been through,” she said.

With full confidence in the new version of her debut album entitled “In and Out of Love,” Cheri did something different this time around. She released the album on iTunes three months ahead of its in-store release date, making it the first-ever major label R&B album to receive a digital exclusive release via iTunes. The physical album is in stores now.

“iTunes reached out to us,” Cheri said. “They really don’t reach out to urban artists like that…iTunes is going to give me a wider audience. Maybe an audience I might not necessarily have had access to initially. The fact that they want to help break the album and push me to be successful, I think it’s just an all-around good thing.”

From the supportive bloggers to her fans from way back (Cheri appeared on the track “So Complete” on Puff’s “The Saga Continues” album), she continues to truly appreciate them. “I want to thank everyone who supported my music,” she says smiling. “I’m so appreciative to have such great fans.”

In an industry of one-hit wonders and pretenders, for an artist that has been around for so long without a full album to receive this kind of love, there must be something about Cheri.

Her album is in stores now and on iTunes (www.itunes.com). Also check out the cover story for Cheri Dennis in SOLE.