Jimmy Cozier entered the world in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. During the 1990s the chart dominance of Maxwell, D’Angelo, and R. Kelly, built on their mix of seductive R&B phrasing, sleek hip-hop grooves, and overt sexual charisma, opened commercial doors for performers working in a comparable vein, among them Cozier. Raised in Brooklyn, New York, he absorbed music constantly because his relatives frequently sang and staged informal performances. An early passion for the art form convinced him to treat it as a lifelong vocation, yet he first earned his living supplying background vocals and crafting material for other acts. Songwriting assignments arrived swiftly, placing his compositions with Mya, Sinéad O’Connor, and Janet Jackson while he also appeared on recordings beside Lil’ Kim and Joe. When the moment arrived to pursue a solo path, Wyclef Jean’s endorsement of a demo tape secured Cozier an audience with Clive Davis, then leading Arista Records. Davis signed him immediately to the newly launched J Records roster, and the resulting self-titled debut album appeared in 2001, highlighted by the duet “Mr. Man” with Alicia Keys.
