There Are Segways, and then there’s Usher‘s 20 Biggest Billboard Hits
Earlier that week, Usher celebrated his birthday in New York with Miguel. They wanted to see the Jeff Koons exhibit at the Whitney Museum of American Art, but when they got there, the museum was closed. “We asked if there was any way to open the museum for me, and ended up going through the whole thing with the curator explaining shit to me,” he says. “The theme of the show was luxury and degradation — it was pretty cool.”
He was especially interested in a period where the artist — now the celebrated creator of, among other things, enormous balloon animals in mirror-polished stainless steel — was rejected by the art establishment over sexually explicit work he made with an Italian porn star named Cicciolina, whom he married and divorced a year later. Shortly after their split, she gave birth to their son, Ludwig, and moved with the infant to Rome without Koons’ consent. The resulting custody battle raged on for more than a decade. “When the art industry comes against you, or any similar industry, they can really try to destroy your career,” says Usher. “Who are they to decide what is art? But then out of adversity comes something that creates not only strength but perspective.”
It’s hard to believe he’s not really talking about himself. Some fans, especially R&B traditionalists, haven’t been comfortable with what Usher considers the most important thing about his career — musical diversity. “I’ve always wanted to be an artist who was recognized for versatility, which is why I began to play with EDM, I began to play with pop, with rock, with Latin music,” he says. “Those things make up what I am as an -eclectic artist.”
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Miguel, a former Island Def Jam executive, clearly supports Usher in pursuing his many directions. She’s an impressive presence herself: attractive, stylish, off-the-charts smart. “She’s someone who has been able to support and understand all of who I am,” he stresses. “Not just as a dancer or as a performer or as a singer, but as a humanitarian and a businessman and as a person.”
And she’s a great travel companion, opening up Usher to the world in a new way. “One thing that has come from having a great partner like Grace is being able to cherish the places that I’ve gone,” he says. “We see the monumental sites, go to the museums, eat in the best restaurants. I’m that guy now! In the past I’d do what I have to do and get on the bus to the next city. Life has become a vacation.”
