AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Van Zant

Artist:Van Zant

Song:Help Somebody

Album:Totally Country Vol. 5

Van Zant is two of the three Van Zant brothers. Of course the late Ronnie Van Zant was the lead singer of Lynyrd Skynyrd. Johnny Van Zant has been the lead singer of Lynyrd Skynyrd since 1987. Donnie Van Zant was the lead singer of .38 Special until his 2013 retirement. They recorded and toured as Van Zant when Johnny isn't touring with Lynyrd Skynyrd. And they had success on the country charts with the 2005 album Get Right with the Man. The Johnny Van Zant Band recorded four albums in the early 80s and the name was shortened to Van Zant for a 1985 album. Then he joined the reunited Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1987. He released a solo album in 1990. The brothers first recorded together as Van Zant with the 1998 album Brother to Brother on CMC. They recorded a second album in 2001. They signed with Columbia Nashville for the 2005 album Get Right with the Man. The single Help Somebody reached #8 on the Country Singles chart and it reached #66 on the Billboard Hot 100. The music is country rock similar to what both guys do with their other bands. The album was produced by Columbia Nashville house producer Mark Wright. The Van Zants wrote some of the songs. But Help Somebody was written by veteran songwriter Jeffrey Steele and Kip Raines. The album is not available but you can get Help Somebody on this various artists budget comp. When the 2007 album My Kind of Country wasn't as successful, they decided they were too busy with their regular bands to continue Van Zant. Then Donnie Van Zant retired in 2013. Johnny Van Zant said in 2019 that they live next door to each other and they still work on music at his home studio. So you never know. Here's the video for Help Somebody by Van Zant. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Game

Artist:The Game f/50 Cent

Song:How We Do

Album:The Documentary

How We Do was one of two big hits from the 2005 debut album The Documentary by rapper Jayceon "The Game" Taylor. At the time, he had a close relationship with fellow rapper Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson. And the album was produced by Andre "Dr. Dre" Young. Those guys didn't work with Taylor on subsequent albums which may explain why it was his only successful album. He was born Nov. 29, 1979 in Compton, CA. His parents were both members of The Crips street gang. And Taylor got into that scene too along with selling drugs. While recovering in the hospital from 2001 gunshot wounds, Taylor asked his rapper brother George "Big Fase 100" Taylor to buy him classic hip hop albums. Taylor wanted to learn to be a rapper. The two started recording together and Taylor signed with Get Low Recordz. The name The Game was because his grandma was a fan of the 1997 film The Game. One of his mixtapes got him a deal with Dr. Dre's label Aftermath with Interscope distribution. Interscope CEO Jimmy Iovine had Taylor work with 50 Cent's group G-Unit. That way by the time Taylor's album is released, there is plenty of buzz about him. And that's exactly what happened. How We Do was the second single and it reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Hate It or Love It reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. 50 Cent appeared on both songs. The album The Documentary was certified 2XPlatinum and sold 2.5M copies worldwide. Dr. Dre produced most of the album and Jackson appeared on several songs. The album is available on CD. The problem was Young and Jackson did not appear on Taylor's subsequent albums. Taylor and Jackson had a falling out. And by the time Young returned to produce Taylor's 2011 album The R.E.D. Album, it was too late and Taylor left Interscope in 2012. Taylor continues to record for smaller labels. He released his latest album in 2022. But he simply hasn't been able to regain the success he had in 2005 probably because the success of The Game was directly tied to the success of 50 Cent. Maybe he wasn't that good in the first place. Here's the video for How We Do by The Game featuring 50 Cent.