Ray J

William Ray Norwood Jr. was born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Carson, California, after moving with his family to the Los Angeles area. He is the younger brother of recording artist and actress Brandy Norwood. Norwood began auditioning for television commercials in 1989 at the age of eight and appeared as a foster son on The Sinbad Show from 1993 to 1994.

His early acting work led to a role on Brandy's UPN sitcom Moesha, where he played Dorian "D-Money" Long from 1999 until the series ended in 2001. He later played Darrell "D-Mack" McGinty during the final season of One on One in 2005-2006.

Norwood signed with Elektra Records in 1995 and recorded his debut album, Everything You Want. Released in 1997, the album produced "Let It Go," which appeared on the soundtrack of the film Set It Off and reached number 25 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. His second album, This Ain't a Game, followed in 2001 through Atlantic Records and included "Wait a Minute," featuring Lil' Kim. The song reached number 30 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number eight on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.

Ray J recorded "Another Day in Paradise" with Brandy for the R&B and hip-hop tribute project Urban Renewal, on which he also co-produced and performed songs. His third studio album, Raydiation, was released in 2005 through Sanctuary Records and his Knockout Entertainment label. Its single "One Wish" became a top-20 hit in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and New Zealand, while the album sold more than 400,000 copies domestically.

In 2007, a private video made by Ray J and Kim Kardashian in 2003 became public, creating one of the most widely discussed controversies of his career. Kardashian pursued legal action over the video's ownership before settling with Vivid Entertainment in April 2007. Ray J and Kardashian had been in a relationship before the video became public.

His fourth album, All I Feel, was released in 2008. The album included "Sexy Can I," featuring Yung Berg, which reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and became Ray J's highest-charting song. During the same period, he appeared in the film Dark Christmas and starred in the VH1 reality dating series For the Love of Ray J, whose soundtrack was released in 2009.

Ray J was in San Diego when Whitney Houston died on February 11, 2012, and went to the Beverly Hilton as emergency personnel and police responded. He later said that he and Houston were friends and had never dated, despite public speculation about their relationship.

Ray J described Houston's death as the loss of a close friend and was characterized by Brandy as deeply distressed during that period. In 2012, he returned to the Beverly Hilton for a television industry panel, his first visit there since Houston's death.

Ray J released "I Hit It First," featuring Bobby Brackins, in 2013. The song reached number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100 and drew attention for lyrics interpreted as references to Kim Kardashian and Kanye West. He later released "ATM," featuring Migos, and continued appearing on reality programming.

He was a housemate on the nineteenth season of the British reality series Celebrity Big Brother in 2017 but left after one week. He also competed with Brandy on the Fox cooking series My Kitchen Rules. His later television credits include Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood, The Conversation, College Hill: Celebrity Edition, and Ms. Pat Settles It. In 2022, he won a Latin Grammy Award as a songwriter for the song "Candy" on Rosalía's album Motomami.

Ray J founded Raytroniks, a consumer electronics company launched in 2016. Its product categories included electric bikes, smartphone fans, and smartwatches. The company developed the Scoot-E-Bike brand and used celebrity and professional sports placements as part of its marketing strategy.

In 2017, Ray J co-founded Raycon, a direct-to-consumer electronics brand focused on wireless audio products such as earbuds and headphones. He oversees the company's brand and strategy.

Ray J married Princess Love in August 2016 at the Cathedral of Saint Vibiana in Los Angeles. They appeared together on VH1's Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood and later participated in the Zeus Network program The Conversation.

Ray J and Princess Love have two children. Their daughter, Melody Love Norwood, was born in May 2018, and their son, Epik Ray, was born in January 2020. Divorce proceedings were filed in 2020.

In May 2014, Ray J was arrested after an incident at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills. The case involved allegations of inappropriate touching, vandalism, resisting arrest, and battery against a police officer. He posted bail after the arrest.

Prosecutors later filed four misdemeanor charges, including sexual battery, vandalism of a police car, battery against a police officer, and resisting arrest. Ray J pleaded not guilty in August 2014.