Usher Wants To Follow 50 Cent And Launch TV Content That Will ‘Give People An Escape’

Usher has his sights set on more than just music. Much like rapper 50 Cent, the R&B superstar has hopes of expanding his musical imprint into a thriving media empire.

Usher has his sights set on more than just music. Like rapper 50 Cent, the R&B superstar hopes to expand his musical imprint into a thriving media empire.

The “Bad Girl” singer is gearing up to headline the Super Bowl halftime show at Super Bowl LVIII on Sunday night. The coveted gig comes on the heels of Usher’s highly successful sold-out Las Vegas residency, which turned stars like Kim Kardashian into repeat customers.

Now that everyone is on the same page in acknowledging Usher’s undeniable talent, the Grammy Award-winning singer is pushing himself to set new “standards” for his limitless levels of creativity.

“I push myself because that’s just a choice. I want to be great. I want to set standards,” he told Apple Music‘s Nadeska Alexis. “I want to be a standard that is seen through my passion. My passion for music, my passion for creativity.”

“Rather than become something that’s artistic by way of the videos that we create or the narratives that are inside of the music that then become something else [like a] TV series,” he added.

In fact, Usher credits hip-hop/media mogul 50 Cent for helping him craft his vision for intertwining his music into visual made-for-TV content.

“You look at 50 Cent, right, he creates Power. You heard the music first then you see the visuals,” Usher explained. “I’m hoping I can do more of that with the brands I’ve created with the songs.”

He continued. “It’s a matter of managing to monetize at the same time emotionally give people an escape. When you hear a song, you relate to it. It becomes an assistant in your emotional… It’s more than just music, it’s all of those things. Most importantly, it’s a connection.”

It’s similar to what he recently outlined in his Billboard cover story, which touched on the importance of creating profitable “commerce” around R&B music and culture.

“It’s about creating commerce in other spaces,” he explained. “Lovers & Friends [where Usher will perform Confessions in full in May] is a successful R&B festival that gives you a place to go and celebrate the songs that we make.”

“We need things that you associate with R&B that you can buy into. Like with hip-hop — glasses, clothes, cars, jewelry, sneakers … ancillary things that people can access. R&B needs and has the potential to have those things as well,” he said.