Happy Birthday, Donell Jones!

The turn of the millennium brought fans a lot of gifts when it came to R&B, and Donell Jones was one of them. The Chicago native turns 42 today (May 22).

R. Kelly is still the king when it comes Chicago-bred modern R&B, but Jones still put on for the city when he came up. Jones was simply maintaining with his debut album, My Heart, which came out in 1996. However, he finally caught fire in 1999, when he released his two signature hits. "Where I Want to Be" introduced many to Jones' boyish, but soothing voice in his rumination on romantic confusion. There's more of that on "U Know What's Up," which featured Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, hip-hop instrumentation and a video featuring Usher getting his hair braided, Big Boi and T.I. "U Know What's Up" is Jones highest-charting single at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100.

After Where I Wanna Be went platinum, the singer's success continued into the early 2000's with Life Goes On. With the help of feature verses from Fat Joe and Styles P, his third album ended up going gold.

Although his commercial peak is behind him, Jones is still making music. His last album, Forever, dropped in 2013.

Watch Donell Jones' "U Know What's Up" Video

See 20 Nightmares for People Who Love R&B