Jill Scott Returns to Hip-Hop on New LP, ‘The Light of the Sun’

Jill Scott, a neo-soul leader with an immensely powerful voice, is returning to the music world with a brand new album later this year. The three-time Grammy winner has announced that her fourth album, 'The Light of the Sun,' will drop later in 2011, and she's viewing the project as a re-embrace of hip-hop.

"I really want to get back to my original state," she told CNN. "I love hip-hop, and I was born to it. I needed to come back to it. It's been awhile, and I'm in a new environment."

The singer, who came up with artists like Erykah Badu, D'Angelo and India.Arie, has sold more than 4 million records throughout her career, but has focused on acting in recent years. Scott appeared alongside Tyler Perry and Janet Jackson in the movie 'Why Did I Get Married' and its sequel, as well as appearing on the HBO show 'The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.'

In addition to the return to hip-hop style, Scott has also been revisiting her Philadelphia roots. After returning home, she shot the video for the new album's first single, 'Shame,' and used her star power to help save the city's Cecil B. Moore recreation center.

"When I found out it was closing, it just hurt my feelings because kids like me needed a place to go," she said. "We just started to really take care of this facility because we don't want it to shut down... You still have to come back. Where you come [from], you take care of that place. Everybody is supposed to be a part of their own community."