The ONE8 artists have been amped up, living the high life in Chicago and most importantly, recording what will no doubt be one of the world’s hottest singles this holiday season. ‘Hands Across the World’ would soon be released to radio stations and clubs across Africa and worldwide.

R. Kelly, who was recently joined in the world famous Chicago studios by the members of ONE8, has been a powerful force in R&B worldwide for the past two decades. Apart from global fame he has also received numerous awards for some of the most important recordings of our time, as well as outstanding production, for many years, making him one of the best selling urban artists of all time.

Hits like ‘I Believe I Can Fly’, ‘Bump ‘n Grind’ and ‘Gotham City’ have made him a household name around the world and his production on top artists like Michael Jackson, Toni Braxton, LL Cool J and many more have kept him at the top of the charts and on radio for the duration of his music career.

R. Kelly is excited to be involved in the ONE8 project. Speaking from his studio in Chicago as they put the final touches to the single, he stated: “I love projects like this. As I hear the music of these artists and meet them in person I can feel myself connect. Somehow I can feel the excitement and adrenaline through them and then the ideas and everything around this track just comes together. This is probably one of the greatest things I have ever done, I can just feel it in me.”

ONE8 already consists of the finest superstars on the African continent. Born from a simple idea and a small collaboration, the momentum of this project has turned it into a full-blown super group already dubbed by fans and media as ‘a music revolution’ and ‘history in the making’. ONE8 will release not only the hottest single of the year, but also a full album and DVD later this year. This long-term project was kicked into high gear when the artists flew into Chicago late last month to record ‘Hands Across the World’ with R. Kelly and his world class production team.

The group also recorded a video and documentary which will be released shortly. The final ONE8 line up has been confirmed as follows:

R Kelly – USA
2Face – Nigeria
Alikiba – Tanzania
Amani – Kenya
Fally Ipupa – DRC
4X4 – Ghana
JK – Zambia
Movaizhalene – Gabon
Navio – Uganda