Usher Claims Jay-Z, Pharrell, Diddy and Himself Were Supposed to Be a Group

Usher reveals that he almost formed a supergroup with Jay-Z, Pharrell and Diddy.

Usher Claims Jay-Z, Pharrell, Diddy and Himself Were Supposed to Be a Group

On Thursday (Feb. 1), Usher sat for an interview with Shannon Sharpe on his Club Shay Shay podcast. The R&B singer was asked if there had ever been any collaborations he regrettably turned down throughout his career. Usher smiled as one came to mind.

"Yeah, you gonna hate me for this one," Usher said around the 51-minute mark below. "Jay-Z, Pharrell, Diddy and me were supposed to be a group. Yeah, that's crazy. Yeah, you gonna hate me for that."

Usher went on to say he approved of the idea at first, but that scheduling conflicts ultimately got in the way.

"I think that we just got caught up," Usher explained. "I think we all got caught up in a moment. We was talking about it and having secret meetings about it. We were talking about music and how we gon’ flip it and the business of it. And somehow, man, we just got distracted and it never happened. That’s the one that I actually wish would have happened.”

Usher then said he also regretted turning down a role in the 2006 movie adaptation of Dreamgirls, which starred Beyoncé, Jennifer Hudson, Eddie Murphy and Jamie Foxx.

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Usher's interview on Club Shay Shay comes as he gets ready to headline the Super Bowl LVIII halftime show on Feb. 11, 2024 at the Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada. In a September 2023 interview with Apple Music, Usher revealed that coincidentally Jay-Z was the one who informed him of the opportunity.

"[Jay] said, ‘It’s time, it’s magic time. It’s time for you to have that moment," the Confessions singer told Apple Music‘s Zane Lowe. 'I’m like, 'What are you talking about?' He’s like, 'The Super Bowl'. I’m like, 'Oh, you ready? Absolutely.'"

The big performance will go down a few months after Usher wrapped his Las Vegas Residency with a tearful last show on Dec. 3, 2023.

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Watch Usher talk about almost forming a supergroup with Jay-Z, Pharrell and Diddy below.

Watch Usher's Interview on Club Shay Shay