R&B Sensation Tyrese

Cover for Tyrese's latest CD, 'I Wanna Go There' (J-Records)

Listening to Tyrese

Hear samples from the R&B singer's three albums:

From I Wanna Go There:
 "How You Gonna Act Like That"

 "I Wanna Go There"

From 2000 Watts:
 "I Like Them Girls"

From Tyrese (debut):
 "Sweet Lady"

 "Lately"

His full name is Tyrese Gibson, but he's better known as just plain Tyrese, an R&B sensation. And at 24 years old, Tyrese is already a triple threat as a singer, actor and model.

Tyrese is the youngest of four children, born in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. America first saw Tyrese as the soulful signing crooner who sat on a bus in a Coca-Cola commercial -- a gig he won at age 14 at a talent contest.

Since then, Tyrese has gone from singing about soft drinks to chart-topping love songs -- like one of his current singles "How You Gonna Act Like That?" from his third CD project, I Wanna Go There. When he's not behind a microphone, he's in front of a camera. He's modeled for Tommy Hilfiger and Guess?, and was once voted one of People magazine's sexiest men.

NPR's Tavis Smiley recently sat down with Tyrese to talk about his career, how he maintains his connections to Watts, and the upcoming Third Annual Watts Day -- this year, hosted by Tyrese's own 2000 Watts Foundation.