Usher almost walked away from his career after growing “frustrated” over the “lack of support” for his music.
The “Yeah!” star has confessed he started questioning his abilities after failing to replicate his previous successes and he worried his tracks were no longer resonating with fans. Because of those things, he considered quitting the industry for good.
“I think I grew frustrated and just needed a moment to decompress and to process what I was feeling,” he told People. “I just felt the lack of support, and it was a bit stifling because I was still putting the same amount of effort into trying to create things that I felt would be celebrated. It was a moment of true consideration, like ‘Is it time to hang it up? Am I good enough? Is it time for me to stop?’ I just have to go away.”
Usher decided to take time out from his career by going traveling. He said the trip helped him get back on track.
“Thailand, Africa, India, Tokyo, London — I went on this journey. It was all about fun. And after I went [to] all [of] those places, I got it. I was able to purge my thoughts and get to a place where I can really relax and allow light to unfold and not look at things in boxes, good or bad,” he added.
“I’ve gone through everything that I’ve gone through for a reason. I choose to not look at them as negative things,” Usher added. “These traumas have become treasured if I can choose to see them that way. That’s when I got it. And I just started believing in what I said and going after it.”
After getting back from the trip, Usher’s personal life also got a major boost as he struck up a romance with record executive Jennifer Goicoechea, who he married in Las Vegas on Feb. 11.
“Jenn was the first person I saw when I returned. She was like, ‘You look different.’ I was like, ‘Yeah, where you been?’ … I found an amazing partner who happened to be my best friend and was there all the time and I was like ‘Wow, this could be great’,” he explained.
