Born in McComb, Mississippi and raised in Carson, California, he is the younger brother of singer and actress Brandy.

[3] Ray J's 1997 debut single, "Let It Go", was released by EastWest Records for the soundtrack to the F. Gary Gray film, Set It Off.

Led by his second top 40 single, "Wait a Minute" (featuring Lil' Kim), the album became his first to enter the Billboard 200–at number 21.

Released independently, his 2013 single, "I Hit It First" (featuring Bobby Brackins), peaked at number 51 on the chart, providing a brief period of resurgence as it discomfited his previous affair with Kardashian.

In January 2017, he competed in the nineteenth season of the British reality television series Celebrity Big Brother.

Early in his life, he moved with his family from McComb to Los Angeles, and in 1989, started appearing in television commercials for different companies.

In 1989, at the age of eight, Norwood began auditioning for and appearing in television commercials; he played the foster son in The Sinbad Show, from 1993 to 1994.

[1] Ray J recorded "Another Day in Paradise" with Brandy, which was a Top Ten success in Austria, UK, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Norway, Ireland, and the Netherlands, and number 11 in Australia and France.

Norwood also worked with the Neptunes, Rodney Jerkins and Lil' Kim, and several other producers and singers for his second studio album This Ain't A Game.

A joint venture by Sanctuary Records and Ray-J's own label, independent Knockout Entertainment, the album was finally released on September 27, 2005, in North America after several delays, debuting at number forty-eight on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 18,321 copies in the first week.

[12] On June 19, 2011, Ray J, along with his sister Brandy and his father Willie Norwood Sr., released A Family Business, which serves as a soundtrack to their hit reality TV show, Brandy & Ray J: A Family Business, and was released through Time-Life Music.

While waiting for more information, he became angered upon hearing one of the officers make a "disrespectful comment" about Houston, prompting him to force entry into the suite prior to being restrained.

"[17] Ray J and Houston became very close in the last years of her life, leading to speculation of a romantic relationship between the singers.

[19] Ray J went to the Beverly Hilton on August 1, 2012, for a panel during the TVOne portion of the 2012 Summer Television Critics Association tour.

Ray J is hosting Oxygen's new reality game show series Bad Girls All-Star Battle.

Ray J was reported to have sent a check that totaled his profits off of the sex tape that year as a wedding gift.

[31] As the founder of Raytroniks, Ray J introduced a line of consumer electronics to the United States market.

In particular, the Scoot-E-Bike brand which Ray J developed grew exponentially after implementing a viral organic marketing strategy.

Ray J secured product placements through celebrities such as Sean Combs and Brandy and professional athletic teams, including the L.A.

[36] In August 2016, Ray J married Princess Love at Los Angeles' Cathedral of Saint Vibiana.

[31] He, alongside Kanye West, attended the premiere of conservative commentator Candace Owens's documentary The Greatest Lie Ever Sold, a film investigating Black Lives Matter financial controversies.

[42] In January 2022, Ray J visited Donald Trump at his Mar-A-Lago residence to discuss job creation.

Ray J confronted Fabolous in Las Vegas just before he was set to take stage at the Palms Casino and is alleged to have punched him in the face.

He was arrested following the incident and in an interview with Power 105.1's The Breakfast Club, he explained why he took offense to Fabolous's tweets, stating that he played on the piano "every day" and referred to Mayweather as his "big brother" since the pair grew up together.