Meet Usher's Girlfriend, Jenn Goicoechea
Audiences everywhere have loved watching the transformation of Usher since his start on the classic television show, "Star Search," at just 14. His gripping performance eventually led to a recording contract with LaFace Records, an Atlanta-based company that specialized in representing pop, rhythm and blues, and rap artists. When he was 25, he created his first No. 1 hit album, "Confessions," and hasn't slowed down since.
Despite having a busy music career, though, the R&B artist still makes time for a personal life. From 2007 to 2009, Usher was married to fashion designer Tameka Foster. The pair had two sons during that time, Usher "Cinco" Raymond V and Naviyd Ely Raymond. A decade after his divorce from Foster, he began dating Jenn Goicoechea.
Since getting together, Jenn Goicoechea and Usher welcomed two of Usher's four kids and have done a fair job of staying out of drama despite the constant spotlight. Jenn Goicoechea may not be a household name like her multi-Grammy-winning partner, but she is arguably just as intriguing.
Jenn Goicoechea works in the music industry
Usher certainly lives a lavish life, but his partner, Jenn Goicoechea, has been rubbing elbows with stars and attending industry events herself for years. Like Usher, Goicoechea is in the music industry, which helps fund her luxury lifestyle. However, instead of living it up onstage, Goicoechea seems to prefer to be behind the scenes. She works as a music executive, specializing in artist management and development. As of publication, she is the senior vice president of A&R at Epic Records. The A&R department, or Artists and Repertoire, is responsible for finding new artists for the record label to sign.
Goicoechea's educational background fits perfectly with her current placement, as she studied recording arts at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida, a school known for an array of arts, including game design and development, music, film, animation, and graphic design. Before her current position at Epic Records, Goicoechea worked at the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) as the Director of Rhythm & Soul. As her LinkedIn page details, she was "responsible for discovering and fostering Urban (Hip-Hop/R&B) songwriters, composers, and music publishers" as well as "maintaining relationships in the entertainment industry."
Goicoechea is also an entrepreneur. When she moved from the East Coast to the West Coast, she opened a management company called Boogs'N'Effect Management, where she signed KING (formerly known as Keisha Rain).
She shares a son and daughter with Usher
Jenn Goicoechea shares two beautiful children with Usher — a daughter, Sovereign Bo Raymond, and a son, Sire Castrello Raymond. Sovereign and Sire were born a year apart in 2020 and 2021, respectively.
Sovereign was born a month before her due date on September 24, 2020. In fact, Usher had only just recently announced on "Good Morning America" that he and Goicoechea were expecting. Then, about a week after the announcement was made that she was born, Usher took to Instagram to announce the news. "We are feeling blessed and full of love with the arrival of our beautiful baby girl, Sovereign Bo Raymond," he shared. In an interview with Extra some months later, Usher explained the significance of his daughter's name. "Sovereign ... is such a beautiful word and name to me, you know, a supreme ruler is obviously the defined name," he explained.
On September 29, 20021, Sovereign's little brother, Sire Castrello, was born. Usher revealed on "The Ellen Degeneres Show" that he chose "In Da Club" by 50 Cent for Sire's entrance into the world, after admitting that his playlist for Sovereign Bo's birth went all wrong. "We get ready to walk in the room [and] the Wi-Fi dies. So I'm like, okay, I have one song in my phone, so I just kept playing that song over again, and [Jenn's] like, 'Can you play another song please?'" Thankfully for everyone, he had a backup plan for Sire's birth.
Jenn Goicoechea's mother is also in the music industry
Perhaps it's no surprise that Jenn Goicoechea joined the music industry, since her mother, Barbara Goicoechea, is also involved. Barbara has worked as a director of operations at ATC Productions since 1988, an event and multimedia production company, based in Miami, Florida.
One executive assistant and event producer at ATC Productions provided a recommendation for Jenn's mother on her LinkedIn profile, writing, "Barbara is a production guru. She is highly skilled at anything related to project management, event production and film production. ... I personally look up to her and have grown personally and professionally after being involved in her projects."
Seeing her mom excel in the music industry likely made it easy for Jenn Goicoechea to want to follow in her footsteps. According to Elle, Jenn went on to learn directly from her mom, shadowing her at industry events, and later became an assistant to the singer Ciara.
Her work in the music industry hasn't gone unnoticed
In 2020, Jenn Goicoechea was named one of Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players, which recognized the talents and accomplishments of music executives. The following year, Goicoechea was named again by Billboard, making her a back-to-back honoree.
Goicoechea revealed her appreciation for the recognition on her Instagram, sharing screenshots of the announcement. "Honored to be on this year's R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players list!! Thank you Billboard for the [acknowledgment]," she wrote.
Prior to being named a Power Player by Billboard, Goicoechea was featured in Rolling Out magazine as one of the top 25 women in Atlanta in 2015. Discussing her work, Goicoechea told the magazine, "Having strong organizational skills, event planning abilities, being able to identify burgeoning talent early on while staying current and involved on the music scene and keeping my ear to the pulse is what helped me get to where I am today."
Usher and Jenn Goicoechea went public in 2019
Jenn Goicoechea and Usher made their relationship official in 2019, but they've known each other much longer. Working in the music industry made it easy for them to cross paths prior to becoming romantically involved. One of those instances was in 2016, as Goicoechea revealed by sharing a picture of her and Usher together on Instagram. She captioned the photo in a tongue-in-cheek way, writing, "Not sure what I'm saying or who I'm speaking [to]."
In March 2018, Goicoechea shared a throwback photo to her Instagram account, which showed her, Usher, and a few other music industry people. It wasn't until June 2019, when the two attended music producer Keith Thomas' 40th birthday party together, that romance rumors started. Furthermore, in October of that year, Goicoechea and Usher were spotted kissing backstage at the Hollywood Bowl (via Instagram).
A few months later, in December 2019, the couple showed off their new relationship at Sean "Diddy" Combs' 50th birthday celebration, where Usher also performed.
She's publicly supported activist movements
On social media, Jenn Goicoechea has become a vocal supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement. As the organization outlines, its mission is to eliminate white supremacy and build a trusted community of people that will interfere with wrongdoings done to Black people by the state and people of authority.
In 2020, Goicoechea shared an Instagram post about "Black Out Tuesday" which called for "[standing] in solidarity with the Black community, our artists, our employees, colleagues & community leaders in fighting racial injustice & inequality." Along with Goicoechea, other major influences in the music industry posted similar images, including Eminem, Jaira Burns, and Ian Thornley. On June 2, as promised, Goicoechea took part in the movement by posting a black square on her Instagram timeline, with the hashtag #theshowmustbepaused as the caption.
Later that month, Goicoechea shared another post signaling for change, captioning it, "#blacklivesmatter #nojusticenopeace."
She's a world traveler
Jenn Goicoechea's Instagram account is a tribute to her love for travel. She's done everything, from traveling in an RV to dining at Creole restaurants in New Orleans, dipping her toes in the hot springs of Arkansas, and getting a classic cheesesteak in Philadelphia.
The music industry exec also has a love for international travel. She shared highlights on her Instagram from her trip to Paris, including seeing the Louvre and the sparkling Eiffel Tower. Other posts from Goicoechea reveal she's visited the United Arab Emirates, Hawaii, Jamaica, and South Africa. In 2020, Usher and Goicoechea attended Paris Fashion Week together where they sat in the front row at the Balmain runway show. Celebrities, including singer Janelle Monae and actress Ashley Benson, among others, also sat near the couple during the show.
When they aren't traveling, the power couple is seen around Los Angeles, where they live with their two children. Shortly after their son, Sire, was born, the Daily Mail published an article that showed photographs of Goicoechea and Usher in casual wear, enjoying lunch with their new son.
She received a big birthday surprise from Usher
Usher seems to know how to treat a lady and how to put on a fantastic show. In October 2022, he combined these two talents for a birthday surprise for his partner. The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that Usher brought Goicoechea onstage at Dolby Live, where he performed during his Las Vegas residency. Once on stage, Goicoechea sat at a cocktail table and was toasted by Usher. After the toast, the two shared a kiss for the audience.
He also gave another shoutout to Goicoechea during an interview with People in 2023. "I have an amazing partner, a support system," he said. "We have [an] amazing dynamic between our relationship where I'm able to be passionate still about what I do and have an incredible partner to work through some of the harder times as a young man dealing with children and dealing with the dynamic of how you communicate with them." He later called her his "best friend" which is evident through their interactions.