phunkdaddy said:

Testimony: Vol. 2, Love & Politics It wasn't independent. It was on Universal Republic Records, which was formed in 1999, and pools together Universal Records, Motown Records, and Republic Records. Her previous records were on Motown.

Edit: Regarding the song, I found this, which is a tad more descriptive:

A remix featuring Senegalese-American singer Akon, entitled Konvict Remix, was released to U.S. rhythmic and urban radio formats on April 3, 2006, and later to iTunes on June 20, 2006. The song's music video, directed by Barnaby Roper, used this remix. Akon's writing credit was added with the release of the remix.

On the April 16, 2007 episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show, Arie stated that her record label insisted that Akon be added to the single to make the song more mainstream. She said that she did not want Akon to be featured on the song, without mentioning his name.

According to Arie, the original version of "I Am Not My Hair" was a duet with pop rocker Pink. The song's original concept originated from Pink's decision to do away with her pink locks, while the last verse was written after Arie watched Melissa Etheridge's performance at the 2005 Grammy Awards, where she appeared bald from chemotherapy to treat breast cancer. This version was made available on iTunes on October 17, 2006, and was used in the Lifetime television film Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy, which premiered on October 23, 2006.