Dangerously in Love

Beyoncé launched her career as the lead singer in the R&B girl group Destiny's Child in the late 1990s. According to Corey Moss of MTV News, "fans [were] eager to see" how Beyoncé, after years with the group, performs solo. While recording their third album Survivor in late 2000, Beyoncé announced the group would be put on hiatus in order for the members to produce solo albums in the coming years, which they hoped would boost interest in Destiny's Child. The idea of individual releases emanated from the group's manager and Beyoncé's father Mathew Knowles. With different musical styles for each member to produce, the albums were not intended to compete on the charts. Destiny's Child's management strategically planned to stagger the release of each group member's album to maximize sales. Michelle Williams was the first to release a debut solo album, titled Heart to Yours, in April 2002. == Recording and production ==

"—originally recorded by Destiny's Child—during The Beyoncé Experience tour in 2007|alt=A woman sings on stage. She wears a long transparent dress while she holds her left arm open. Before Beyoncé began recording for Dangerously in Love, she selected the producers with whom she would collaborate. For two days, she held meetings with prospective producers from the West Coast across the East Coast, and had interviews with them. Beyoncé went to Miami to begin sessions with record producer Scott Storch, her first collaborator, and lived in a hotel in the following months. As she wanted to concentrate on the album, Beyoncé took her time to avoid pressure build-up, significantly different from the hasty productions of Destiny's Child's albums. Survivor included a track titled "Dangerously in Love", which was deemed too sophisticated compared to other tracks on the album, and Destiny's Child decided not to release it as a single. After recording several tracks for Dangerously in Love, Beyoncé decided to re-record and add the track, retitling it "Dangerously in Love 2", after realizing that it fit the overriding theme of her album. Although Beyoncé did not create beats, she came up with melodies and ideas she shared with the producers. Since the album's release date was postponed so Columbia Records could capitalize on the success of Kelly Rowland's feature on Nelly's "Dilemma", Beyoncé had been offered the chance to further enhance the record. Although she was disappointed with the decision, Beyoncé realized that "everything happens for a reason", agreeing to return to the recording studio to work with other songwriters. This allowed her to record more songs, including the album's lead single "Crazy in Love". In late 2002, Beyoncé paused working on Dangerously in Love in favor of a holiday tour with Destiny's Child. Consequently, Beyoncé planned to release a follow-up album comprising leftover tracks from Dangerously in Love, as the creative output of its sessions left several tracks ready for another album pressing. With 43 songs completed, Beyoncé is credited as a co-writer and a co-producer, as well as the album's executive producer alongside her father and then-manager Mathew Knowles. == Music and lyrics ==

Beyoncé's father and then-manager Mathew Knowles said Dangerously in Love showcased her musical roots. While Williams and Rowland explored on gospel and alternative pop styles, respectively, Beyoncé focused on recording R&B songs. The album's tracks vary, ranging from mid-tempo and club-oriented tracks on the first half, to ballads on the second half. Beyoncé commented: "My album is a good balance of ... ballads and ... mid-tempos with just ridin'-in-your-car feels, to a lot of ... up-tempo club songs, to really sexy songs, to songs that make you feel emotional. It's a nice mixture of different types of tracks." ==Title and packaging==

Dangerously in Love was titled after a track of the same title from Destiny's Child's third studio album Survivor (2001), which Beyoncé re-recorded for the album. The song itself is lyrically about being romantically obsessed, When "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" was released as a single in October 2002, critics and the public had speculated that Beyoncé and Jay-Z were having a mutual affair. Despite widespread rumors, they remained silent about their relationship. Beyoncé's mother and stylist, Tina Knowles, brought a diamond top for the shoot. Tina had brought skirts to pair it with, but Beyoncé felt they would look too "red carpet" with the top, according to Klinko. Instead, he lent Beyoncé his Dolce & Gabbana jeans for the shoot. The photograph was edited in post-production to conceal Beyoncé's breasts. Klinko said: "That famous pose she struck, with her arms out, she just did that. I didn't tell her to do that ... I just captured it." He felt the image "projected who Beyoncé was about to become ... Within a couple of years she had become that iconic, undeniable superstar. The photoshoot created a road map to where she was headed." == Release and promotion ==

tour in 2007|alt=A brunette woman is dancing and holds a microphone with her hand. She wears dark clothes while she holds her hands in front of her chest. Beyoncé said she had trouble convincing executives at Columbia Records to release Dangerously in Love. She recounted that it was almost not released: "In 2003, I had my first solo album. But when I played it through for my record label, they told me I didn't have one hit on my album. I guess they were kinda right, I had five—'Dangerously in Love', 'Naughty Girl', 'Me, Myself and I', 'Baby Boy' and 'Crazy in Love'." Since Kelly Rowland's "Dilemma" was concurrently charting atop the US Billboard Hot 100, Beyoncé's management released "Work It Out", one of the songs on the soundtrack to Austin Powers in Goldmember, instead of a single from Dangerously in Love to preclude it from possibly competing with "Dilemma". Dangerously in Love was consequently pushed back from its original October 2002 release date to December, Beyoncé recorded a cover version of 50 Cent's "In Da Club", which served its way to mixtapes before the original release date. The song failed to dominate as a "dancefloor favorite"; Mathew Knowles, however, confirmed that it was just a "buzz cut" and was not included on the album. Nonetheless, it earned enough airplay to chart on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. While Beyoncé was completing the album, several of its tracks had leaked online. In an effort to prevent more tracks from the album being spread illegally, as well as being a victim of bootlegging, Buyers who pre-ordered Dangerously in Love via Sony Music's online store received links where they could download a song titled "I Can't Take No More" (written by Beyoncé, Mario Winans and Mike Jones and produced by Winans); the offer lasted until the album's release. On June 14, Beyoncé premiered songs from the album during her first solo concert and the pay-per-view television special titled ''Ford Presents Beyoncé Knowles, Friends & Family, Live From Ford's 100th Anniversary Celebration in Dearborn, Michigan''. By the night of the album's release, Beyoncé's concert was broadcast in over 20 theaters across the United States. Rowland, Michelle Williams, Tyrese and Beyoncé's younger sister Solange also performed during the show. Beyoncé also promoted the album by performing on television shows such as Saturday Night Live, Late Show with David Letterman, Today, The Early Show, and The View. She further promoted it with her Dangerously in Love Tour in November 2003, performing in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Netherlands. Her concert at Wembley Arena in London on November 10, was filmed for her live album Live at Wembley, released on April 26, 2004. Additionally, Beyoncé co-headlined the Verizon Ladies First Tour with Alicia Keys and Missy Elliott across the US from March to April. == Singles ==

tour in 2007 In April 2003, Columbia Records was choosing the lead single from Dangerously in Love between two songs. Sent to clubs, the song that would receive better reception would be selected as the lead single. The same week the song reached number one, Dangerously in Love topped the Billboard 200 as well. The substantial airplay and later retail sales of "Crazy in Love" facilitated it to dominate the chart, subsequently spending eight straight weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, The digital single was certified sextuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). At the 46th Annual Grammy Awards (2004), the song won Best R&B Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. Critically acclaimed, the video won Best Female Video, Best R&B Video and Best Choreography in a Video at the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards. "Baby Boy" was released as the second single from Dangerously in Love on August 3, 2003. It was well received by critics, who declared it a "high-profile collaboration" The digital single was certified platinum by the RIAA. Its accompanying music video, Beyoncé's second consecutive to be directed by Nava, features Beyoncé performing the song infused with heavy choreography at a flooded party and on a Miami beach, among other sceneries. "Me, Myself and I" was released as the third single from Dangerously in Love on October 19, 2003. It received generally positive critical response, directed towards its production and Beyoncé's vocal performance. It peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100, and reached the top ten in Canada. The digital single was certified platinum by the RIAA. Critically acclaimed, the video was nominated for Best R&B Video at the 2004 MTV Video Music Awards. "Naughty Girl" was released as the fourth and final single from Dangerously in Love on March 14, 2004. The song was lauded by critics, who noted that "Beyoncé borrowed a portion of Donna Summer's naughty classic "Love to Love You Baby" to create this celebration of sensual naughtiness." It peaked at number three on the US Billboard Hot 100, continuing Beyoncé's string of top-five singles on the chart. The digital single was certified platinum by the RIAA. Despite "Me, Myself and I" and "Naughty Girl" not peaking atop the Billboard Hot 100, they still achieved high commercial success and helped Dangerously in Love reach a multi-platinum status. The accompanying music video for "Naughty Girl" was directed by Nava and features Beyoncé seductively dancing and flirting with Usher. The Studio 54-styled video was inspired by the dancing of Cyd Charisse and Fred Astaire in the 1953 musical comedy film The Band Wagon. Beyoncé and Luther Vandross' cover of Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway's "The Closer I Get to You" was released as the fourth and final single from Vandross' thirteenth and final studio album Dance with My Father on June 13, 2004. Having won Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards, Despite never being released as a single, "Dangerously in Love 2" won Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards, Its mastertone was certified gold by the RIAA. == Critical reception ==

Dangerously in Love received generally mixed reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 63, based on 17 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Anthony DeCurtis of Rolling Stone viewed that it presents Beyoncé in two styles, one "far more flattering" than the other, and found the ballad-oriented songs on the album least flattering, commenting that Beyoncé has "plenty of time" to develop the style maturely that would "[make] sense for her". Entertainment Weeklys Neil Drumming commented that the album validates Beyoncé's "taste in innovation". He also viewed that Beyoncé's collaboration with various record producers explores new directions in contemporary music, doing more reinventing than revisiting. Like DeCurtis' review, however, Drumming pointed out that "most of the disc's missteps" are in its latter part. Slant Magazines Sal Cinquemani wrote that "[Beyoncé] is allowed more room to experiment vocally as a solo artist, exploring softer registers and lathering on the coquettish persona that was only hinted at on Destiny's Child tracks like 'Bootylicious.'". Steve Jones of USA Today stated, "Beyoncé succeeds by showing greater depth as a songwriter and broader range as a singer". Blenders Ben Ratliff complimented Beyoncé's performance and stated, "She's playing the cool-hunter but covering the bases with seraphic arrangements of multiple voices. Her reach is remarkable". Mark Anthony Neal of PopMatters called it an "artistic leap" and wrote that it "finds Ms. B in the midst of a fully flowering womanhood and doing the best singing of her career". Uncut called its ballads "self-pitying/self-mythologising", while Q stated: "She has good songs, but no great songs". Los Angeles Times writer Natalie Nichols expressed that it "demonstrates vocal finesse [...] But, especially on the ballads, [Beyoncé] often drags things out with diva acrobatics". In a mixed review, Vibes Jason King said Dangerously in Love occasionally "sounds desperate to reach every demographic". Kelefa Sanneh, writing for The New York Times, felt that the album missed the harmonies of Destiny's Child records and that Beyoncé was more effective "when she's got a posse behind her". The Guardians Adam Sweeting wrote that "the desperate urge to cover every musical base from dancefloor to soul-ballad means that there is barely a track here with any distinctive identity or even a tune". In his consumer guide for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau cited "Yes" and "Baby Boy" as the album's highlights and quipped that the artist was "Dangerously in Love ... with her daddy, the bonus cut reveals—as if we didn't know." He gave the album a one-star honorable mention, indicating "a worthy effort consumers attuned to its overriding aesthetic or individual vision may well like." In a retrospective review, AllMusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine commented that "the first half is good enough to make Dangerously in Love one of the best mainstream urban R&B records released in 2003, and makes a strong case that Beyoncé might be better off fulfilling this destiny instead of reuniting with Destiny". == Accolades ==

Dangerously in Love and its singles earned Beyoncé numerous awards and nominations. Beyoncé was recognized as New Female Artist and New R&B Artist, among the four awards she won during the 2003 Billboard Music Awards. At the November 2003 American Music Awards, the album was nominated in the category for Favorite Soul/R&B Album. It also received a nomination in the category for Best Album at the 2003 MOBO Awards. At the 46th Annual Grammy Awards, Beyoncé won Best Contemporary R&B Album along with four other awards for the album's songs. With that feat, she tied with Alicia Keys, Norah Jones, and Lauryn Hill for most Grammy Awards won by a female artist in one night. At the 2004 Brit Awards, the album was nominated in the category for Best International Album but lost to Justin Timberlake's Justified. However, the singer herself won in the category for International Female Solo Artist. Dangerously in Love was also nominated in the category for Best Album at the 2004 MTV Europe Music Awards. Rankings == Commercial performance ==

In the United States, Dangerously in Love debuted atop the Billboard 200 chart dated July 12, 2003, with first-week sales of 317,000 copies according to Nielsen SoundScan. Although its first-week sales failed to match those of Survivor (2001), which sold 663,000 copies, Beyoncé registered the highest single-week sales among Destiny's Child members' solo albums: Kelly Rowland's Simply Deep sold 77,000 copies in its first week, while Michelle Williams' Heart to Yours sold 17,000 copies in its strongest week. In its second week, the album registered a 42-percent sales decrease to 183,000 copies, descending to number two behind Ashanti's Chapter II. It remained behind Chapter II at number two in its third week, selling 132,000 copies. The album has been certified sextuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). with cumulative sales of over five million copies as of December 2015. In Canada, the album debuted atop the Canadian Albums Chart being certified quadruple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). In Australia, the album debuted at number three on the ARIA Top 100 Albums, ascending to its peak at number two the following week. It eventually went on to be certified triple platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). In New Zealand, the album debuted at number 14, peaking at number eight in its second week. It was later certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ). In Japan, the album peaked at number 12 on the Oricon Albums Chart, being certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ). As of 2011, Dangerously in Love has sold over 11 million copies worldwide. == Legacy ==

, with the writing "CD in Stores June 24". With the release of Dangerously in Love and the combined commercial success of its singles, Beyoncé had established herself as a viable solo artist. Rebecca Louie of the New York Daily News wrote that the success of Dangerously in Love brought Beyoncé into a "sultry solo star" who "blossomed from a girly group", referring to Destiny's Child. Its "handsome debut" was noted by Keith Caulfield of Billboard as having been generated "by goodwill earned from the performance of [Beyoncé's] smash first album Dangerously in Love." == Track listing ==

Notes • signifies an additional vocal producer • signifies a co-producer • signifies a vocal producer • In some countries where "Daddy" was released as a hidden track, the track was excluded for the digital release. == Personnel ==

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of Dangerously in Love. • Nat Adderley, Jr. – arrangement (track 11), electric piano (track 11), production (track 11), string arrangements (track 11) • Tawatha Agee – backing vocals (track 11) • Vincent Alexander – additional engineering (track 4) • Sanford Allen – concertmastering • Chuckie Amos – hair styling • Skip Anderson – additional keyboards (track 11), arrangement (track 11), programming (track 11) • Delroy "D-Roy" Andrews – production (track 10), songwriting (track 10) • Ray Bardani – mixing (track 11), string engineering (track 11) • Sherrod Barnes – production (track 9), songwriting (track 9) • Mark Batson – additional instrumentation (track 15), conducting (track 15), engineering (track 15), production (track 15), songwriting (track 15), string arrangements (track 15) • Carlos "El Loco" Bedoya – engineering (tracks 2, 3, 6, 8, 9 and 13), vocal engineering (track 7) • Pete Bellotte – songwriting (track 2) • Angela Beyincé – songwriting (tracks 2, 5 and 9) • Beyoncé – executive production, production (tracks 1–10 and 12–15), songwriting (tracks 1–7, 9, 10 and 12–15), vocal production (track 8), vocals (all tracks) • Big Boi – additional vocal production (track 4), songwriting (track 4), vocals (track 4) • Kevin Bird – prop styling • Brian Bridgeman – songwriting (track 10) • Craig Brockman – production (track 8), songwriting (track 8) • John "Jab" Broussard – additional guitars (track 12) • Al Brown – string contracting (track 11) • Dan Bucchi – mixing assistance (track 9) • Chris Carmouche – additional engineering (track 4) • Jim Caruana – engineering (tracks 1, 5 and 8) • Demacio "Demo" Castellon – mixing assistance (track 8) • George Clinton, Jr. – songwriting (track 5) • William Collins – songwriting (track 5) • Gary Cooper – songwriting (track 5) • Tom Coyne – mastering (all tracks) • Ian Cuttler – art direction • Dahlen – photography • Jason Dale – mixing assistance (track 7) • Makeda Davis – songwriting (track 4) • Eldra DeBarge – songwriting (track 10) • Randy DeBarge – songwriting (track 10) • Missy Elliott – production (track 8), songwriting (track 8), vocals (track 8) • Focus... – engineering (track 7), instrumentation (track 7), production (track 7), songwriting (track 7) • Guru – engineering (tracks 4 and 10) • Phil Hamilton – guitar (track 11) • Ivan Hampden Jr. – drums (track 11) • Rich Harrison – instrumentation (tracks 1 and 5), production (tracks 1 and 5), songwriting (tracks 1 and 5) • Andreao "Fanatic" Heard – production (track 9), songwriting (track 9) • Cissy Houston – backing vocals (track 11) • James Hunter – graphic design • Indrani – photography • Jay-Z – songwriting (tracks 1, 3, 4, 7 and 10), vocals (tracks 1 and 10) • Bashiri Johnson – percussion (track 11) • Etterlene Jordan – songwriting (track 10) • Scott Kieklak – mixing (track 8) • Quincy Jackson - marketing • Markus Klinko – photography • Mathew Knowles – executive production • Tina Knowles – styling • Brendan Kuntz – mixing assistance (track 14) • Reggie Lucas – songwriting (track 11) • Tony Maserati – mixing (tracks 1–7, 9, 10, 14 and 15) • Errol "Poppi" McCalla, Jr. – production (track 12), songwriting (track 12) • Byron Miller – bass (track 11) • Giorgio Moroder – songwriting (track 2) • Mr. B – production (track 10) • James Mtume – songwriting (track 11) • Shuggie Otis – songwriting (tracks 5 and 14) • Sean Paul – songwriting (track 3), vocals (track 3) • Greg Price – mixing assistance (tracks 2, 3 and 6) • Eugene Record – songwriting (track 1) • Mally Roncal – make-up • Dexter Simmons – mixing (track 12) • Sleepy Brown – vocals (track 4) • Matt Snedecor – mixing assistance (tracks 9 and 14) • Brian Springer – engineering (track 12) • Nisan Stewart – production (track 8), songwriting (track 8) • Scott Storch – production (tracks 2, 3 and 6), songwriting (tracks 2, 3 and 6) • Donna Summer – songwriting (track 2) • Candace Thomas – backing vocals (track 11) • Pat Thrall – engineering (tracks 1 and 3) • Luther Vandross – vocal arrangement (track 11), vocals (track 11) • Luz Vasquez – mixing assistance (tracks 1–6 and 10) • Stan Wallace – engineering (track 11) • Robert Waller – songwriting (tracks 2, 3 and 6) • Brenda White-King – backing vocals (track 11) • Teresa LaBarbera Whites – A&R • Bryce Wilson – production (track 4), songwriting (track 4) • Pat Woodward – mixing assistance (tracks 1, 4–6 and 10) • Dan Workman – engineering (track 12), guitars (track 12) == Charts ==

Weekly charts Monthly charts Year-end charts Decade-end charts Centurial charts All-time charts == Certifications ==