Brandy (album)

Trained in church and influenced by Whitney Houston, Brandy's talent led in 1990 to a binding oral contract with Teaspoon Productions, headed by Chris Stokes and Earl Harris, who obtained her and her younger brother Ray J gigs as a backing vocalist for their R&B boy band Immature and undertook efforts to obtain a recording contract on her behalf. but although Williams identified her as the standout, he deemed her too young and advised her to return at 14, prompting the group's dissolution and a renewed focus by Stokes on developing her as a solo artist. who ultimately offered her a recording contract on the spot. She subsequently withdrew from Hollywood High School, where staff had failed to send her out for auditions, ==Recording and production==

Recording of Brandy commenced in 1993. Williams initially consulted Curtis "Sauce" Wilson, Rochad "Cat Daddy" Holiday, and Jeff "Fuzzy" Young from all-male R&B group Somethin' for the People and musician Damon Thomas to work on the album. The group and the Norwood family formed a close bond during production, often spending time together outside the studio and working informally at Somethin' for the People's apartment, with Brandy popping on and off their North Hollywood home to record songs. the latter of which was later split into three interludes, much to the initial disappointment of both the group and Brandy. who contributed his first-ever written song and co-writing credit, "Love Is on My Side," having previously connected with Thomas through collaborations with his father, Alan. While Williams was enthusiastic about Crouch’s material, Brandy initially struggled to relate to some of it, Crouch ultimately worked on half of the album, setting much of its tone. In a 2012 interview with Vibe magazine, Brandy reflected on their collaboration: "It was very important for me as a young artist. At the time he was not trying to be like anyone else on radio. He was all about his own sound. [He] gave me real music. He didn’t give me teenybopper records. It was age appropriate, youthful records, but it was still real music. We had a great connection." ==Music and lyrics==

With Brandy consisting mostly of street-oriented R&B songs with influences from hip hop, the lyrics highlighted her youthful and innocent image. Norwood later summed up the songs on the record as young and vulnerable: "I did not really know much – all I wanted to do was sing. You can easily understand that it is a person who sings genuinely, without any real experience. I sang about being attracted to the opposite sex but had no experience of it." The album's fourth track, "I Dedicate (Part I)", is the first of three where Norwood thanks artists who inspired her for a career in music. In the first part, which lasts one minute and 29 seconds, she mentions Whitney Houston as her "mentor" and "role model". ==Singles==

"I Wanna Be Down" was released as the album's lead single on September 5, 1994, to positive critical reception. The song peaked at number six on the US Billboard Hot 100 and atop the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. Internationally, the song peaked at numbers 12 and 11 in Australia and New Zealand, respectively. It was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on November 4, selling over 600,000 copies in the United States by the end of 1994. The song's accompanying music video, directed by Keith Ward, portrays Norwood in her tomboyish image, dancing in front of a Jeep near a forest, surrounded by backup dancers. The Rhythm Nation Hip-Hop Remix of the song, featuring MC Lyte, Queen Latifah and Yo-Yo, was included on the B-Side single for "Baby". "Baby" was released as the second single on December 24, 1994, to positive critical reception. It became an even larger commercial success than "I Wanna Be Down" peaking at number four both on the Billboard Hot 100 and in New Zealand, while becoming her second consecutive Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs number-one. being certified platinum by the RIAA. Its accompanying music video, directed by Hype Williams, features Norwood and her company dancing in skiing outfits in Times Square. The song was nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the 38th Annual Grammy Awards. Its accompanying music video, directed by Matthew Rolston, features Norwood and her backup troupe displaying their hip hop dancing skills in front of a garage; Norwood's younger brother Ray J, to whom the song was dedicated, appears in the video. The single was certified gold by the RIAA on November 10 for shipments of 500,000 units in the United States. Norwood reunited with Williams, director of previous videos for the Human Rhythm Hip Hop remix of "I Wanna Be Down" and "Baby", to film a music video for "Brokenhearted" inside the Oheka Castle. == Critical reception ==

In his review for AllMusic, Eddie Huffman wrote that "this teenage R&B singer hit the Top Ten late in 1994 with "I Wanna Be Down", a representative track from her solid debut album. Brandy knows her way around a hip-hop beat, layering tender-tough vocals over spare arrangements like a lower-key Janet Jackson or a more stripped-down Mary J. Blige. Good songs and crisp production make Brandy a moody, moving success." In 2007, Vibe rated Brandy among the 150 most essential albums since its launch. People compared the effort with Aaliyah's debut album ''Age Ain't Nothing but a Number'', which was released four months prior, writing: "While everything about Aaliyah screams here-and-now, Brandy's well-groomed blend of gently lilting hip hop and pop-soul has a more timeless appeal. With the poise and sassy confidence of a diva twice her age, Brandy mixes her love songs with tributes to her little brother ("Best Friend"), God ("Give Me You"), the perfect man ("Baby") and older crooners like Aretha and Whitney ("I Dedicate"). While this isn't groundbreaking stuff, Brandy has the pipes to become more than the latest teenage next-big-thing." Anderson Jones from Entertainment Weekly was less enthusiastic with the album. He gave the album a C rating and considered it as: "An album that seems based on the philosophy 'If Aaliyah can do it, why can't I?' except that in singing about best friends, heroes, and puppy love instead of about making love, teen actress Norwood (TV's Thea) acts her age. A premature effort, at best." In his Consumer Guide, Robert Christgau gave the album a "neither" score, == Accolades ==

• Nominations: • Winner: == Commercial performance ==

Brandy debuted at number 94 on the US Billboard 200 for the week ending on October 15, 1994. In its 25th week on the chart it peaked at number 20, remaining on the Billboard 200 for 89 consecutive weeks. On the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart the album debuted at number 11. In its 14th week on the chart it peaked at number six, where it charted for 87 consecutive weeks. Brandy was the 52nd best-selling album of 1995, with 1.2 million copies sold in the country. To date the album is certified quadruple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for four million shipped units. In Canada, Brandy debuted on RPM' s Top Albums/CDs chart at number 46 during the week ending on January 30, 1995. In its third week on the chart the album reached its peak at number 20, during the week of February 13, 1995. Overall, the album had spent a total of 28 consecutive weeks on the Top Albums/CDs chart. On June 27, 1995 Brandy was certified gold by Music Canada for denoting shipments of over 50,000 copies. The album also peaked at number 26 in Australia. In the United Kingdom, Brandy never got higher than number 119 on the UK Albums Chart, but sold more than 60,000 copies, resulting in a silver certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). == Impact and legacy ==

With the release of her debut album and the combined commercial success of its singles, Norwood had established herself a successful solo artist. The album led her to successful endeavors before the release of her second album Never Say Never (1998), including a joint tour with vocal group Boyz II Men, songs landing on successful soundtracks for films such as Waiting to Exhale (1995) and Set It Off (1996), her first starring TV role in the sitcom Moesha, and starring as the first African-American Cinderella in Cinderella (1997). Widely acclaimed, Brandy was named one of the 50 best R&B albums of the 1990s by Complex. Fellow neo soul artist Jill Scott particularly praised the songs "Sunny Day" and "Always on My Mind", saying "I listen to her shit all the time". Pop group Karmin's song "Brokenhearted" was inspired by Brandy's song of the same title. Canadian recording artist Drake sampled all three parts of "I Dedicate" on his fourth studio album Views (2016) for the song "Fire & Desire". Gospel recording artists The Walls Group covered the song "Always on My Mind", turning it into "God on My Mind". == Track listing ==

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Brandy. • Cat Daddy Ro – keyboard • Jerry Conaway – programming • Keith Crouch – producer • Kenneth Crouch – piano, producer • Derrick Edmondson – flute, saxophone, horn • Sherree Ford-Payne – vocal assistance • Rochad Holiday – producer • Kipper Jones – producer • Robert Jones – programming, drums • Tiara Lemacks – vocal assistance • Arvel McClinton III – programming, producer • Glenn McKinney – guitar • Brandy Norwood – lead vocals • Derek Organ – drums • Thomas Organ – guitar • Chacha Orias – bass • Rahsaan Patterson – vocal assistance • Robin Thicke – vocal assistance • Damon Thomas – piano, keyboard, producer • Darryl Williams – executive producer • Curtis Wilson – producer • Jeffrey Young – vocal assistance, arranger, producer == Charts==

Weekly charts Year-end charts == Certifications ==