FEATURE:
A Buyer’s Guide
Part Eighty-Three: Brandy
___________
THERE are a couple of exceptions…
I am making for this A Buyer’s Guide. I may well include one of her treasured peers, Monica, in the coming weeks. I wanted to highlight Brandy, as her albums are not given as much respect and play as they deserve. She is one of the most important R&B artists of the past few decades. I normally insist that there is a minimum of eight album’s to an artist/band’s name before I consider them. Brandy has released seven. There is also not a book related to her that I could find. That said, I really feel there are albums of her that are underrated, in addition to a few real classics. I am going to recommend her four best albums, one that is underrated, in addition to her latest studio album – leaving only one of her albums that I will not cover. Before getting to the Brandy albums that are well worth investigating, I want to bring in some biography. AllMusic have us covered when it comes to the Mississippi-born icon:
“Brandy is among the few artists to achieve mainstream success as a teenager and make smooth artistic transitions across a multi-decade career. The singer and actor emerged during the post-new jack swing era like the kid sister of Mary J. Blige or TLC, specializing in pop-oriented R&B epitomized by her first two singles, "I Wanna Be Down" and "Baby," both Top Ten crossover hits that made her debut, Brandy (1994), a multi-platinum smash. The title role on the popular sitcom Moesha, a chart-topping and Grammy-winning duet with Monica ("The Boy Is Mine," the longest-running number one female duet in Billboard chart history), and the multi-platinum follow-up Never Say Never (1998) all reaffirmed Brandy's broad appeal through the end of the '90s. While she could have continued to crank out safe contemporary R&B as her acting career took precedence, she made the most out of her subsequent studio time, highlighted by Full Moon (2002) and Afrodisiac (2004), progressive stylistic hybrids that earned her consecutive Grammy nominations for Best Contemporary R&B Album. Since the mid-2000s, Brandy has recorded less often, with Human (2008) and Two Eleven (2012) maintaining her unbroken streak of Top Ten R&B/hip-hop albums. Amid constant work onscreen and on-stage, Brandy's musical output during the second half of the 2010s was limited to a handful of singles and featured appearances, but she issued her seventh album, B7 (2020), early the next decade.
Brandy Norwood was born in McComb, Mississippi, and began singing in church at age two. When she was four, her father was hired as music director at a church in Carson, California, and after a few years, she decided to pursue a professional singing career, inspired by Whitney Houston. With the help of her family, she began hunting for a record contract, and in 1992 began singing backup for the young R&B group Immature. Brandy enrolled in the Hollywood High Performing Arts Center and launched an acting career, appearing in films like Arachnophobia and Demolition Man. At the age of 14, she landed a record deal with a performance at an Atlantic Records talent showcase. Around the same time, she won a supporting role on the short-lived ABC sitcom Thea. In September 1994, Brandy released her self-titled debut album, which immediately produced Billboard Hot 100 Top Ten smashes in "I Wanna Be Down" and "Baby," both of which hit number one on the R&B/hip-hop chart; "Brokenhearted" and "Best Friend" went on to smaller successes. Brandy was certified quadruple platinum within two years.
In 1996, Brandy scored her biggest hit yet with "Sittin' Up in My Room," recorded for the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack; it hit number two pop and number one R&B/hip-hop. Early that year, she also debuted on UPN as the star of Moesha, for which she took a lengthy recording hiatus. Apart from "Sittin' Up in My Room," her only real activity over the next couple of years was the Set It Off soundtrack single "Missing You," on which she teamed with Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight, and Tamia. In 1997, she branched out by taking the title role in Disney's made-for-TV version of Cinderella, appearing alongside her idol Whitney Houston; the film's star power and integrated cast made it a significant ratings success. Finally, Brandy set about recording her second album. Never Say Never was released in June 1998, and its first single, the Monica duet "The Boy Is Mine," was a mammoth hit, topping the Hot 100 for a staggering 13 weeks. In its wake, "Top of the World" (featuring guest rapper Mase) and "Have You Ever?" were both substantial hits as well, with the latter becoming Brandy's first solo number one Hot 100 hit. Never Say Never spun off three additional singles, including the Top 20 pop hit "Almost Doesn't Count," on its way to sales of over five million copies. "The Boy Is Mine" subsequently won a Grammy for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
Meanwhile, Brandy's acting career continued to blossom. In 1998, she landed her first major theatrical film role in I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, and the following year, she appeared in another TV movie, Double Trouble, with Diana Ross. She concentrated mostly on Moesha until the show was canceled in the spring of 2001. The same year, she voiced a character in the animated film Osmosis Jones. In February 2002, Brandy released her third album, Full Moon, which entered the Billboard 200 chart at number two, spun off an immediate hit in "What About Us?" -- her seventh Top Ten pop single -- and was subsequently nominated for a Grammy in the category of Best Contemporary R&B Album. That summer, Brandy gave birth to her first child. Her pregnancy was the subject of an MTV documentary series, Brandy: Special Delivery.
The singer's fourth album, Afrodisiac, was released in June 2004. Its lead single, "Talk About Our Love," was produced by Kanye West and peaked at number 36 on the Hot 100. Although it too received a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Album, Afrodisiac was Brandy's last recording for Atlantic. Signed to Epic, she returned in December 2008 with Human, an adult contemporary-leaning set that entered the Billboard 200 at number 15.
A couple years later, she starred alongside her brother and parents in the reality television series Brandy & Ray J: A Family Business, with a soundtrack of sorts following in 2011. She teamed up with Monica again in 2012 for the single "It All Belongs to Me" (which appeared on Monica's New Life), and months later issued the collaboration-heavy Two Eleven, which topped the R&B/hip-hop chart and entered the Billboard 200 at number three. The Chris Brown collaboration "Put It Down" became Brandy's tenth Top Ten R&B/hip-hop single as a headliner.
For the rest of the 2010s, Brandy devoted most of her time to acting, highlighted by roles on the series The Game, Zoe After Ever, and Star, as well as the lead role in the Broadway production of Chicago. Her limited recordings during these years included the bluesy belters "Beggin & Pleadin" (2016) and "Freedom Rings" (2019), a featured appearance on August Greene's cover of Sounds of Blackness' "Optimistic," and a duet with Daniel Caesar, "Love Again," which earned a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Performance. After she built more anticipation with the Chance the Rapper collaboration "Baby Mama," B7, her first album in eight years, arrived in 2020. The Disney Princess anthem "Starting Now" appeared the following year”.
Last year’s B7 was one of Brandy’s best albums. I hope that we get many more albums from her because, since 1994, she has been producing some of the very best music around. If you are new to Brandy’s music and brilliance, then the guide below should, I hope, point you in the…
RIGHT direction.
_________________
The Four Essential Albums
Brandy
Release Date: 27th September, 1994
Label: Atlantic
Producers: Keith Crouch/Kenneth Crouch/Arvel McClinton/Somethin' for the People/Damon Thomas
Standout Tracks: Baby/Best Friend/Brokenhearted
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/sell/list?master_id=57718&ev=mb
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/2yHJoGH0mIqYVAHUFKJcZ6?si=DnSIohSsSrGXtFfo7mnZzQ
Review:
“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” – AllMusic
Choice Cut: I Wanna Be Down
Never Say Never
Release Date: 9th June, 1998
Label: Atlantic
Producers: Brandy Norwood/Rodney Jerkins/Dallas Austin/David Foster/Fred Jerkins III/Brad Gilderman/Harvey Mason, Jr./Marc Nelson/Guy Roche
Standout Tracks: Angel in Disguise/Almost Doesn't Count/Never Say Never
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/sell/list?master_id=57731&ev=mb
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/1Co6e9ag1gRKcWdG7xKcCi?si=MAsYX1aRQImL9h6m6Q98Jw
Review:
“Brandy is an oft-repeated name in dance music and r&b retrospectives, but rarely is her music put to the test beyond a small handful of well-known singles (and of course, countless samples). Today, I challenge you to put her music to the test. If you're saying to yourself, nice try, I'll never appreciate such a cheesy album or genre, here's what I say to you: Never Say Never.
Never Say Never captures the energy of an artist fresh off of a successful debut album, ready to let go and make music true to her heart and vision. Like many old skool r&b releases, a lopsided tracklist detracts from the record's immediacy looking back...but that's not the point! The serendipitous pairing of Brandy and producer Darkchild (aka Rodney Jerkins) resulted in a distinct atmosphere and style that made waves in the pop music industry and beyond. It doesn't lose sight of what r&b had to offer during the '90s, but is simultaneously forward-thinking, striking a balance between camp and soul that remains exceptional over twenty years later.
Darkchild would go on to be involved with most of Brandy's later albums, but the dream team wasn't able to sustain their creative momentum. As the princess of r&b gradually faded from the limelight, her voice and spirit continued to be sampled by subsequent generations, ultimately becoming a lasting ethos, and Never Say Never is an incredible display of what made Brandy so impactful. While it may not have the immediacy or consistency of other releases in r&b, patient listening reveals countless treasures. Are you up for the challenge?” – Sputnikmusic
Choice Cut: The Boy Is Mine (duet with Monica)
Afrodisiac
Release Date: 25th June, 2004
Label: Atlantic
Producers: Brandy Norwood/Warryn ‘Baby Dubb’ Campbell/Big Chuck/Theron Feemster/Walter Millsap III/Organized Noise/Timbaland/Kanye West
Standout Tracks: Who Is She 2 U/Talk About Our Love (featuring Kanye West)/Turn It Up
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/sell/list?master_id=57748&ev=mb
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/0TBkOhBNDAooz45OxNZSle?si=UnUetVaqSVeTrS9B0K202w
Review:
“Now over a decade into her music career, Brandy is nothing if not consistent. Afrodisiac nevertheless involves a number of personal and creative changes. Since the making of 2002's Full Moon, she became a mother, split with her husband, picked up new manager Benny "The Actual Fresh Prince" Medina, and swapped out primary producer Rodney Jerkins in favor of Timbaland (not necessarily in that order). And her image has drifted away from the one she cast when she was just starting out; this hasn't transpired without some controversy. It's to be expected, but one still has to wonder what all the fuss is about. First, who doesn't change between the ages of 15 and 25? Second, the development isn't quite as drastic as Janet Jackson's jump from "Escapade" to "Throb," though there's a significant parallel there -- Brandy's provocative pose on the cover of Vibe, which hit stands just before this album, recalls Janet's cupped-breast appearance on the cover of Rolling Stone in 1993. Though the surroundings and circumstances may be new to artist and fans alike, the effectiveness has not suffered for it: Afrodisiac is Brandy's fourth consecutive durable showing, fluffed out with a few innocuous -- if still very listenable -- filler moments, but it is stocked with a number of spectacular -- and emotionally resonant -- singles that wind up making for her most accomplished set yet. To regrettably drag Janet back into this, lead single "Talk About Our Love" is even more exceptional than another recent Kanye West-produced track, Janet's own "I Want You," and is a career highlight for both producer and vocalist. Timbaland provides 60 percent of the tracks; though he has confessed to being worn out by the process of music lately, you wouldn't know it from his inspired work. Whether or not Brandy penned the lyrics, her experiences have clearly engendered a new depth to her songs. Her voice remains a treat to hear, and on a couple tracks she wears a slightly worn scratchiness surprisingly well. Closing track "Should I Go" is about as honest and searching as anyone gets these days, and while it's also noteworthy for allowing Brandy and Timbaland to pay tribute to shared love Coldplay, it's the music industry that's being contemplated, not a romantic relationship. Whatever Brandy decides to do, consider her mark made” – AllMusic
Choice Cut: Afrodisiac
Two Eleven
Release Date: 12th October, 2012
Labels: Chameleon/RCA
Producers: Bangladesh/Bink/The Bizness/Warryn Campbell/Mike City/Danja/Earl & E./Sean Garrett/Danny Morris/Jim Jonsin/Rico Love/Pierre Medor/Harmony ‘H-Money’ Samuels/Switch/Mike Will Made It/Mario Winans
Standout Tracks: No Such Thing as Too Late/Let Me Go/Scared of Beautiful
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/sell/list?master_id=484089&ev=mb
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/41PwFUEt9XE3Cz0H8RA7vU?si=dajS-x4NT7aV7OsCg5ewXw
Review:
“Despite her blessings, Two Eleven often finds Brandy in romantically shaky situations, if not under self-imposed house arrest. In “Hardly Breathing,” she sings of having reached a breaking point as synths drip in the background like a leaky faucet. Elsewhere, on “Scared Of Beautiful,” co-written by Frank Ocean, the singer sighs as she takes stock of a lover’s lack of mirrors — to her, a sign that he’s refusing to see a good thing.
Two Eleven‘s songs are about being bedridden (“So Sick”), cursing the other women in his life (“Wish Your Love Away”), and, in rare weak moments, “painting” closets, faucets, the balcony “with our love.” What makes it all work, though, is how Brandy’s voice hints at strength that can only come with emotional distance. Its voice is tinged with regret, but it also has some bite, never sounding defeated for long.
Granted, Brandy isn’t a powerhouse vocalist like Whitney was. But while her voice isn’t muscular, it certainly is agile. Fortunately, she teamed up here with a slew of new-to-her producers and songwriters (Rico Love, MIDI Mafia, Sean Garrett, Mario Winans, etc.) who know how to play up her strengths. “Slower” (as in how he should act in bed) owes a sizable debt to Justin Timberlake‘s “My Love,” although Brandy raps through her compliments and directions faster than T.I. did. The Lykke Li-sampling “Let Me Go” is particularly infectious because of its skipping, hiccuping chorus: “B-b-b-let me go, b-b-b-baby don’t you let me.” And even in the pulsing “So Sick,” Brandy alternates between coasting and scattering through her grievances, tugging at her voice as if it was strapped to a leash.
“Just wanted someone real to love me for me / me, just Brandy,” the singer declares at one point on Two Eleven. She’s singing to a new beau, but her words also make for an apt statement to fans, if not critics who’ve heard her since age 15. She may have felt hard-pressed to emphasize the album’s firm R&B roots, but what’s more important is that for once, she doesn’t sound hard-pressed to play a wholesome role, or some hyper-idealized version of herself. Here, she’s just Brandy” – Idolator
Choice Cut: Wildest Dreams
The Underrated Gem
Human
Release Date: 5th December, 2008
Labels: Epic/Knockout/Koch
Producers: Chase N. Cashe/Dirty Swift/Dernst ‘D'Mile’ Emile/Toby Gad/Hit-Boy/Rodney ‘Darkchild’ Jerkins/Brian Kennedy/Bruno Mars/RedOne/Soundz/Dapo Torimiro/Bruce Wayne
Standout Tracks: Long Distance/Human/True
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/sell/list?master_id=199735&ev=mb
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/5FzwCzwtVRuep9jjnhGpn4?si=aanAJGAyQ9mjrXc8_9gV_w
Review:
“Brandy Norwood, 29, has grown up in public, from perky multimillion-selling teenager and sitcom star to unwed mother and tenacious celebrity. Her 2004 album, “Afrodisiac,” pointedly addressed her breakup with her daughter’s father, to whom she had pretended to be married. In 2006 she was involved in a fatal freeway accident in which she was not charged as a criminal but faces a $50 million wrongful-death lawsuit. “Human,” the title song of her new album, sounds like special pleading as she sings, “I make mistakes but I can’t turn back time.”
On “Afrodisiac” Brandy changed her main producer to Timbaland from Rodney Jerkins and showed a wounded, embittered, almost unguarded side. Commercially it was a daring mistake; it was her first album not to sell at least a million copies.
She shifted labels and managers and took four years between albums and clearly decided to provide a pop product with “Human.” Mr. Jerkins has returned as the main producer, and the sentiments of the songs, whether self-affirming or heartbroken, are back to generic ones. “With you is where I’d rather be,” she sings in “Long Distance,” a hymnlike single that distantly echoes Janet Jackson’s “Again.”
In current R&B banal lyrics often arrive in wildly eccentric settings, and through her career Brandy has been a diligent and adaptable vehicle for the ideas of her producers, summoning multiple voices: light, raspy, breathy, sharp. Mr. Jerkins can be one of the most baroquely inventive R&B songwriters and producers, interlacing voices and instruments in dizzying patterns like those in “Right Here (Departed),” with its ricocheting vocal syncopations, or in “Torn Down,” with Brandy turning into countless overlapping vocal ensembles.
Yet for all the dexterity in the details, the songs too obviously strive for the familiar, imitating not just Ms. Jackson but Beyoncé, Alicia Keys and Mary J. Blige. Song titles like “Torn Down” and “Shattered Heart” show how much Brandy is trying to get serious, taking on an adult world where happily ever after is elusive. But she still comes across as a fledgling, a personality still being formed, eagerly tagging along after her role models” – The New York Times
Choice Cut: Right Here (Departed)
The Latest Album
B7
Release Date: 31st July, 2020
Labels: Brand Nue/One
Producers: Matthew Burnett/Darhyl ‘DJ’ Camper/LaShawn Daniels/Jordan Evans/Hit-Boy/Brandy Norwood/Cory Rooney/Alonzo ‘Lonnie’ Smalls II/Joshua ‘YXSH’ Thomas
Standout Tracks: Saving All My Love/No Tomorrow/Baby Mama (featuring Chance the Rapper)
Buy: https://www.discogs.com/sell/list?master_id=1781476&ev=mb
Stream: https://open.spotify.com/album/09jppw0ufVFDiotrHDMK1w?si=c0vNRWOGTOih9Y7fg-KH6A
Review:
“Brandy is one of the few performers still standing who has unarguably shaped and moulded an entire genre. Releasing her debut album at the tender age of 15, she went on to eclipse 40 million sales worldwide, defining and re-defining pop tropes at will. Simply put, she’s one of R&B’s true icons, a Queen from the 90s Imperial phase. And now she’s back.
‘B7’ is a rich return, one that finds Brandy eschewing the culture of the feature to focus on herself, her life, and her artistry. Guests are carefully picked - Sy’Rai, Chance the Rapper, and the sometimes-cancelled Daniel Caesar – but only ever to amplify the song and the message; the central voice is hers, with Brandy sitting at the centre of her own creative solar system.
Opening with the exceptionally beautiful ‘Save All My Love’ the album is marked out as personal, cutting a little deeper than most. A rush of emotion that tackles self-worth, motherhood, and a whole lot more, by the time we reach bluntly titled closer ‘Bye Bipolar’ we’re left to wonder, has she ever been as explicitly honest as this?
‘All My Life’ (Parts One and Two) is a supreme act of soulful autobiography, but while she’s open about the struggles she’s been through, Brandy places emphasis on her optimistic aspects. ‘B7’ is weighted by statements of affirmation, with ‘I Am More’ and ‘Rather Be’ becoming mantra-like motions towards positive manifestation.
‘High Heels’ ushers its way towards sheer joy, with Brandy linking up alongside Sy’Rai to dance into the inky twilight. ‘Say Something’ is a poem about communication, while the itchily infectious ‘Baby Mama’ finds Brandy sparring alongside Chance the Rapper on a potent ode to motherhood.
The long-awaited follow up to 2012’s ‘Two Eleven’, ‘B7’ is perhaps a little overlong. Mid-album cuts such as ‘Borderline’ are no more than nice – pleasing on the ear, tugging at the heartstrings, but failing to match the gravitational pull of the record’s true highlights.
That being said, ‘B7’ is a triumph. A record worth savouring, it sits alongside NewGen R&B talent – step forward ChloexHalle, we see you Kiana Lede – while retaining that classic touch. A master of the form, it’s a joy to have Brandy back in our lives” – CLASH
Choice Cut: Borderline