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''Brandy'' is the self-titled debut album by American R&B singer Brandy. It was released by Atlantic Records on September 27, 1994 in North America, December 5 in the United Kingdom and on several dates in Europe and Oceania, starting on February 3, 1995. The album contains a range of contemporary genres, and the songs are a mix of soft hip hop soul, pop and contemporary mid–1990s R&B. They were chiefly produced by Keith Crouch who would contribute all four single releases from the album. Aside from Crouch, Norwood worked with a range of other writers and producers, including R&B group Somethin' for the People, Arvel McClinton, and Damon Thomas and young Robin Thicke. Upon release, ''Brandy'' received generally positive reviews from music critics, who complimented Norwood's appearance, as well as the album's timeless appeal. It became a commercial success as well. While initial sales were slow, the album reached the top 20 of the US ''Billboard'' 200 was certified four-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), selling over two million copies in the United States. It experienced similar success in Australia and Canada, where it was platinum and gold respectively. Worldwide, the album has sold over six million copies. Four singles were released from the album, two of which became number-one hits on the ''Billboard'' Hot R&B Singles. "I Wanna Be Down" was chosen as the album's lead single, reaching the top ten in the United States and the top 20 in Australia and New Zealand. The song was critically lauded, and was regarded as a standout track on ''Brandy''. The album's second single, "Baby" was also well received and charted even higher. With the following two singles, "Best Friend" and "Brokenhearted" also reaching the top ten in the US, Norwood established herself as one of the most successful of the new breed of urban R&B female vocalists to emerge during the mid-to late 1990s. It also garnered Norwood two Grammy Award nominations for Best New Artist and one for the album's second single, "Baby" for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the 38th Grammy Awards in 1996. == Background == In 1990, Norwood's talent led to a binding oral contract with Teaspoon Productions, headed by Chris Stokes and Earl Harris, who obtained her gigs as a backing vocalist for their R&B boy band Immature. The same year, Stokes arranged the production of a demo tape which was handed over to Atlantic Recording Corporation executives.〔(【引用サイトリンク】work=Vibe )〕 While they liked the material, they found Norwood too young at age 11 and told her to come back when she was 14.〔 In 1993, amid ongoing negotiations with East West Records, Norwood's parents organized a recording contract with Atlantic after auditioning for the company's director of A&R, Darryl Williams. Norwood subsequently dropped out of Hollywood High School later and was tutored privately from tenth grade on.〔 During the early production stages of her debut on the Atlantic label, Norwood was selected for a role in the ABC sitcom ''Thea'', portraying the 12-year-old daughter of a single mother played by Thea Vidale. Broadcast to mediocre ratings, the series ended only eight months after its premiere. Norwood appreciated the cancellation of the show as she was unenthusiastic about acting at the time and the taping caused scheduling conflicts with the recording of her album, stating: "I felt bad for everybody else but me. It was a good thing, because I could do what I had to do, because I wanted to sing () When ''Thea'' was canceled I was like, ‘Okay, I can now put all my focus into my album’."〔 Atlantic consulted newcomer Keith Crouch to work with Norwood on the bulk of the album.〔 Norwood noted that her collaboration with Crouch "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. But what I really loved about Keith is 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."〔 While Crouch would provide the core sound of the album, Norwood also worked with all-male R&B group Somethin' for the People and Damon Thomas on some tracks. A then 16-year-old Robin Thicke scored his first co-writing credit on the album with "Love Is on My Side". 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Brandy (album)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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