LOS ANGELES (Brandy Official Website) -
Music superstar, actress and performer
Brandy is celebrating her first decade of hit-making with the release of THE BEST OF BRANDY, a first-of-its-kind, 18-track retrospective drawn from the L.A. resident's four best-selling albums for Atlantic Records.
The package includes 16 Top 20 Pop and R&B charted singles, a remix of the 1994 R&B chart-topper "I Wanna Be Down" (featuring
Queen Latifah, YoYo and MC Lyte) and a cover of the
Phil Collins classic "Another Day In Paradise," a duet with brother Ray J, previously only available in Europe. In addition to five No 1 R&B and two No 1 Pop hits, THE BEST OF BRANDY also includes a duet with producer and hitmaker in his own right Kanye West, the 1998 No 1 crossover duet with
Monica ("
The Boy Is Mine") and production by Mike City, Kenneth 'Babyface' Edmonds,
David Foster, Rodney Jerkins,
Quincy Jones, and
Timbaland among others.
"I think it's awesome to have an album that reflects the songs that people have enjoyed over the years," enthuses the singer, who coproduced four tracks on the new collection. "I'm happy to say that many of the tracks included are my favorites too."
Known for her leading role in the top-rated sitcom Moesha, the Mississippi-born entertainer - who is currently developing a TV series with Fox and Touchstone Television - first hit the charts in 1994 with the gold single "I Wanna Be Down," produced by Keith Crouch. "At first I wasn't happy that the song was chosen as my first single," she recalls. "But once it was released and I saw how everyone responded to the title phrase, I understood why!" Drawn from her self-titled quadruple-platinum Atlantic debut, that first hit was followed by the million-selling single "Baby," and
Brandy subsequently scored another gold single in 1995 with "
Brokenhearted" (featuring Wanya Morris from Boyz II Men), and started 1996 with another million-seller with "Sittin' Up In My Room," produced by
Babyface and featured on the soundtrack of the blockbuster movie Waiting To Exhale, starring Whitney Houston.
By the time Atlantic Records released Brandy's 1998's sophomore album Never Say Never, the singer's starring role on Moesha (which ended its successful five-year run in 2001) along with key appearances starring in the Disney television adaptation of Cinderella in 1997 and the 1998 movie I Still Know What You Did Last Summer had catapulted
Brandy into the upper echelon of young across-the-board entertainers. The key single from the album, "The Boy Is Mine," a duet with singer Monica, became a double-platinum best-seller and helped propel Never Say Never to over six million sales worldwide.
Subsequent hits have included "
Have You Ever?" (1999), written by
Diane Warren and produced by
David Foster; "
Full Moon" (2002), written and produced by Mike City; "Who Is She 2 U" (2004), produced by Timbaland; and "
Talk About Our Love" (2004), Brandy's Top 5 Pop and R&B duet with Kanye West. THE BEST OF BRANDY also includes the singer's cover of Michael Jackson's classic "
Rock With You" from
Quincy Jones' best-selling 1995 album Q'S JOOK JOINT.
Track listing for THE BEST OF BRANDY CD:
1. "Baby"
2. "
Best Friend"
3. "I Wanna Be Down"
4. "
Brokenhearted" (Featuring Wanya Morris)
5. "Angel In Disguise"
6. "
The Boy Is Mine" (Duet with Monica)
7. "
Almost Doesn't Count"
8. "
Top Of The World" (Featuring Mase)
9. "U Don't Know Me (Like U Used To)" (featuring Shaunta & Da Brat)
10. "
Have You Ever?"
11. "
Full Moon"
12. "
What About Us?"
13. "Who Is She 2 U"
14. "
Talk About Our Love" (Featuring Kanye West)
15. "Sittin' Up In My Room"
16. "
Rock With You" (Quincy Jones with
Brandy &
Heavy D)
17. "
Another Day In Paradise" (With Ray J)
18. "I Wanna Be Down" (Remix featuring
Queen Latifah, YoYo, & MC Lyte)
