"Silent Night" is a popular Christmas carol, composed in 1818 by Franz Xaver Gruber to lyrics by Joseph Mohr in the small town of Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria. It was declared an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO in 2011. The song has been recorded by many singers across many music genres. The version sung by Bing Crosby in 1935 has sold 10 million copies as a single.
Elgin Baylor Lumpkin, better known by his stage name Ginuwine, is an American R&B singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. He began his career as a member of Swing Mob in the early 1990s. Signing to Epic Records as a solo artist in the mid-1990s, Ginuwine has released a number of multi-platinum and platinum-selling albums and singles, becoming one of R&B's top artists during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He had significant commercial success with his first four albums: Ginuwine...The Bachelor, 100% Ginuwine, The Life (Platinum), and The Senior (Gold). According to Billboard, Ginuwine has sold roughly 10 million albums in the US. Ginuwine received the Urban Music Icon Award at 2021 Black Music Honors.
Timothy Zachery Mosley, known professionally as Timbaland, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. He has received widespread acclaim for his innovative production work and distinctive "stuttering" rhythmic style. In 2007, Entertainment Weekly stated that "just about every current pop trend can be traced back to him — from sultry, urban-edged R&B songstresses ... to the art of incorporating avant-garde sounds into No. 1 hits."
Back II da Basics is the fifth album by American recording artist Ginuwine. Released by Epic Records on November 15, 2005 in the United States, production for the album originally began in July 2003. Although Ginuwine initially revealed that he was planning to team with longtime contributor Timbaland on the entirety of the album, their collaboration failed to materialize due to scheduling conflicts. Instead, Ginuwine worked with a diverse roster of collaborators, including Danja, Jazze Pha, Troy Oliver, Trackmasters, and The Underdogs, on most of the tracks.
Durrell Artaze Babbs, better known by his stage name Tank, is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer and actor. He is known for the singles "Maybe I Deserve" (2001), "Please Don't Go" (2006), and "When We" (2017). According to Billboard, Tank has sold 1.76 million albums in the U.S. as of 2013.
The Makings of Me is the fifth studio album by American singer Monica. It was released by J Records on October 3, 2006 in the United States. Built upon the hip hop, gospel and modern quiet storm styles of its predecessor, After the Storm (2003), Monica envisioned her follow-up project to sound as close knit and intimate as her previous project. Consequently, she enlisted frequent collaborators Missy Elliott, Bryan Michael Cox, and Jermaine Dupri to work with her on the album, with the latter serving as its executive producer, as well as new partners such as The Underdogs, Tank, LRoc, Swizz Beatz, and Sean Garrett.
"A Dozen Roses " is a song by American singer Monica taken from her fifth studio album The Makings of Me (2006). It was written by rapper-producer Missy Elliott and Corte Ellis, with production helmed by the former along with David "Davey Boy" Lindsey and Cliff Jones. Similar to songs that Monica used to record with Elliott for her previous album, After the Storm (2003), the mid-tempo love song draws from the genres from R&B, hip hop, neo soul, as well as quiet storm and contains elements of 1960s Motown soul music. Built around a sample of the 1972 recording "The Makings of You" as written and performed by Curtis Mayfield, its lyrics detail a woman's admiration for a man.
The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection is a Christmas and debut extended play (EP) by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. The EP was first released on October 14, 2007 by Big Machine Records exclusively to Target stores in the United States and online. The release was originally a limited release for the 2007 holiday season, but was re-released to iTunes and Amazon.com on December 2, 2008 and again in October 2009 to Target stores. The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection features cover versions of Christmas songs and two original tracks written by Swift, "Christmases When You Were Mine" and "Christmas Must Be Something More", all of which have a country pop sound.
The Makings of a Man is the fourth studio album by Jaheim. It was released by Divine Mill Records and Warner Bros. Records on December 18, 2007 in the United States. The album debuted at number 11 on the US Billboard 200 with first week sales of 176,000 copies. The Makings of a Man has been certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It has now sold over 500,000 copies since its release.
"Trading Places" is a song ·by American recording artist Usher. Released on October 17, 2008 as the fifth and final single from his fifth studio album Here I Stand, Usher wrote the song with The-Dream and Carlos "Los Da Mystro" McKinney. Produced by McKinney, it is a slow-tempo R&B ballad with hip hop influences, and focuses on an idea of role reversal in a relationship.
Daniel Jay Gokey is an American singer and former church music director from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was the third-place finalist on the eighth season of American Idol. After his placing on the show, Gokey signed to 19 Recordings and RCA Nashville at the beginning of a career in country music, releasing the single "My Best Days Are Ahead of Me.” His debut album, My Best Days, was released in March 2010.
A Man's Thoughts is the sixth studio album from American R&B singer Ginuwine. It was set to be released June 2 but was pushed back to June 23, 2009. The album received average critical reception from pop critics.
In Love & War is the fourth studio album by American singer Amerie, released November 3, 2009 on Def Jam Recordings. Recording sessions for the album took place between 2008 and 2009 at Record Plant Studios in Hollywood, California and at other recording studios in Miami, Florida and Atlanta, Georgia. The album serves as Amerie's first release after leaving Columbia Records and forming her own label, Feenix Rising, which released the album under exclusive license and distribution through the Island Def Jam Music Group.
Christmas from the Heart is the second studio album and first Christmas album by American singer David Archuleta. It was released on October 13, 2009, via Jive Records. "Melodies of Christmas", which was written by Archuleta, is the lone original song on the album.
Casey Everett James is an American singer and guitarist from Fort Worth, Texas, who was the third-place finalist on the ninth season of American Idol and is an independent recording artist. He released his eponymous album in March 2012 from which three singles, "Let's Don't Call It a Night", "Crying on a Suitcase", and "The Good Life" were released. In October 2014, James released "Fall Apart" as the first single from a planned second studio album, but Sony opted not to release the record and they split ways. In 2017, James released his second album, Strip It Down, to critical acclaim.
The Frank Sinatra Christmas Collection is a 2004 Christmas compilation album from Frank Sinatra. The selection of tracks on the album spans Sinatra's career from 1957 to 1991 and includes four previously unavailable tracks—two previously unissued on CD and two previously unissued in any format—the latter the last Christmas carol Sinatra recorded.
The Andy Williams Christmas Album is the first Christmas holiday album released by singer Andy Williams and his twelfth studio album overall. It was issued by Columbia Records in 1963, and it would prove to be the first of eight Christmas albums released by Williams. Though it was also the album that introduced Williams' perennial holiday classic "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year", Columbia instead opted to release Williams' cover of "White Christmas" as the album's promotional single at the time.
Elgin is the seventh studio album by American R&B singer Ginuwine. It was released by Notifi Music Group and E1 Music on February 15, 2011. The singer worked with producers Bryan-Michael Cox, Tapping Warren, Kendrick Dean, Melvin "Saint Nick" Coleman, MaddScientist, and Tank on the album. The guest was the songwriter and rapper Katrina "Trina" Taylor on the track "Batteries".
"Wildest Dreams" is a song recorded by American recording artist Brandy for her sixth studio album, Two Eleven (2012). It was written by Sean Garrett, Justin Henderson and Christopher Whitacre, with production helmed by Henderson and Whitacre under their production moniker Tha Bizness. "Wildest Dreams" is a mid-tempo R&B ballad which was inspired by R&B music from the 1990s and has lyrics which speak about the disbelief for finding love again. It was inspired by Norwood finding love with music executive Ryan Press. Garrett, who wrote nine songs for Two Eleven, noticed the Norwood and Press's connection and adapted the lyrics for "Wildest Dreams".
My Gift is the seventh studio album and first Christmas album by American country music singer Carrie Underwood. It was released on September 25, 2020, through Capitol Records Nashville. Produced by Greg Wells, My Gift features guest appearances from John Legend and Underwood's oldest son Isaiah.
