Blaque (album)

Blaque
Studio album by Blaque
Released	May 19, 1999
Recorded	1997–1999
Genre	R&B [1] pop [1]
Length	53:00
Label	Trackmasters Columbia
Producer	Michael Anthony Bob Baldwin Sideeq "The Beat" Freak Marcus Goins Curt Gowdy R. Kelly L.E.S. Elgin Manson Natina Reed Poke & Tone Timothy "Tyme" Riley Cory Rooney She'kspere Ric Wake
Blaque chronology
Blaque (1999) Blaque Out (2002)
Singles from Blaque
"808" Released: March 15, 1999 "I Do" Released: July 28, 1999 "Bring It All to Me" Released: October 11, 1999

Blaque (internationally nicknamed Blaque Ivory) is the debut album by the American girl-group Blaque. It was released by Trackmasters Entertainment and Columbia Records on May 19, 1999 in the United States. A R&B and pop album, with hip hop and teen pop influences, ^[2] the album was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on April 10, 2000. ^[3] and has sold 1.5 million copies to date. ^[4]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Entertainment Weekly	C− [5]

AllMusic criticized the album as mediocre "generic urban soul" with "serviceable" production, sometimes hitting the mark but more often not. ^[2] Entertainment Weekly gave the album a C− grade, criticizing the songs as derivative "mimicry" of other groups, saying that the girls "slide from genre to genre with all the care and discrimination of a bar mitzvah band." ^[5]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Blaque Intro"			0:37
2.	"Roll with Me"	Kevin Briggs Nicolia Turman Natina Reed	She'kspere	3:42
3.	"I Do"	Reed	Michael Anthony Elgin Manson [A]	3:27
4.	"Leny"	R. Peterkin Billy Lawrence Isaac Hayes Lenny Nicholson Reed Richard Pimentel Timothy Riley	Riley Curt Gowdy	4:20
5.	"Rainbow Drive"	Andre "Sideeq" Jones Brandi Williams Reed Shamari Fears Marcus Goins	Sideeq "The Beat" Freeq Goins [A]	3:48
6.	"808"	Robert Kelly Reed	R. Kelly Poke & Tone Cory Rooney [A]	5:06
7.	"Time After Time"	Cyndi Lauper Rob Hyman	Poke & Tone Rooney	4:05
8.	"Bring It All to Me" (featuring JC Chasez of NSYNC)	Lawrence Nidra Sylvers LeShan Lewis Linda van Horssen William Shelby Kevin Spencer Violet Ruby Rooney	Rooney L.E.S.	3:38
9.	"Mind of a King"	Jones Reed Goins	Goins Freeq	3:57
10.	"Don't Go Looking for Love"	Mariah Carey Rooney Samuel Barnes Jean-Claude Olivier Steven Ettinger Darryl Pierce Dwayne Simon James Todd Smith Bobby Ervin	Rooney Poke & Tone [A]	4:01
11.	"Release Me"	Barnes Lawrence Bobby Coleman Olivier Rooney Sting	Poke & Tone Rooney [A]	3:03
12.	"Right Next to Me"	Kangol	Anthony Bob Baldwin [A]	5:27
13.	"Stay By Your Side"	Reed Fears	Anthony Manson [A]	3:24
14.	"When the Last Teardrop Falls"	Lawrence Ric Wake Sheppard Soloman	Wake	4:37

Japanese bonus track

No.	Title	Producer(s)	Length
15.	"808 (remix)"	Poke & Tone	3:55

Notes

• ^{^[A]} denotes co-producer

Sample credits

• "Leny" contains excerpts from the composition "Bumpy's Lament", written and performed by Isaac Hayes.
• "Bring It All to Me" contains excerpts from the composition "I Don't Wanna Be The Last To Know", performed by Shalamar.
• "Don't Go Looking for Love" contains excerpts from the composition "I Need Love", performed by LL Cool J.
• "Release Me" contains elements of "Shape of My Heart", performed by Sting. ^[6]

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for Blaque Chart (1999–2000) Peak position Japanese Albums (Oricon) [7] 24 US Billboard 200 [8] 53 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) [9] 23

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for Blaque Chart (2000) Position US Billboard 200 [10] 155

Certifications

Certifications for Blaque

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA) [11]	Platinum	1,000,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Blaque release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
Japan	May 19, 1999	CD	Sony Music	[7]
United States	June 1, 1999			[2]
Japan	July 23, 1999		Columbia	[12]
New Zealand	May 8, 2000	Cassette		[13]

References

1. Hay, Carla (April 17, 1999). "Blaque Wants More Than TLC". Billboard . Vol. 111, no. 16. p. 18. Archived from the original on March 11, 2018. Blaque is filled with songs that represent contemporary R&B/pop, with selections that include sassy rap stylings and sultry ballads.
2. Stephen Thomas Erlewine. Blaque at AllMusic. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
3. http://riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?content_selector=gold-platinum-searchable-database RIAA - Recording Industry Association of America
4. "The best girl groups of the 1990s to 2000s- where are they now". New York Daily News . November 3, 2015.
5. Brunner, Rob (July 16, 1999). "Music Review: Blaque". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on October 17, 2008. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
6. Blaque Ivory (Double LP liner notes). Columbia. 1999. 491603 1.
7. "ブラック・アイボリー" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on October 1, 2023. Retrieved October 1, 2023.
8. "Blaque Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
9. "Blaque Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
10. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2000". Billboard. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
11. "American album certifications – Blaque – Blaque". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved December 9, 2017.
12. "ブラック・アイボリー" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on October 1, 2023. Retrieved October 1, 2023.
13. "New Releases". netcd.co.nz. Archived from the original on May 10, 2000. Retrieved February 11, 2024.