The First Lady | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | April 5, 2005 | |||
Genre | R&B | |||
Length | 56:13 | |||
Label | Capitol | |||
Producer |
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Faith Evans chronology | ||||
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Singles from The First lady | ||||
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The First Lady is the fourth studio album by American singer Faith Evans. Released by Capitol Records, it marked Evans' debut on the EMI subsidiary, following her departure from Bad Boy Records in 2003. Despite this, the singer reunited with much of her frequent contributors to work on the album, including The Neptunes, Chucky Thompson, and Mario Winans. Duo Carvin & Ivan of Karma Productions wrote and produced the predominant part of all songs that were included in the final track listing.
Generally well received by critics, The First Lady debuted at number two on the U.S. Billboard 200 and number one on the U.S. Top R&B/Hip-Hop albums with opening week sales of 157,000 units. It remains Evans' highest ranking album on either chart, and the best first week sales of her career. By the end of 2005, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, denoting shipments exceeding 500,000 in the United States alone. In support of the album, Evans embarked on a concert tour, The First Lady Tour, in the United States and Europe in mid-2005. In 2006, The First Lady was nominated for Best Female R&B/Soul Album at the 20th Soul Train Music Awards.
The title of the album was inspired by Evans' original nickname with Bad Boy Records, "The First Lady of Bad Boy." On her decision to use a truncated version of the name Diddy dubbed her with, Evans commented: "[The nickname] did carry over, 'cause I'm the first artist in my genre at Capitol," she said. "More so, I chose the title The First Lady because a lot of my personality reminds me of people like Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Hillary Clinton. [...] Of course, they go through things, 'cause they're human like all of us. But when you see the first lady, you regard her [as] being the first lady. [...] I've made it my business to try and handle certain turbulence in my life with a certain dignity and [remain] ladylike." [1]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | (72/100) [2] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [3] |
Entertainment Weekly | B+ [4] |
The Guardian | [5] |
musicOMH | [2] [6] |
Paste | (8/10) [2] [7] |
PopMatters | [8] |
Rolling Stone | [9] |
Slant | [10] |
Uncut | [2] |
USA Today | [11] |
The First Lady received positive reviews from most music critics upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 72, based on 17 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". [2] In his review for Allmusic, Andy Kellman wrote that "if there was any creative block during [Evans'] time away, it doesn't show. In fact, The First Lady proves that she only gets better with time, as she goes through more ups and downs and continues to absorb her inspirations." He called the first four tracks the highlights of the album, which he rated four out of five stars, and went on to praise The First Lady, calling it as "well-rounded as an R&B album gets, regardless of the age it's part of. In review of her 2010 album Something About Faith he called The First Lady "one of Faith Evans' strongest albums". [3] It smartly incorporates throwback aspects into state-of-the-art pop-soul." [3] Belinda Boakye from The Situation complimented the "unfailing spirit and soul" on the album, giving it a score of 3.5 out of 5, and commented that "this long anticipated album marks a metamorphosis for Faith Evans into a state of musical autonomy. With 52 minutes of silky vocals and a variation of infectious beats and slow sultry rhythm and blues, this record has all the ingredients needed making it emulate the class and tightly toned sound of Evans’ new physical appearance." [12]
The Washington Post gave it a positive review, stating, "No further proof is needed than The First Lady, a CD that sounds remarkably humble despite its title. It's not her term, anyway. The industry gave it to her—with the appendage "of hip-hop soul"—after she started running in the same circles as Sean "P. Diddy" Combs and Notorious B.I.G. back in the mid-1990s. She's still known as Biggie's widow, even though she married her chief musical collaborator, Todd Russaw, a while back. But all the drama and the sorrow barely matter at this point, because on The First Lady it's the stability that counts." [13] Blogcritics also gave it a favorable review, stating that it "is a musical mood ring, encapsulating and displaying the last ten years of her life. It’s not all reflective, however, as there are plenty of party worthy tracks spread between the affecting intensity and veteran of the game vocals. [...] Evans has released a remarkable album with wide appeal and emotional depth for the more cautious listeners. It doesn’t transcend genres or attempt to reconstruct R&B, but First Lady will surely impress those with a taste for evocative bluesy vocals, dance numbers, and solid slow jams." [14]
Sal Cinquemani from Slant gave the album three out of five stars and said "The First Lady is decidedly less "street," boasting a more adult sound that's timely enough to keep longtime fans and possibly even earn new ones." Though he dismissed songs such as "Ever Wonder," "Until You Came" and "Stop N Go," which he declared as either "cloying" or "sappy," he found that the album was "a mark of growth for Evans" following her slip from Bad Boy and Sean "Diddy" Combs. [10] Orlando Lima, writing for Vibe , also gave the album three-and-a-half out of five stars and noted that while "Evans can still finesse notes," the album had a tendency to backtracking, "covering much of the same ground as her previous offering [...] instead of continually pushing her sound into the future." He found that Evans yet had to "sway the R&B world with the weight of say, Sade's Lovers Rock or Mary J. Blige's My Life ." [15]
Despite the somewhat average commercial performance of the album's leading single, "Again," The First Lady debuted and peaked at number two on the Billboard 200, the official albums chart in the United States, on April 23, 2005. [16] The album sold 157,000 units in its first week of release, [16] falling just 8,000 copies short of the top slot and 50 Cent's The Massacre . [17] Despite this, the album gave Evans her best sales figures of her career yet, marking both her highest-selling debut and best ever first-week sales. [17] In addition, The First Lady became her first album to reach number-one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, surpassing The Massacre. [18] By the end of 2005, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and became the 158th best-selling album of that year in the US. [19]
In support of the album, Evans embarked on the tour at the WAMO Summer Jam concert in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on June 18, 2005, where she was joined by singer Teairra Mari and rappers Master P, Common, and Cassidy. The American leg of the tour concluded at the House of Blues in West Hollywood, California on August 31, 2005, and was supported by opening acts Anthony David and Keke Wyatt. Kameelah Williams, former lead singer of the R&B group 702, served as a backing vocalist during the concerts.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Goin' Out" (featuring Pharrell & Pusha T) |
| The Neptunes | 4:06 |
2. | "Again" |
| Carvin & Ivan | 3:18 |
3. | "I Don't Need It" |
| Carvin & Ivan | 3:48 |
4. | "Stop N Go" |
|
| 4:15 |
5. | "Mesmerized" |
|
| 4:10 |
6. | "Tru Love" |
| 3:41 | |
7. | "Jealous" |
| Carvin & Ivan | 3:28 |
8. | "Ever Wonder" (featuring Mario Winans) |
| Winans | 3:38 |
9. | "Catching Feelings" |
|
| 4:39 |
10. | "Get Over You" |
|
| 3:58 |
11. | "Until You Came" |
|
| 4:45 |
12. | "Lucky Day" |
|
| 4:07 |
13. | "Hope" (with Twista) |
|
| 4:14 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
14. | "Do My Thang" | Scott Storch | Storch | 3:43 |
Notes
Sample credits
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United States (RIAA) [26] | Gold | 500,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Faith Renée Evans is an American R&B singer, songwriter and actress. Born in Lakeland, Florida and raised in New Jersey, she relocated to Los Angeles in 1991 in pursuit of a recording career. She first performed as a backing vocalist for R&B singers Al B. Sure! and Christopher Williams, and by the age of 20, signed with Puff Daddy's Bad Boy Records as the label's first female artist in 1994. Following her uncredited appearance on labelmate the Notorious B.I.G.'s single "One More Chance", she released her debut studio album, Faith (1995) to critical acclaim and moderate commercial reception. Evans then guest performed alongside 112 on Puff Daddy's 1997 single "I'll Be Missing You," which won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group and became the first hip hop song to debut atop the Billboard Hot 100. Her second and third albums, Keep the Faith (1998) and Faithfully (2001) peaked at numbers six and 14 on the Billboard 200, respectively, and saw further critical praise.
Goodies is the debut studio album by American singer Ciara. It was released on September 28, 2004, via Jazze Pha's Sho'nuff Records and LaFace Records. After writing songs for several established acts, Ciara's talents were noticed by Jazze Pha, and she began to work on what became Goodies. The album's conception came through the title track, produced by Lil Jon and created as a female crunk counterpart to other singles produced by Lil Jon such as Usher's "Yeah!" and Petey Pablo's "Freek-a-Leek". Ciara worked with additional writers and producers on the album, including Jazze Pha, Bangladesh, R. Kelly, Johntá Austin, Sean Garrett, and Keri Hilson, among others.
Faith is the debut studio album by American singer Faith Evans. It was released by Bad Boy Records on August 29, 1995, in the United States. A collaboration with the label's main producers the Hitmen, including members Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs and Chucky Thompson, as well as Mark Ledford, Herb Middleton, and Jean-Claude Olivier, among others.
"One More Chance / Stay with Me (Remix)" is a song written and recorded by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G. Three versions of the song exist: An original, lyrically explicit version prefaced by an answering machine performance featured on the album, and two versions released as singles, both of which contain identical lyrics by B.I.G. despite differing instrumentals and choruses. The first is an upbeat "Hip Hop Mix" that samples Marley Marl's "Droppin Science", and the second is a sultrier R&B remix parenthetically labeled the "Stay with Me Remix", which samples the namesake 1983 song by the band DeBarge. The lattermost remains the most popular, and features backing vocals and harmonies performed by his wife Faith Evans, as well as uncredited appearances by Mary J. Blige and Bad Boy Records label boss Puff Daddy—who also produced the version with Rashad Smith. It received platinum certification by the RIAA by July 31, 1995, and has sold 1.1 million copies.
Faithfully is the third studio album by American singer Faith Evans. It was released by Bad Boy Records on November 6, 2001, in the United States. A reflection of her musical studies, Evans was inspired by a variety of classic R&B, pop, rock, and jazz artists such as Chicago, S.O.S. Band, Ella Fitzgerald, and Sarah Vaughn during the production of Faithfully. The result, a sample-heavy album, which the label described as "old school flavored", features production by Mario Winans, Buckwild, Vada Nobles, Michael Angelo Saulsberry, the Neptunes, Battlecat, and others, with material ranging from ballads to dance tracks that built upon the contemporary R&B, funk music and hip hop genres.
Keep the Faith is the second album by American singer Faith Evans. It was released by Bad Boy Records on October 27, 1998, in the United States. Almost entirely written and produced by Evans, the album garnered generally mixed to positive reviews by music critics, with AllMusic noting it "without a doubt a highlight of 1990s soul-pop music." Also enjoying commercial success, it went platinum and produced the top ten singles "Love Like This" and "All Night Long," prompting Evans to start an 18-city theater tour with Dru Hill and Total the following year.
This is a comprehensive listing of official releases by Faith Evans, an American R&B, hip hop and soul singer. As of January 2023, she has released eight studio albums, and thirty singles on Bad Boy Entertainment and Capitol Records.
"Again" is a song by American singer Faith Evans. It was written by Ivan Barias, Carvin Haggins, and Evans for her fourth studio album The First Lady (2005), while production was helmed by Barias and Haggins under their production moniker Carvin & Ivan. It contains a sample from "Genuine" by American 1970s soul group the Whatnauts. Due to the inclusion of the sample, Jerry Harris and Venus Dodson are also credited as songwriters. "Again" addresses Evans's 2004 arrest for drug possession.
"Declaration " is a gospel song by Kirk Franklin from his 2007 album The Fight of My Life. The song contains samples of and interpolations of "This Is It" by Michael McDonald and Kenny Loggins who are credited with Franklin as composers of the song.
Franklin's song "Declaration " is a remake of the song "This Is It!" by pop-rock singer Kenny Loggins. This song motivates and stirs the soul to action. It denounces the troubles of life's current situation, and proclaims victory through faith in God.
Lady Love is the second studio album by American R&B recording artist LeToya Luckett. It was released by Capitol Records, on August 24, 2009. Originally scheduled for release several times in 2008, the album was released after corporate restructuring at the record company. As with her solo debut, the singer worked with a wide variety of collaborators for the album, including Ne-Yo, Chris Brown, Blac Elvis, Ryan Leslie, Harold Lilly, Bei Maejor, Oak, Soundz, T-Minus, and Tank.
Last Train to Paris is the only studio album by American musical trio Diddy – Dirty Money, composed of rapper Diddy, and R&B singers Kaleena Harper and Dawn Richard. It was released on December 14, 2010, by Bad Boy Records and Interscope Records. Story-wise, the album follows Diddy's alter-ego as he travels from London to Paris to regain his lost love. Subject matter and lyrics are based around dramatized descriptions of romance, heartache, vulnerability, regret, and emotional conflict. Predominantly styled in contemporary R&B, Last Train to Paris incorporates elements of Eurodance, Italo disco and tech house.
"You Used to Love Me" is the debut single of American singer-songwriter Faith Evans. Written by Evans and produced by Sean "Diddy" Combs and Chucky Thompson for her debut album, Faith (1995), the song was initially intended to be used on fellow Bad Boy Records signees Total's self-titled first album (1996), but was eventually claimed by Evans after she had found lyrics to Thompson's track which were inspired by another argument the singer had with then-husband The Notorious B.I.G..
Something About Faith is the sixth studio album by American singer Faith Evans. It was released on Prolific Music Group on October 5, 2010, in the United States. Distributed by E1 Music, the album marked Evans' first independent release, following her departure from Bad Boy in 2003 and her subsequent but short-lived engagement with Capitol Records in 2005. Evans who co-wrote and produced on the majority of Something About Faith, consulted a variety of collaborators to work with her on the album, including duo Carvin & Ivan, Chucky Thompson, Mike City, and Salaam Remi, as well as singer Keyshia Cole, and rappers Redman, Snoop Dogg and Raekwon.
"Someone to Love Me (Naked)" is a song recorded by American singer Mary J. Blige for her tenth studio album My Life II... The Journey Continues (Act 1) (2011). It features guest vocals by American rappers Diddy and Lil Wayne. "Someone to Love Me (Naked)" was written by Blige, Jerry Wonda and Leroy Watson, and was produced by Wonda. The song is a remix of "Someone to Love Me" from Diddy-Dirty Money's debut studio album, Last Train to Paris (2010). It samples "You Roam When You Don’t Get It At Home" performed by The Sweet Inspirations. It was released on March 29, 2011, as the first promotional single from the album.
"Mesmerized" is a song by American R&B recording artist Faith Evans from her fourth studio album, The First Lady (2005). Inspired by producer Chucky Thompson's original track, which contains interpolations from Johnnie Taylor's 1968 single "Who's Making Love", written by Homer Banks, Don Davis, Bettye Crutcher, and Raymond Jackson, and George Benson's "Footin' It", crafted by Benson and Donald Sebesky, Evans wrote the song alongside Andre Johnson, Kameelah Williams, Thompson, and husband Todd Russaw; its production was handled by Johnson, Thompson and Russaw. A throwback to 1960s music, the uptempo funk song exhibits style similar to that of Lyn Collins, Aretha Franklin and James Brown, among others.
"Soon as I Get Home" is a song by the American singer Faith Evans. It was written by Evans along with Sean Combs and Chucky Thompson for her debut studio album Faith (1995), while production was helmed by Combs and Thompson. A romantic hip hop soul ballad which chronicles a woman's desire to spend more time with her loved one, it was inspired by Evans' marriage to her then-husband The Notorious B.I.G., which had changed radically after the major commercial success of his debut album Ready to Die (1994).
"Tru Love" is a song by American recording artist Faith Evans. It was written by Evans along with Johnta Austin, Bryan Michael Cox, and Jermaine Dupri for her fourth studio album The First Lady (2005), while its production was handled by the latter two. The contemporary R&B ballad was released as the album's third and final single in October 2005 and reached number 27 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
"All Night Long" is a song by American R&B singer Faith Evans featuring guest vocals by Puff Daddy. It was written by Evans, Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs, Ron "Amen-Ra" Lawrence, Schon Crawford, Clarence Emery, Todd Russaw, and Todd Gaither for her second album Keep the Faith (1998), while production was helmed by Lawrence, Combs, and Evans. The song contains a sample from "I Hear Music in the Streets" (1980) by American post-disco group Unlimited Touch. Due to the inclusion of the sample, Bertram Reed and Galen Underwood are also credited as songwriters.
"Ain't Nobody" is a song by American singer Faith Evans. It was written by Evans, Sean Combs and Chucky Thompson and produced by the latter two for her debut studio album Faith (1995). Released as the album's third single along with "Kissing You" from the soundtrack of the romance film Waiting to Exhale (1995), "Ain't Nobody" peaked at number 67 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 14 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. On Christmas Day 2015, Evans released a re-recorded version of the song on Faith 20, a six-track album composed of remakes from Faith.
Incomparable is the seventh studio album by American recording artist Faith Evans. It was released by Prolific Music Group, with distribution through BMG Chrysalis, on November 24, 2014 in the United States. Her third independent projects under her own label, following her sixth album Something About Faith (2010) and the compilation album R&B Divas (2012), Evans worked a diverse roster of collaborators on the album, including Lamar "Mars" Edwards, Chucky Thompson, Mike City, and Ben Briggs III, among others. A concept album, Incomparable chronicles Evans' post-divorce life, using preludes, interludes, postludes, transitions and segues to the songs together.