Toni Michele Braxton (born October 7, 1967[4]) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. She has sold over 70 million records worldwide and is one of the best-selling female artists in history. Braxton has won seven Grammy Awards, nine Billboard Music Awards, seven American Music Awards, and numerous other accolades. In 2011, Braxton was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. In 2017 she was honored with the Legend Award at the Soul Train Music Awards.[5]
Braxton is also a television executive producer and personality. She competed in the seventh season of the reality competition series Dancing with the Stars. She has executive produced and starred in Braxton Family Values, a reality television series that aired on We TV from 2011 to 2020. Braxton was also an executive producer of Tamar & Vince, a spinoff reality TV series starring her younger sister, Tamar.
Early life
Toni Michele Braxton was born in Severn, Maryland,[6] on October 7, 1967.[4] Her father, Michael Conrad Braxton Sr., was a Methodist[7][8]clergyman and power company worker, and her mother, Evelyn Jackson, a native of South Carolina, was a former opera singer and cosmetologist, as well as a pastor.[9][10] Braxton's maternal grandfather was also a pastor.[11] Braxton later said that her religious upbringing had given her an advantage musically, saying it gave her "a finer-tuned ear. [...] The church pulpit is the stage. You got the congregation, that's your audience. And so we were comfortable performing".[12]
Braxton is the eldest of six siblings.[13] She has a younger brother Michael Jr. (born 1968) and four younger sisters Traci Renee (1971 - 2022), Towanda Chloe (born 1973), Trina Evette (born 1974), and Tamar Estine (born 1977). They were raised in a strict religious household,[14] and Braxton's first performing experience was singing in her church choir.[14]
Braxton attended Bowie State University to obtain a teaching degree,[15] but decided to sing professionally after she was discovered by William E. Pettaway Jr., who reportedly heard her singing to herself while pumping gas.[16]
On her appearance May 24, 2014, broadcast of NPR's Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!, she stated that she was not singing to herself at the gas station. Pettaway, working as an attendant at the Annapolis service station where she was refueling, recognized her from local performances and introduced himself, saying he wanted to produce her. Although skeptical, Braxton decided to, in her words, "take a chance" and accepted.[17]
Career
1989–1995: The Braxtons, Toni Braxton and breakthrough
Braxton and her four sisters Traci, Towanda, Trina, and Tamar began performing as The Braxtons in the late 1980s and were signed to Arista Records in 1989. Their first single, "Good Life", was released in 1990.[18] Though the song was not successful, it attracted the attention of record executive Antonio "L.A." Reid and record producer Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds.[18] Reid and Babyface recruited her to record a demo of "Love Shoulda Brought You Home", a song that they had written for Anita Baker for the soundtrack of Eddie Murphy's film, Boomerang. Baker, who was pregnant at the time, did not record the song but suggested that Braxton record it.[19] Her recording was later included on the soundtrack along with "Give U My Heart", a duet by Braxton and Babyface. Braxton, meanwhile, was signed to Reid and Edmonds' Arista-distributed imprint, LaFace Records, and immediately began recording her solo debut album.[citation needed]
Braxton's debut album won her several awards, including three Grammy Awards (for Best New Artist and two consecutive awards for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance in 1994 and 1995).[24] She won two American Music Awards (for Favorite Soul/R&B New Artist and Favorite New Adult Contemporary Artist)[24] in 1994 and another one in 1995 (for Favorite Soul/R&B Album).[24]Toni Braxton was certified 8× platinum in USA and has sales of over 10 million worldwide.[25][26]
1996–1999: Secrets and financial issues
In June 1996, Braxton released her second album Secrets.[27] Motivated "to include a little bit of everything,"[28] Braxton reteamed with Babyface, but also worked with R. Kelly, Tony Rich, and David Foster on the album, which she co-produced.[29] A major success, it peaked at number two on the Billboard 200 and reached the top ten on most international charts.[30] After 92 weeks in the charts, Secrets was certified 8× platinum, becoming Braxton's second straight 8 million-seller. Internationally, Secrets sold more than 15 million copies, further cementing Braxton's superstar status.[26] The album's first single, "You're Makin' Me High", marked Braxton's first number-one hit on the US Billboard Hot 100,[22] while follow-up "Un-Break My Heart", a ballad written and composed by Diane Warren, became the biggest hit of Braxton's career yet. It spent eleven consecutive weeks at number one on the Hot 100 and enjoyed worldwide top five success.[18][31][32]
As a result, Braxton topped several of Billboard's year-end charts,[33] and won two Grammy Awards; one for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance[24] for "Un-Break My Heart" and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "You're Makin' Me High" as well as two American Music Awards for Favorite Female Soul/R&B Artist and Favorite Soul/R&B Album.[24] Still waiting on her financial rewards, Braxton eventually launched an unsuccessful lawsuit against Arista and LaFace Records. Soon after, she filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy. Public reaction to these events was very harsh, having been expressed most clearly in an interview on The Oprah Winfrey Show.[34]
Braxton has appeared in two DisneyBroadway shows: She made her Broadway debut as Belle in Beauty and the Beast beginning September 9, 1998, when she replaced Kim Huber.[35] During her run in the show Alan Menken wrote and composed a new song for the musical, titled "A Change in Me", which he specially wrote and composed for Braxton, and was still being used in the musical as of late July 2014.[36] She left the production on February 28, 1999, and was succeeded by Andrea McArdle.[37] Her role in Beauty and the Beast marked the first (and only) time a black woman commanded the leading role of Belle on Broadway. (In the UK, Michelle Gayle played the role in the West End.) It also marked the first time a black woman would star in a Disney musical on Broadway. In 1999, the lawsuit against LaFace Records was settled and Braxton was given back all her possessions, giving her time to record The Heat, her first album in four years.[38]
2000–2002: The Heat, More Than a Woman, and acting debut
After her three-year-long dispute with LaFace and Arista had been settled, Braxton signed a new $20 million contract.[39] In April 2000, her third studio album, The Heat was released. Braxton took a more hands-on approach, co-writing and co-producing a handful of the tracks which saw her adapting a more urban sound. It opened at number two on the US Billboard 200 with 199,000 copies sold in its first week, eventually going double platinum in the United States, while selling over 4 million copies worldwide.[26][40][41] Additionally, the album was nominated for Best R&B Album at the 2001 Grammy Awards, while uptempo lead single "He Wasn't Man Enough", a worldwide top ten hit, won for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and was nominated for Best R&B Song.[42]
In 2001, Braxton made her movie acting debut in director Doug McHenry's comedy film Kingdom Come opposite an ensemble also starring LL Cool J, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Whoopi Goldberg[43][bettersourceneeded] A modest box-office success, it grossed $23.4 million worldwide.[44] The same year, Braxton recorded and released the Christmas albumSnowflakes which consisted R&B–led original songs co-penned with Keri Lewis and Babyface as well as several remixes and cover versions of Christmas standards and carols. It received a mixed reception by critics, many of whom compared its nature to Braxton's other work but found the stylized production and original material too contemporary to conjure images of Christmas, and failed to reach the upper half of the Billboard 200, eventually going gold in the United States.
In 2002, while gearing up for the release of her fourth studio album, Braxton discovered she was pregnant with her second child. Knowing that she would be unable to promote the album properly, she unsuccessfully lobbied Arista Records to get the label to postpone its release until after she was to give birth. In November 2002, More Than a Woman was released. Opening to an instant commercial disappointment, the album peaked at number 13 on the US Billboard 200, but was less successful internationally. The first single "Hit the Freeway" failed to impact, resulting in lackluster sales in general and the release of no further singles. More Than a Woman was eventually certified gold in the United States and sold more than 800,000 copies worldwide.[45]
2003–2007: Libra and Las Vegas residency
In April 2003, Braxton abruptly left Arista Records, having been there for 14 years, and immediately signed with Blackground Records, headed by Barry Hankerson, her manager at the time. She then starred in Aida as Aida beginning June 30, 2003, when she replaced actress Simone,[46] until she left the cast on November 16, 2003.[47] In April 2005, Braxton's new label, Blackground/Universal, released "Please", the first single from her fifth album, Libra. The album was originally planned for a June release, but it was pushed back several times and was finally issued on September 27. Libra peaked at number four on the US Billboard 200, selling 114,593 copies in the first week, and peaked at number two on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The album was certified gold in late 2005 and has since sold 679,000 copies worldwide.[45]
In May 2005, Braxton made an appearance on the season finale of American Idol 5, where she performed Elvis Presley's "In the Ghetto" with soon-to-be winner Taylor Hicks.[48] A month later, "The Time of Our Lives", a duet with classical crossover vocal group Il Divo, was released as a single, serving as the official 2006 FIFA World Cup anthem. Braxton performed the song, which entered the top ten in Switzerland, at the opening ceremony in Berlin on June 9, 2005.[49] In August 2006, Braxton replaced singer Wayne Newton as the Flamingo Las Vegas's new headlining act.[50] The show, entitled Toni Braxton: Revealed, was to be performed six nights a week and was scheduled to run through to March 2007. Braxton later confirmed that she was extending her show through to August 2007. Due to its success, it was reported that Braxton would extend her show through to August 2008, though the show was later cancelled in order for Braxton to focus on her health after being diagnosed with microvascular angina.[51]
On January 12, 2007, Braxton filed a $10 million lawsuit against her former manager Barry Hankerson, alleging "fraud, deception and double dealing", in addition to mismanaging her relationship with Arista Records.[52] According to Braxton's lawsuit, Hankerson placed his personal financial interests ahead of hers by using 'double-talk' to compromise the relationship between Braxton and her former label, with Hankerson allegedly telling Arista that "Braxton no longer wanted to record for Arista," and telling Braxton that "Arista was not interested in working with her anymore".[52] The suit was settled with Braxton being forced to return a $375,000 advance to Hankerson, who would also receive a percentage of the sales of her next album, and Hankerson releasing Braxton from her contract with him. The settlement also temporarily limited the companies with which Braxton could sign.[53][54] Hankerson claimed that the problems initially arose due to a number of disputes with Braxton and her wish to include her husband in her music.[55]
2008–2012: Pulse and television
Following the abrupt cancellation of her Toni Braxton: Revealed show, Braxton experienced financial difficulties when insurance agency Lloyd's of London refused to honor her policy that she purchased for upwards of $70,000 that included financial compensations for financial losses.[56][57][58] Lloyd's responded with a counter-suit seeking damages against her because of an unrelated heart condition that the company was not made aware of at the time the application was filed.[59] When Braxton acknowledged that she did not disclose her full medical history at the time,[57][60] she got on the hook for all damages because of the cancelled shows, being sued by multiple companies, and had to once again file for bankruptcy.[61][58][62] In September 2008, Braxton appeared on the seventh season of American dance competition series Dancing with the Stars; her partner was Alec Mazo. They were voted off in the fifth week of the competition.[63]
In 2009, Braxton signed to Atlantic Records and began work on her next studio album.[64] In February 2010, she was part of the supergroup Artists for Haiti who recorded "We Are the World 25 for Haiti", a remake of the 1985 hit "We Are the World", to help benefit the people of Haiti following the magnitude 7.0 Mwearthquake.[65] Three months later, Pulse, her seventh studio album, was released.[66][67] A collection of up-tempo songs and R&B ballads with production varying from smooth to dance-based styles, it debuted at number nine on the US Billboard 200, selling 54,000 copies in its first week, and topped the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, becoming Braxton's fifth US top-ten album. A moderate chart success elsewhere, it reached the top ten in Switzerland, and the top 20 in Germany and Greece. While critical reception of Pulse was generally positive,[68] its singles "Yesterday", "Hands Tied" and "Make My Heart" achieved moderate chart success.[69][70]
In 2011, Braxton signed with WE tv for a reality series, Braxton Family Values. Chronicling the lives of Braxton and her sisters Tamar, Traci, Towanda, and Trina, plus their mother Evelyn, the series debuted on April 12, 2011.[71] It received favorable reviews from critics who recognized it as a "guilty pleasure" and spawned several seasons and spin-offs.[72] In September 2011, Braxton parted ways with her long-time manager Vincent Herbert, husband of sister Tamar, and signed a new management deal with Los Angeles-based entertainment/production company The Collective.[73] In March 2012, she released the standalone single "I Heart You", a dance-pop, EDM and house song that peaked at number one on the US Dance Club Songs.[74][75] Also that year, Braxton played Rosalie Rosebud, a singer with an over-the-top personality, in the children's musical adventure comedy film The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure alongside Jaime Pressly and Cloris Leachman,[76][77] and began filming a lead role in the Lifetime Movie Network film Twist of Faith which premiered the following year.[78]
2013–2014: Love, Marriage and Divorce, Broadway return, and biographical film
In 2013, Braxton and longtime creative music partner Babyface began work on their collaborative studio album Love, Marriage & Divorce which was released in February 2014 under Motown Records. It received favorable reviews from music critics, who labeled it as "high-quality R&B",[79] and debuted at number 4 on the Billboard 200 and the top of the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums with first-week sales of 67,000 copies.[80]Love, Marriage & Divorce was nominated for World's Best Album at the 2014 World Music Awards and won for Best R&B Album at the 57th Grammy Awards.[81] Lead single "Hurt You" reached number one on the US Adult R&B Songs, becoming Braxton's first song to do so since her 2000 release "Just Be a Man About It".[82] The song also hit number 16 on Billboard Hot R&B/ Hip Hop Airplay chart.[83][84]
Braxton, alongside Babyface, made her return to Broadway in the musical After Midnight in March 2014. The third in rotation in the role of "Special Guest Star" following Fantasia Barrino and KD Lang, they performed from March 18 to 31, 2014 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre.[85] In May 2014, Braxton published a memoir, Unbreak My Heart: A Memoir, through Harper Collins Publishers. In it, Braxton discusses her career success and struggles and the self-healing she took charge of after her own diagnosis with the auto-immune disease lupus and her son's diagnosis with autism.[86] In October 2015, Toni along with The Braxtons released the holiday album Braxton Family Christmas on Def Jam Recordings.[87][88] Comprising cover versions of Christmas standards and carols as well as several original songs, it debuted and peaked at number 27 on the US Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.[89]
Lifetime premiered the biographical film Toni Braxton: Unbreak My Heart, based on Braxton's memoir, in January 2016;[90] actress Lex Scott Davis portrayed Braxton in the film. The biopic's premiere generated 3.6 million viewers.[91] In July, Braxton announced that she would embark on a concert tour, titled The Hits Tour, that October.[92] She was hospitalized on October 3, five days before the tour was scheduled to begin, due to complications with lupus, resulting in the cancellation of the tour's first two dates.[93][94] Braxton was admitted to hospital again on October 15, leading to another tour date cancellation, which was later rescheduled.[95][96] In December, she announced that the January 2017 concert dates had been canceled.[97][98][99][100]
2017–2019: Sex & Cigarettes, touring, and other ventures
In January 2018, Braxton starred in the Lifetime film Faith Under Fire.[101] In March, her eighth studio album Sex & Cigarettes, her first solo album in eight years, was released on Def Jam Recordings.[102] An adult contemporary R&B album with production from Fred Ball, Babyface, Dapo Torimiro, and Tricky Stewart, it debuted at number 22 on the US Billboard 200 and number one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Sex & Cigarettes received mainly positive reviews from music critics,[103] and was nominated for Best R&B Album at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards.[104] Second single "Long as I Live" topped the US Adult R&B Songs, becoming Braxton's eighth chart topper, while breaking a tie with singers Maxwell and R. Kelly to give her sole possession of the second-most number-one's in the chart's 24-year history.[105] It also received Grammy Award nomination for Best R&B Performance and Best R&B Song.[104]
Also in 2018, Braxton and Uncle Bud's Hemp products created a joint marketing campaign for the latter's products, which Braxton noted as helpful in her battle against lupus.[106] In April 2018, Braxton and her sisters Trina and Towanda appeared on their sister Traci's single "Broken Things".[107] In November, Braxton and Towanda appeared in the holiday film Every Day is Christmas, which premiered on Lifetime.[108][109][110][111] The same month, she announced her As Long as I Live Tour, a joint concert tour with SWV,[112] which took her to South Africa and the United Kingdom.[113] In June 2019, Braxton headlined the 2019 Pittsburgh Pride festival.[114]
2020–present: New record label and Spell My Name
In April 2020, it was announced that Braxton had signed with Island Records. She released the single, "Do It", her first song under the new deal on April 6, 2020.[115] In May, Braxton released a remix EP for her second single "Dance".[116] On June 26, 2020, Missy Elliott appeared on the official remix to the single "Do It". Elliott co-produced the track alongside Hannon Lane.[117] On August 4, 2020, Braxton released the music video for "Dance", directed by Mike Ho.[118] On August 27, 2020, Braxton released the song "Nothin'".[119] Braxton's tenth studio Spell My Name was released on August 28, 2020.[120] On October 23, 2020, Braxton released a video for her song "Gotta Move On".[121]
Braxton has been recognized for her distinctive contralto voice.[126][127] Her voice has been called "husky, sultry, elegant and sexy."[128] Due to the huskiness of her voice, Braxton often used male singers such as Michael McDonald, Luther Vandross and Stevie Wonder as vocal style models.[2]Chaka Khan and Anita Baker were two of the few female singers that she could stylize. Steve Huey of AllMusic cites a key to Braxton's success is the versatility of her voice, which he states as being "soulful enough for R&B audiences, but smooth enough for adult contemporary; sophisticated enough for adults, but sultry enough for younger listeners; strong enough in the face of heartbreak to appeal to women, but ravishing enough to nab the fellas."[2] In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked Braxton at No. 48 on their list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time.[129]
Braxton began her career singing traditional R&B and soft rock ballads and love songs on her debut and second albums. However, hip-hop soul and dance music elements begun to get spun into her sound on The Heat,[130]More Than a Woman,[131] and Pulse. She also showcased her classical training while performing in Broadway plays Beauty and the Beast and Aida as well as her duet with Il Divo, "The Time of Our Lives".
Legacy
Toni Braxton became an R&B superstar after the release of her first album. LA Reid stated during an interview with VH1: "We called her the first lady of LaFace. She was our Diva. Clive had Whitney, Tommy had Mariah and we had Toni." BBC called the album "spiritedly, mature soul at its best – and just urban enough to make it the bedroom album for the hip hop generation."[132] Over the span of her career Braxton has sold over 70 million records,[citation needed] including 40 million albums,[133] worldwide. Her hit "Un-Break My Heart", the Diane Warren-penned ballad, spent 11-weeks at number 1. Bob McCann, author of Encyclopedia of African American Actresses in Film and Television (2010), considered it "simply one of the most haunting R&B records ever made." Reviewer Mark Edward Nero named it one of the best R&B break-up songs and considered it Braxton's "finest moment". He further commented, "damn, this song is so sad it can make people cry for hours at a time." Braxton is a recipient of seven Grammy Awards, seven American Music Awards, and nine Billboard Music Awards.[citation needed] She has been cited as an influence by various artists, such as Beyoncé, sister Tamar Braxton, Billie Godfrey, Kelly Clarkson, Leela James, Keyshia Cole, Teyana Taylor, Kehlani, Sevyn Streeter,[134]Ari Lennox[135] and Anja Nissen.[136]
Braxton's career, she made several impacts on fashion, mostly for her high splits in her dresses. In 2011, Braxton topped the list for the Grammy Award's best dressed of the decade.[137] "I've always gone a little risque with all my other award show outfits."[138] In 2012, Braxton made the list for VH1's 50 Greatest Women in Music. Braxton's 2000 performance at Super Bowl XXXIV is ranked as one of the most memorable Super Bowl performances.[139] Braxton is featured alongside other R&B and pop divas as a primary character on the popular webparodyGot 2B Real: The Diva Variety Show.[140] With her Las Vegas residency Toni Braxton: Revealed, she became the first African American performer in Las Vegas to have her act enter the top ten Vegas shows charting.[citation needed] Braxton also made headlines for her Giantto Million Dollar Microphone that she performed every show with. Braxton said: "I think it's a great element to the show. You have to have a little sprinkle of Liberace and this is my little sprinkle of that." Braxton's prop was made up of white gold and encrusted with 650 karats of diamonds.[141] The microphone reportedly cost $1 million.[citation needed]
Braxton has also been seen as a gay icon, with some of her songs becoming gay anthems, such as "Un-Break My Heart", "He Wasn't Man Enough" and "Make My Heart". The singer stated that after the release of "Un-Break My Heart", she "recognized all the support. And it was really wonderful." When asked about her gay fans, Braxton said "I love my boys because my boys help me be a better girl. My choreographer and my video director are gay, and they've been my best friends since I started in the industry. They're my favorite part of the whole industry".[142]
Personal life
Relationships
Braxton met musician Keri Lewis when his group, Mint Condition, opened for her on tour; they married on April 21, 2001. In December 2001, she gave birth to their first child, a son named Denim Cole Braxton-Lewis. In 2002, while gearing up for the release of her fourth studio album, Braxton discovered she was pregnant with her second child; the complicated pregnancy confined her to bed rest. The couple's second son, Diezel Ky Braxton-Lewis, was born in March 2003. As Diezel has been diagnosed with autism, Braxton has become involved with Autism Speaks, serving as their International Spokesperson. In November 2009, Braxton announced that she and her husband had separated. The couple later divorced in July 2013.[143]
In her early 30s, Braxton had an abortion after discovering she was pregnant by then-boyfriend Keri Lewis. In her memoir Unbreak My Heart, Braxton discusses her abortion and guilt, saying that her son Diezel's autism was "God's payback".[144] In an October 2006 concert at the Flamingo Las Vegas, Braxton broke down in tears while announcing to the audience that just before the concert began she had been told that her son, Diezel, had been diagnosed with autism.[145] Braxton has been outspoken regarding her doctor's failure to diagnose Diezel's condition earlier, contending that if he had been diagnosed earlier he could have received treatment earlier.[146] As well as becoming a spokeswoman for Autism Speaks,[147] she is also a spokeswoman for the American Heart Association.
On July 8, 2015, Braxton's attorney, Antavius Weems, announced that Braxton had settled her contentious child support case with her former husband, Keri Lewis.[148] On June 2, 2016, the city and county officials of Atlanta, Georgia, named June 2 as Toni Braxton Day.[149]
Braxton began dating rapper Birdman in May 2016, and the couple announced their engagement in February 2018.[150] In January 2019, the couple called off the engagement.[151] However, in April 2019, both Braxton and Birdman confirmed that they were still together.[152] But since at least 2022, Braxton has made several television appearances, where she has declared herself single and on the dating scene, which indicates that her relationship with Birdman has ceased.[153]
Health problems
In August 2007, rumors surfaced that Braxton had been diagnosed with breast cancer. She stated to Access Hollywood that the breast cancer rumors were false and that her health was very good. However, in 2008, she had a benign lump removed from her breast. On April 8, 2008, near the end of her two-year run at the Flamingo Hotel, Braxton was briefly hospitalized and the remaining dates on the show, which was scheduled to end on August 23, 2008, were cancelled.[154] Later, while appearing on Season 7 of Dancing with the Stars, she stated, that she has been diagnosed with microvascular angina (small vessel disease).[155]
On November 18, 2010, Braxton revealed to CBS News that she had been diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a potentially life-threatening autoimmune disease.[156]
Braxton's uncle died of complications from lupus.[156] While taping her reality series Braxton Family Values, she went into hospital for surgery. Braxton was hospitalized in Los Angeles in December 2012 because of "minor health issues" related to lupus.[157]
Kenneth Brian Edmonds, better known by his stage name Babyface, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He has written and produced over 26 number-one R&B hits throughout his career and has won 13 Grammy Awards. He was ranked number 20 on NME's 50 of The Greatest Producers Ever list.
Tamar Estine Braxton is an American singer, songwriter, actress and television personality.
Toni Braxton is the debut studio album by American singer Toni Braxton, released on July 13, 1993, by LaFace Records and Arista Records. The album was primarily produced by L.A. Reid, Babyface, and Daryl Simmons.
More Than a Woman is the fifth studio album by American singer Toni Braxton, released on November 18, 2002, by Arista Records. The album contained both hip hop and urban adult contemporary sounds, as well as some softer and more contemporary melodies. Throughout the project, Braxton worked with her sister Tamar and husband Keri Lewis on most of the songs, who had written and produced material for her previous album. She also worked with hip hop producers and rappers such as Irv Gotti, The Neptunes, Mannie Fresh and Loon, as well as Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, protégé Big Bert and his domestic partner, singer Brandy.
Ultimate Toni Braxton, released in 2003, is the first greatest hits collection by R&B singer Toni Braxton. It features many of her greatest hits, and includes all the singles from her debut Toni Braxton and all but one of the singles from her second album Secrets. Her albums The Heat and More Than a Woman are fairly underrepresented, as only two and one songs are included from each album, respectively. The songs on Ultimate are not the actual album versions but radio edits, and the version of "Seven Whole Days" is live.
The Braxtons are an American musical quintet consisting of singer Toni Braxton and her younger sisters, Traci Braxton, Towanda Braxton, Trina Braxton, and Tamar Braxton. Despite being commercially unsuccessful, the group's first single, "Good Life", led to oldest sister Toni's solo career. All five members reunited in 2011 to star in the WE tv reality television series Braxton Family Values alongside their mother, Evelyn Braxton.
Libra is the sixth studio album by American singer Toni Braxton, released on September 27, 2005, by Blackground Records. It marked Braxton's debut on the label, following her split with longtime record company Arista Records in 2003 after the release of her album More Than a Woman (2002), which was commercially less successful than its predecessors. The album's title is a reference to Braxton's astrological sign, Libra.
"Hit the Freeway" is a song by American singer Toni Braxton from her fifth studio album, More Than a Woman (2002). The song, which features American rapper Loon, was written by Pharrell Williams and Loon himself, while production was handled by Pharrell's production duo The Neptunes. It is a hip hop and R&B song, with lyrics about an ex trying to rekindle with Braxton, but Braxton claims she's not interested in him anymore. It was released on October 21, 2002, to rhythmic and urban contemporary radio as the lead and only single from the album.
American singer Toni Braxton has released ten studio albums, five extended plays, six compilation albums, two remix albums, thirty-four singles, two video albums and twenty-two music videos in a career spanning over 30 years. She was born in Severn, Maryland, on October 7, 1967. Her mother, an opera vocalist, encouraged Braxton and her four sisters to sing in church at a young age. In 1990, songwriter Bill Pettaway discovered the sisters and helped them obtain a record deal with Arista Records, as the group titled The Braxtons; the group's debut single, "Good Life", was released the same year. Although the song failed to chart, Braxton's voice caught the attention of producers, L.A. Reid and Babyface, who signed her to their newly formed LaFace Records. In 1991, Braxton recorded songs for the soundtrack to the 1992 film Boomerang. Her solo debut single, "Love Shoulda Brought You Home", reached the top forty of the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and the top five of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Two years later, her self-titled debut album was issued through LaFace. The album topped the US Billboard 200 and R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts and was certified eight-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It spawned four singles, including "Breathe Again", which peaked within the top ten in the United States, Australia, Canada, Ireland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The album has sold over ten million copies worldwide.
"Love Shoulda Brought You Home" is the debut solo single by American singer Toni Braxton. It was written by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, Daryl Simmons, and Bo Watson and produced by Edmonds and Simmons along with L.A. Reid. Originally written for singer Anita Baker, who had to decline due to her pregnancy, it was eventually recorded by Braxton and featured on the soundtrack to Reginald Hudlin's romantic comedy film Boomerang (1992). The song was later also included on Braxton's self titled debut album (1993). Lyrically, the slow-groove R&B song is saga of betrayal and infidelity that depicts a heartbroken Braxton.
"Another Sad Love Song" is a song by American singer-songwriter Toni Braxton. Written and produced by Daryl Simmons and Babyface, featuring additional production from L.A. Reid, it was released as the lead single and its opening track from Braxton's self-titled debut album (1993) on June 11, 1993, by LaFace Records and Arista Records. Lyrically, it talks about Braxton complaining that every song played on the radio is a reminder of her ex-boyfriend.
"Breathe Again" is a song by American R&B singer Toni Braxton. It was written by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds and produced by Edmonds, L.A. Reid, and Daryl Simmons for Braxton's first album Toni Braxton (1993). Its lyrics evokes a sense of nostalgia from a relationship that has run its course. The ballad was released as the album's second single on October 6, 1993, by LaFace and Arista Records.
Traci Renee Braxton was an American singer, reality television personality, and radio personality.
Love, Marriage & Divorce is a collaborative studio album by American singers Toni Braxton and Babyface, released on February 4, 2014, by Motown Records. The album debuted at number 4 on the Billboard 200 and as of July 2, 2014 the album had sold 211,000 copies in the U.S. The album won Best R&B Album at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards.
Paul Boutin is a French-born American music mixer, audio engineer and a long-time collaborator with producer/songwriter/artist Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds.
"Hurt You" is a song by American singers Toni Braxton and Babyface. It was written by Braxton and Babyface along with Daryl Simmons and Antonio Dixon for their collaborative studio album Love, Marriage & Divorce (2014), while Babyface helmed production. The song was released on August 17, 2013, as the lead single from the album. It topped the US Adult R&B Songs and was ranked fifth on the chart's year-end listing.
Sex & Cigarettes is the ninth studio album by American singer Toni Braxton. It was released on March 23, 2018, by Def Jam Recordings. Her first solo album in eight years, it served as her debut for the label after signing a new record deal. Braxton worked with a variety of producers on the album, including Fred Ball, Antonio Dixon, Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, Dapo Torimiro, Stuart Crichton, Tricky Stewart, and Pierre Medor. Its release was preceded by the release of two singles, "Deadwood" and "Long as I Live" as well as a remix EP of the song "Coping" which features on the album.
"Long as I Live" is a song by American singer Toni Braxton from her eighth studio album Sex & Cigarettes (2018). Written by Braxton, Paul Boutin, and Antonio Dixon, whom also produced the track, it is a "soulful '90s-style" R&B and soul track that finds the singer struggling with breaking up and moving on from her past lover. The song was released on February 9, 2018 by Def Jam Recordings as the second single from the album, with an accompanying music video premiered on March 23, 2018 to coincide with the parent album's release.
The As Long as I Live Tour was the fifth concert tour by American R&B/pop singer Toni Braxton in support of her eighth studio album, Sex & Cigarettes. The tour kicked off on January 19, 2019, in Columbia, South Carolina and ended on November 19 in London, U.K. The tour also included female R&B group SWV and singer Babyface as featured special guests in selected Northern America dates.
Spell My Name is the tenth studio album by American singer Toni Braxton. It was released by Island Records on August 28, 2020. Her debut with the record label, following a short-lived stint with Def Jam Recordings on her eighth album Sex & Cigarettes (2018), Braxton assumed more control on Spell My Name, again taking a greater hand in writing and producing the material. Her collaborations included frequent collaborators Paul Boutin, Antonio Dixon, and Babyface as well as singers and songwriters Patrick "J. Que" Smith, Chris Braide, Dapo Torimiro, Soundz, H.E.R. and Missy Elliott.
References
↑ "Ebony". Johnson Publishing Company. June 2001. Archived from the original on March 9, 2023. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
↑ "Famous Methodists". Adherents.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2001. Retrieved November 12, 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
↑ "Jet". Jet. Johnson Publishing Company: 21. June 20, 1994. ISSN0021-5996. Archived from the original on March 9, 2023. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
↑ Dougherty, Steve (October 9, 2000). "Greener Pastures". People. Archived from the original on September 3, 2016. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
↑ Rizzo, Monica (October 27, 2008). "Toni Braxton: Still Dancing". People. 70 (17). Archived from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved November 15, 2015.
↑ Kinnon, Joy Bennett (December 2000). "The Rise and Fall and Rise of Toni Braxton". Ebony.
↑ Joan, Morgan (December 2002). "Fully Exposed". Vibe. One day in 1990, songwriter Bill Pettaway heard Toni singing to herself at an Annapolis gas station, liked what he heard, and got her an audition with L.A.
↑ Helwig, Emily (February 8, 2013). "Racy Grammy Dresses". Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on December 23, 2013. Retrieved February 1, 2014.
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