Tamia is the debut studio album by Canadian recording artist Tamia. It was released on April 14, 1998 on Quincy Jones's Qwest Records, while distribution was handled through Warner Bros. Recorded after the release of her Grammy Award-nominated collaborations with Jones and the single "Missing You", her contribution to the soundtrack of the 1996 motion picture Set It Off, Tamia worked with a plethora of producers on her debut, including Jermaine Dupri, Tim & Bob, Mario Winans, J-Dub, Keith Crouch, and Christopher "Tricky" Stewart, many of which would become frequent producers on subsequent projects.
Upon its release, Tamia received a mixed to positive reception by critics, who complimented Tamia's vocal performance and the progression from her earlier recordings but found the material uneven. It debuted and peaked at number sixty-seven on the Billboard 200 chart and entered the top twenty of the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Five singles were released from the album. "Imagination" was chosen as the album's lead single, reaching the top 20 in Canada and top forty in both the United States and New Zealand. The album's second single produced by Tim & Bob called "So into You" was well-received and charted even higher. A remake of "Careless Whisper" was released as the album's fourth single in Japan. A critical success, Tamia garnered the singer two Juno Award nominations for Best New Solo Artist and R&B/Soul Recording of the Year at the 1999 award ceremony.
tamia album
After dominating local talent competitions through her teenage years, in 1994, Windsor native Tamia performed at a multiple sclerosis benefit in Aspen, Colorado when she met music manager, Lionel Richie's ex-wife Brenda Richie, who was cosponsoring the event and introduced herself to Tamia after the show.[1] A few months later, Tamia, who was being courted by Warner Bros. Records at the time, called Richie to say that she was coming to Los Angeles for a photo session, resulting in her lasting stay and a management deal with Richie.[1] Weeks later, Richie arranged for her to perform at a star-studded party that she held for singer Luther Vandross.[1] Her performance reportedly impressed all in attendance, including veteran producer Quincy Jones, who later offered her the chance to appear on his album Q's Jook Joint (1995).[1]
Overwhelmed by his offer, Tamia recorded vocals for "You Put a Move on My Heart", which Jones later selected as the album's first single.[2] A moderate commercial success, the collaboration earned acclaim from critics; it was later nominated for a Grammy Award along with their second collaboration "Slow Jams" and "Missing You", a song she recorded with Brandy, Gladys Knight, and Chaka Khan for the soundtrack of the 1996 motion picture Set It Off.[3] All three track reached the top twenty on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart and gained Tamia additional recognition with nominations from the Soul Train Music Awards and the NAACP Image Awards.[2] Following this, Jones signed her his label Qwest Records, a joint venture with Warner Bros., and enlisted the services of several producers to work on her debut self-titled album.[2] Recording was reportedly intermitted when Tamia filmed the role of Sheri Silver in Speed 2: Cruise Control, playing the part of a featured vocalist at the dinner theatre aboard the luxury cruise ship.[2]
Upon its release, Tamia debuted and peaked at sixty-seven on the US Billboard 200 and reached the eighteenth spot on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.[7] In total, the album sold 416,000 copies in the United States,[8] and finished sixty-second on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums year-end chart in 1998.[9] In Japan, Tamia was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) in June 1998 for more than 100,000 copies shipped to stores.[10] Five singles were released from the album, including "Imagination" and "So into You" both of which reached the top forty of the US Billboard Hot 100. A critical success, Tamia garnered the singer two Juno Award nominations for Best New Solo Artist and R&B/Soul Recording of the Year at the 1999 award ceremony.
Canadian singer and songwriter Tamia has released nine albums (including seven studio albums, one extended play, and one compilation albums), and twenty-six singles (including four as a featured artist and one charity singles). She began her career in 1995 as a protégé of musician Quincy Jones, who offered her the chance to appear on his album Q's Jook Joint (1995).[1] Selected as the album's first single, their collaboration "You Put a Move on My Heart" became a top 20 success on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.[2] The song, along with their second collaboration "Slow Jams" and "Missing You", a song she recorded with Brandy, Gladys Knight, and Chaka Khan for the soundtrack of the 1996 motion picture Set It Off, was later nominated for a Grammy Award.[3]
Signed to Jones's Qwest Records, Tamia's self-titled debut album was released in 1998. The album took her work further into the contemporary R&B and hip hop genres but became a moderate commercial success, peaking at number sixty-seven on the US Billboard 200 chart and entered the top twenty of the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.[4] From the five singles that were released from the album, "Imagination" and "So into You" reached the top forty of Billboard Hot 100. The album was certified gold in Japan in June 1998 for 100,000 copies shipped to stores.[5] In the United States, Tamia sold 416,000 copies in total.[6] After a transition to Elektra Records, Tamia released her second album A Nu Day in 2000. Chiefly produced by Shep Crawford and Missy Elliott, the album entered the top ten on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.[4] It included the singles "Can't Go for That" and "Stranger in My House," the latter of which reached number 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100, making it her highest-charting single to date.[4] Her strongest seller yet, A Nu Day sold over 665,000 copies in the United States and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[6]
Tamia released her long-delayed third album, More, following her diagnosis with multiple sclerosis in mid-2004. Pushed by the top five success of "Into You", an updated version of her 1998 single "So into You", which rapper Fabolous recorded for his album Street Dreams, More became her highest-charting album yet, debuting and peaking at number 17 on Billboard 200.[4] The album spawned three singles.[4] Feeling restricted by record label obligations, Tamia later split from Elektra to go independent with her own company, Plus One Music Group. Her first project with the label was Between Friends.[7] Her second album with the rooster, Beautiful Surprise, was released in 2012 after a nearly six-year absence in which she had devoted herself to the education of her two children with retired basketball player Grant Hill.[7] It debuted at number six on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and also garnered two Grammy Award nominations.[8] In 2014, Tamia entered a joint venture with Def Jam Recordings to release her sixth album Love Life. Released in June 2015, it debuted at number 24 on the US Billboard 200, while reaching the top of Billboard's Top R&B Albums chart and number two on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, becoming her highest-charting album ever on both charts.[9] Passion Like Fire, her seventh studio album, was released in September 2018.[10]
Tamia has unfairly been denied the mainstream superstardom she deserves. Her voice is one of the purest and strongest in R&B for two decades. And her albums, which I was quickly reminded of when making this list, are all equally strong. Every single LP features strong vocal performances, memorable tracks, great songwriting and concepts.
Although it suffers from some uneven material, Tamia's eponymous debut album is an appealingly stylish collection of contemporary urban soul. Usually, her seductive voice can make the mediocre songs enticing, but the album truly soars when she has a strong song, like "Imagination." It's moments like these that indicate Tamia has true potential.
During a candid interview with The Huffington Post, Tamia revealed details behind the album, sustaining her marriage to Grant Hill, her thoughts on the "Basketball Wives" franchise, and her battle with multiple sclerosis.
It's not just the track that was the reason why I named the album "Beautiful Surprise." It's just sort of really [about] life's beautiful surprises. There've been so many beautiful surprises in my life. And certainly I always want to look at the positive things in life, and I think that's important for your mental health and your physical health to obviously keep things positive.
This album I got a chance to work with great producers. I worked with Claude Kelly, we co-wrote a lot of songs together. I also worked with The Runners, Chuck Harmony, Jeff Crawford, Salaam Remi and J. Phoenix. I worked with a country producer named Luke Layerd. And it's interesting because Claude and I share a lot of similarities in music, we love a great story and a lot of country has a lot of great stories and a lot of the sound is rooted in R&B. So it makes complete sense that we like that. So I tried a little something with this album. I think people will be pleasantly surprised.
In 1995, Tamia did vocals for Quincy Jones' 'You Put A Move On My Heart' from his Q's Jook Joint album. As a single from the album, it performed well and was even nominated for a Grammy. She had her second nomination for a Grammy after appearing on the track 'Missing You' from the Set It Off Soundtrack with Brandy, Chaka Khan and Gladys Knight.
With the strength of two solid singles on other artists' albums, Tamia finally released her own self-titled debut album in 1998. The album had two solid singles with 'So Into You' reaching #7 on the R&B charts and the Jermaine Dupri produced 'Imagination' which reached #12. 2ff7e9595c
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