''Emotional'' is the debut album by American R&B singer Carl Thomas. It was released by

Bad Boy Records Bad Boy Records (or Bad Boy Entertainment) is an American record label founded in 1993 by rapper Sean "Puffy" Combs. It operates as an imprint of Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment. It has been home to many artists, including ...

and

Arista Records Arista Records () is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously handled by BMG Entertainmen ...

on April 18, 2000, in the United States. ''Emotional'' earned Thomas a nomination in the Best R&B/Soul Album at the

2001 Soul Train Music Awards The 2001 Soul Train Music Awards were held on February 28, 2001, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California. The show was hosted by Queen Latifah, Mýa, and Shemar Moore. Special awards Quincy Jones Award for Career Achievement * The I ...

, also garnering him a Male & Best R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist nod. "

I Wish I WiSH was a Japanese pop group consisting of two members, Ai Kawashima and nao. Ai is responsible for the vocals and occasionally plays the piano also with nao on the keyboard or piano. Their most notable track is and was in the Oricon ranking ...

" was also nominated for Best R&B/Soul Single.

Critical reception

Michael Paoletta from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' found that on ''Emotional'' the singer "shifts into romantic over-drive on his debut album – and that's a good thing ..Thomas deservedly takes a giant step to the forefront on this 17-track debut," crafting "his own brand of new-millenium soul while paying homage to the original groove of the '70s and '80s." ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' rated the album three and a half stars out of five and called the album "an unabashedly romantic work, spun on the twin poles of longing and loss ..laying bare a notable ambition within the ballad genre ..Thomas proves himself a more than viable heir to the tradition of race-music crooners." It was included in ''Rolling Stone''s Top 50 Albums of 2000 listing. Michael A. Gonzalez, writer for ''

Vibe ''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down productio ...

'' called ''Emotional'' an "exquisite, lush soundtrack that the lovelorn of the world can call their own ..Thomas endears us with his vulnerability, standing emotionally naked and unpretentious at a time when R&B has lost nearly all of its romance and subtlety."

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

editor Heather Phares rated the album two out of five stars. She felt that "though the set features competent singing, songwriting, and production, outside of the singles, it's not a particularly distinctive collection. Thomas' voice is impressive, but he needs better and more varied material to truly shine."

Singles

"Summer Rain" was the album's lead single. The song was a sleeper hit and did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100 until "I Wish" charted. "Summer Rain" ended up peaking at number 80 on the week of October 14, 2000. "

”, was released as the album's second single. It is the album's highest-charting single. "I Wish" peaked at number 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 on the week of May 13, 2000. The album's final single, the title track "Emotional" performed moderately. The single peaked at number 47 on the Billboard Hot 100 on the week of December 30, 2000. “Woke Up in the Morning” was released as a promotional single in 2000. Its remix features

the Notorious B.I.G. Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), better known by his stage names the Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta ...

Track listing

Notes * denotes co-producer Sample credits * "Emotional" contains samples and interpolations of " Shape of My Heart" by

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-eart ...

. * "Giving You All My Love" contains a sample of "Wherever You Are" by

Isaac Hayes Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, actor, songwriter, and composer. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served both as an in-house songwri ...

. * "Cadillac Rap (Interlude)" contains a sample of "Be My Girl" by

the Dramatics The Dramatics are an American soul music vocal group, formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1964. They are best known for their 1970s hit songs " In the Rain" and "Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get", both of which were Top 10 Pop hits, as well as their late ...

. * "Woke Up in the Morning" contains a sample from "My Downfall" by

* "Come to Me" contains a sample from " Let's Stay Together" By

Roberta Flack Roberta Cleopatra Flack (born February 10, 1937) is a retired American singer. She topped the Billboard Magazine, ''Billboard'' charts with the No. 1 singles "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", "Killing Me Softly with His Song", "Feel Like M ...

. * "Summer Rain" contains an interpolation of "Summer Soft" by

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes. *Charles "Prince Charles" Alexander – engineer, mixing *Ben H. Allen – engineer *

Mark Batson Mark Batson is an American producer, musician and songwriter. He has worked on albums by artists including Alicia Keys, Dave Matthews Band, LeAnn Rimes, Anthony Hamilton, Eminem, India Arie, 50 Cent, Jay-Z, Maroon 5, Skylar Grey, Grace Pott ...

– engineer *Rick Brown – associate executive producer *Tom Cassel – recorder *

Gordon Chambers Gordon Anthony Chambers (c. 1969) is an American singer-songwriter and record producer who has written songs for more than 75 recording artists including Angie Stone, Yolanda Adams, The Isley Brothers, Brandy, Trey Songz, Chaka Khan, Patti LaBell ...

– producer *Roger Che – recorder *

Mike City Mike City (born Michael Flowers) is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for producing the singles "I Wish" for Carl Thomas, " Heard It All Before" for Sunshine Anderson, "Full Moon" for Brandy and "One Woman M ...

– producer *

Sean "Puffy" Combs Sean Combs (born Sean John Combs; November 4, 1969), also known by his stage names Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, Puffy, or Diddy, is an American rapper, actor, record producer, and record executive. Born in New York City, he worked as a talent directo ...

– producer *Dave Dar – assistant engineer *Stephen Dent – engineer *John Eaton – engineer *Datu Faison – associate executive producer *Rasheed Goodlowe – assistant engineer *Terri Haskins – wardrobe design *

Heavy D Dwight Arrington MyersCuda, Heidi Sigmund Keeping it reel. ''Vibe'' ("born Dwight Arrington Myers")Samuels, Anita M. (January 12' 1996)Heavy D, the C.E.O. ''New York Times'' (May 24, 1967 – November 8, 2011), known professionally as Heav ...

– producer * Ron Lawrence – producer *Ken Huffnagle – assistant engineer *Herb Powers – mastering *Jeff Lane – engineer *Paul Logus – mixing *Kim Lumpkin – project manager *Dominick Mancuso – assistant engineer *

Tony Maserati Tony Maserati is an American record producer and audio engineer specializing in mixing. He was involved in the development of the New York R&B and hip-hop scene in the 1990s, working with Mary J. Blige, Notorious B.I.G., Puff Daddy, and Queen ...

– mixing *Lynn Montrose – assistant engineer *Nigel Parry – photography *Rob Paustain – mixing *Joe "Smilin' Joe" Perrera – engineer *

Harve Pierre Harve Pierre, also known by the stage name Joe Hooker, is an American writer, singer, producer, and record executive who is president of Bad Boy Entertainment. Biography Pierre is an American of Haitian descent. Guest appearances Productio ...

– A&R, associate executive producer, producer *

Kelly Price Kelly Cherelle Price (born April 4, 1973) is an American R&B and gospel singer. She started her singing career in 1992. Price originally garnered attention by singing backing vocals for Mariah Carey on multiple songs, including her ''Billboa ...

– background vocalist *

Nivea Nivea (, stylized as NIVEA) is a German personal care brand that specializes in skin and body care. It is owned by the Hamburg-based company Beiersdorf Global AG. The company was founded on 28 March 1882, by Paul Carl Beiersdorf. In 1890, it w ...

- background vocalist *Marlon Robinson – background vocalist *Ed Raso – engineer *Garrett Blake Melodeus Smith – producer *Carl Thomas – producer *

Chucky Thompson Carl Edward "Chucky" Thompson Jr. (July 12, 1968 – August 9, 2021) was an American hip hop and R&B record producer. Biography Thompson was born in Washington, D.C., in 1968. He was a member of Bad Boy Entertainment's "Hitmen" team of in-hous ...

– producer *J. Willbanks – assistant engineer *

Mario Winans Mario Mendell Winans ( Brown; born August 29, 1974) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer best known for his 2004 song "I Don't Wanna Know", which reached number 2 in the United States and number 1 in the United Kingdom. Winan ...

– producer, vocals *

Malik Yusef Malik Yusef El Shabazz Jones (born April 4, 1971) is an American spoken word artist, poet, rapper, writer, composer, producer and director based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Early life He was raised in Chicago's South Side neighborho ...

– words

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 2000 debut albums Carl Thomas (singer) albums Bad Boy Records albums LaFace Records albums Arista Records albums Albums produced by Sean Combs