''Heart to Yours'' is the debut solo

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

singer and songwriter Michelle Williams. Released on April 16, 2002, by

Sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a saf ...

and

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

, it became the first solo release of any

Destiny's Child Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final line-up comprised Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Houston, Texas. After years of limited ...

member. Production of the album began in 2001, with Williams working with an array of producers, including her brother Erron Williams (who produced the title track), HR Crump and Warryn Campbell. ''Heart to Yours'' is primarily a

contemporary gospel Urban/contemporary gospel is a modern subgenre of gospel music. Although the style developed gradually, early forms are generally dated to the 1970s, and the genre was well established by the end of the 1980s. The radio format is pitched prima ...

album, which incorporates elements of other styles and genres such as neo-soul, inspirational, R&B and

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...

. The album includes a tribute, dedicated to the victims and families affected by the

September 11, 2001 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Writing on her vocal performances, critics drew comparisons to

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame as the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown's most successful act during the 1960s and one of the world's best-selling girl groups o ...

, Erykah Badu and Jill Scott. Receiving generally positive reviews from critics, ''Heart to Yours'' peaked at number one on the US ''Billboard'' Gospel Albums chart, debuting with 17,000 copies sold in one week; eventually becoming 2002's biggest selling gospel album, selling over 220,000 copies in the US alone and 500,000 worldwide. The album was ranked number six on the 2002 year-end chart and ''Billboard'' ranked Williams as the fifth Top Gospel Artist of 2002. The album was also a success on the US ''Billboard''

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated J ...

chart, where it peaked within the top 20 at number 17. It also reached a moderate 57 on the US ''Billboard'' 200. The album won Williams an award for "Best Gospel Act" at the 2002 MOBO Awards and its lead single "Heard a Word" was featured on the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

platinum-certified ''

WOW Gospel 2003 WOW Gospel 2003 is a gospel music compilation album from the WOW series. Released February 4, 2003, it includes a total of thirty-three songs on two CDs. The album reached 29 on the Billboard 200 chart in 2003, and hit number one on the Top Gos ...

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

Background and production

Williams began her singing career as a backing vocalist for R&B singer

Monica Monica may refer to: People *Monica (actress) (born 1987), Indian film actress *Monica (given name), a given name (including a list of people and characters with the name) *Monica (singer) (born 1980), American R&B singer, songwriter, producer, ...

in 1999 before joining

with

Farrah Franklin Farrah Laron Franklin (born May 3, 1981) is an American R&B singer and actress. She is also a former member of the girl group Destiny's Child. Along with Michelle Williams, she replaced the group's original members LaTavia Roberson and LeToya L ...

alongside original members Beyoncé Knowles and

Kelly Rowland Kelendria Trene Rowland (born February 11, 1981) is an American singer, actress, and television personality. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a member of Destiny's Child, one of the world's List of best-selling girl groups, best-selling girl ...

, replacing former members LeToya Luckett and

LaTavia Roberson LaTavia Marie Roberson (born November 1, 1981) is an American R&B singer. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as an original member of the R&B group Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. During her time as a ...

to much controversy in 2000. In late 2000, while recording their third album, ''

Survivor Survivor(s) may refer to: Actual survivors * *Last survivors of historical events Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Survivors, characters in the 1997 ''KKnD'' video-game series * ''The Survivors'', or the ''New Survivors Found ...

'',

revealed that they would produce solo albums to be released "simultaneously" in the "hope" that they would "boost interest in Destiny's Child". Describing the stylistic differences of the albums' directions, Knowles said "We're going to all do different types of music and support each other's album" before saying "hopefully it will broaden our audience, so it will help us all out". The idea of individual releases emanated from the group's manager and Knowles' father,

Mathew Mathew is a masculine given name and a variant of Matthew. It is also used as a surname. As a given name Notable people with the given name include: * Mat Erpelding (born 1975), American politician * Mat Kearney (born 1978), American singer-s ...

. After the release of ''Survivor'', the group announced in early 2002 a temporary break-up to focus on solo projects, including working on their own albums. Before undertaking their respective solo projects, the group released a Christmas album, ''

8 Days of Christmas ''8 Days of Christmas'' is the fourth and penultimate studio album and the first and only Christmas album by American R&B girl group Destiny's Child, released on October 30, 2001 by Columbia Records. Background The album contains twelve tracks ...

''. Williams worked in the studio with several musical collaborators, including Scott “Shavoni” Parker, Damon Elliott, Warren Campbell and

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

producer HR Crump. Williams also co-wrote five of the songs whilst her brother Erron Williams, produced numerous tracks. She revealed in an interview with Gospel Flava that she "received tremendous support" from Music World, saying, "they came to me. There wasn't a question as to what type of music I was going to do. Music World has a Gospel division and I'm the first artist to come out on Music World and in the Gospel division. I'd love to do more and more Gospel projects". She also discussed her Christian upbringing, saying, "I grew up in Rockford, Illinois. St. Paul Church Of God In Christ was and still is my home church". Furthermore, she explained, "I sang my first solo at the age of seven. I directed the choir, I was an usher. I was a straight-up church girl. I did a lot of stuff in the community such as singing in various choirs and at my school." In discussing the musical transition she said, "it wasn't a hard transition at all. This is something that has been in my heart to do, so I had to do it. I thought that it would be a perfect time. Choosing to do this at the height of my career rather than doing it when Destiny's Child is at a downfall, you know? Most people do that. They go Gospel when they don't have anything else to do anymore, you know? I chose to do this while I can reach people." She echoed this sentiment in speaking with ''

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 ...

'' about the album and its artistic direction, saying: "Some people will do gospel when their career fails, but I chose to do it at the height of the popularity of Destiny's Child. I didn't want to do it because it was a fad. I wanted to do it because it's in me. It's in my heart."

Content and composition

Generally, the album consists of R&B-influenced gospel containing elements of R&B, neo-soul and

traditional black gospel music Traditional Black gospel is music that is written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding African American Christian life, as well as (in terms of the varying music styles) to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular mu ...

, with inspirational lyrics about building, maintaining and appreciating a relationship with God which also encourage the listener that "everything is going to work out fine". The album's lead single, "Heard a Word", sums up the theme of the album, with its chorus: "I heard a word / Saying girl, you'll be fine / I heard a word that would ease my troubled mind / Took all the hurt away / Warmed me up inside like a summer day / So glad that you'd never break your promises". Other songs are tributes to the victims of the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States; "Better Place", written by Michelle Williams, Damon Elliott and Kayla Parker, is one such example which was inspired by the catastrophic event and is an emotional tribute to those who died in the attack. The album features guest vocals by various artists, including Williams' Destiny's Child bandmates –

and Beyoncé Knowles – on "Gospel Medley" (originally produced for the group's 2001 album, ''

'') which consists of an interpolation of Kirk Franklin's "Holy is the Lamb", the popular Anna B. Warner

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

"Jesus Loves Me" and concludes with the famous final section of Richard Smallwood's "Total Praise". Other guests include Carl Thomas on a remixed version of the BeBe & CeCe Winans classic, "Heaven", (featured as a bonus track on the album);

Men of Standard Men of Standard is an American gospel group. Musical career The group spent the bulk of their tenure as signees to the Malaco Records subsidiary Muscle Shoals. Their album released on Columbia Records/Sony Gospel features production from Warryn ...

's Isaac Carree and Lowell C. Pye on "You Care for Me";

Mary Mary Mary Mary is a female American urban contemporary gospel duo composed of sisters Erica Atkins-Campbell (born April 29, 1972) and Trecina Atkins-Campbell (born May 1, 1974). Formed in 1998, Mary Mary was launched into mainstream recognition fo ...

on "So Glad"; and

Shirley Caesar Shirley Ann Caesar-Williams (born October 13, 1938), known professionally as Shirley Caesar, is an American gospel singer whose career has spanned seven decades. She has won 11 Grammys in addition to Dove Awards and Stellar Awards; Caesar is kno ...

on "Steal Away to Jesus", which was heralded by most critics as "the album's high point" and was first included on Caesar's 2001 album, ''Hymns''. In discussing the collaborations, Williams said it was "no problem" to connect with the featured artists on the album, saying "a phone call was made and we were already cool with one another. It kinda wasn't even a business thing. It was like 'that's my girl', you know, and I personally asked them myself. So that's how that went." She also revealed she was "initially uncertain about boldly referencing Jesus on the project". Whilst discussing the lyrical content she stated, "at first I was like, 'should I say Jesus', but before I knew it, I couldn't help but to ay His name ..I wasn't going to let anybody stop me from doing that...not that anybody really was, you know?".

Critical reception

''Heart to Yours'' received generally positive reviews from critics. William Ruhlmann of

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 ...

complimented the non-hasty production of the album, noting that "there are different producers on nearly every track, and the arrangements for the most part are state-of-the-art urban contemporary efforts". Ruhlmann also described Williams' voice as "warm" and "kittenish" before writing that "by the time Williams is trading lines with Isaac Carree and Lowell Pye of Men of Standard" she "has transformed herself from kitten to tiger, belting out the words with absolute conviction". ''GospelCity.com'' also praised "Michelle's delicate vocals" – particularly on "You Care For Me" where Williams' "soulful chops" are said to "shine through brilliantly" – and noted that on "Heard A Word", Williams "demonstrates further versatility in

Ella Ella may refer to: * Ella (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Places United States * Ella, Kentucky, an unincorporated community * Ella, Oregon, an unincorporated community * Ella, Pennsylvania, an unincorporate ...

-like fashion", concluding the review by describing ''Heart to Yours'' as a "melodically pleasant, lyrically sound gospel project". Sal Cinquemani of ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...

'' also described Williams' voice was "warm", noting that it recalls "the playful wisps of her R&B contemporaries ( Jill Scott, Erykah Badu) and the breathy timbre of

". Cinquemani then described the album as being "a mix of slick hip-hop-style beats, inspirational themes and catchy, pop-friendly hooks" with "admirable", "largely restrained arrangements", lending particular praise to the "surprisingly eloquent (and non-denominational) sentiment" that is featured within the lyrics of the album's title track ("Heart to Yours"). Tracy Hopkins of ''

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 ...

'' magazine gave the least favorable review however, stating that despite Williams' collaborations with contemporary gospel singers, they "only reinforce the thin-piped vocalist's shortcomings". Hopkins also wrote that although Williams "is in the right place", her vocals are "too quiet" and the production is too "tame to start a real Holy Ghost party". On the contrary, Mike Rimmer of ''

Cross Rhythms Cross Rhythms is a Christian media organisation based in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It operates an FM and online radio station, produces radio shows sent internationally, and its website has resources about contemporary Christian music. Hi ...

'' gave a very favorable review of the album (10/10), describing "the quality" as being "superb throughout" and "Michelle's soulful laid back vocals" as being "delicious throughout".

Commercial reception

While her musical cohorts were finishing their projects, Williams' management strategically planned a successive release of their albums to avoid "rivalry" on the charts. Over a period of one year, Williams released ''Heart to Yours'' on April 16, 2002, in the United States, ahead of

's 2002 album, ''

Simply Deep ''Simply Deep'' is the debut solo studio album by American singer Kelly Rowland. It was first released through Columbia Records and Music World Entertainment on October 22, 2002, in North America, and on February 3, 2003, in other areas. Recorded ...

'' and Beyoncé Knowles' 2003 ''

Dangerously in Love ''Dangerously in Love'' is the debut solo studio album by American singer Beyoncé. It was released on June 20, 2003, by Columbia Records and Music World Entertainment. During the recording of Destiny's Child's third studio album '' Survivor'' ( ...

'' – all debut releases. Williams expressed that she wanted "to reach everyone" and hoped "that a small percentage of Destiny's Child's fanbase" would "get it and be reached" and "hear a different message. "Heard a Word" was sent to Urban AC radio in September, 2002. The album entered the ''Billboard'' Top Gospel Albums chart at number one with first week sales of 17,000 copies. Eventually spending a total of 46 weeks on the chart, ''Heart to Yours'' became the best-selling gospel album of the year. In addition to this, the album was listed at number six on the US ''Billboard'' Year-End Top Gospel Albums chart in 2002, making it one of the most successful gospel releases of the year on the ''Billboard'' charts. On the main album chart in the US, the ''Billboard'' 200, the album reached number 57 on May 4, 2002, spending 14 weeks on the chart and also peaked within the top 20 of the

chart, at number 17, where the album spent 24 weeks. By October 12, 2002, the album had sold 159,000 units in the US and more than 198,000 US copies by February 12, 2004. On November 14, 2004, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reported ''Heart to Yours'' had sold 203,000 copies in the US, whilst ''

Radio & Records ''Radio & Records'' (''R&R'') was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It started as an independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006 and became a relaunched sister ...

'' reported sales of 220,000 in 2008. Worldwide, the album has sold 500,000 units as of 2014.

Track listing

;Notes * denotes co-producer * denotes additional producer *" Steal Away to Jesus" is a completely re-worked cover of the

Wallace Willis Wallace Willis was a Choctaw freedman living in the Indian Territory, in what is now Choctaw County, near the city of Hugo, Oklahoma, US. His dates are unclear: perhaps 1820 to 1880. He is credited with composing (probably before 1860) several ...

which was arranged by

(who also features on the track). *"Rock with Me" contains resung elements from "Cornerstone" by Leon Patillo. *"Gospel Medley" consists of an interpolation of Kirk Franklin's "Now Behold the Lamb", the

Anna Bartlett Warner Anna Bartlett Warner (August 31, 1827 – January 22, 1915) was an American writer, the author of several books, and of poems set to music as hymns and religious songs for children. Biography Anna Bartlett Warner was born on Long Island on August ...

Jesus Loves Me "Jesus Loves Me" is a Christian hymn written by Anna Bartlett Warner (1827–1915). The lyrics first appeared as a poem in the context of an 1860 novel called ''Say and Seal'', written by her older sister Susan Warner (1819–1885), in which t ...

" and concludes with the final section of Richard Smallwood's "Total Praise".

Credits

Credits are taken from the album's liner notes.Music World Entertainment (2002). Michelle Williams – ''Heart to Yours'' (liner notes). Columbia Records. ;Managerial * Executive producers –

Mathew Knowles Mathew Knowles (born January 9, 1952)Knowles in is an American record executive, businessman and university lecturer. He is best known for being the manager of Destiny's Child. He also once managed the solo careers of his daughters Beyoncé an ...

* A&R – Kim Burse, Alvin Williams, Teresa LaBarbera Whites ;Performance credits *

Lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

– Michelle Williams * Guest vocals –

(track 3 "So Glad"), Isaac Carree & Lowell Pye (of Men of Standard) (track 8 "You Care For Me"), Shirley Caesar (track 9 "Steal Away to Jesus"), Destiny's Child (track 11 "Gospel Medley"), Carl Thomas (track 12 "Heaven") * Backing vocals – Michelle Williams,

Isaac Carree Isaac Thompson Carree III (born April 28, 1973) is an American gospel musician. He started his music career, in 1990, with the Gospel legend John P. Kee, yet his solo career commenced in 2011, with the release of ''Uncommon Me'' by Sovereign Age ...

, Lowell Pye, Kayla Parker, Damon Elliott, New Direction, The Caesar Singers (Lisa Butts, Gene Conyers, Donald Gore, Michael E. Mathis, Bernard Sterling) ;Visuals and imagery *

Art direction Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and unify the visi ...

–

Ian Cuttler Ian Cuttler Sala (1971–2014) was a Mexican art director, photographer and graphic design artist. Biography Ian Cuttler was born in Mexico City, Mexico, in 1971. He lived with his brother Alex and two parents. His mother was crowned Miss Chile i ...

, Chris Feldmann * Design – Ian Cuttler *

Graphic artist A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography, or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for published, p ...

– Frank Carbonari *

Photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed ...

– Christopher Kolk ;Instruments *

Bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

– Chris Kent, Shavoni *

Drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

– John Hammond, Shavoni *

Guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

– Criss Johnson, Eric Walls *

Keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

– Sean Dancy, Israel Embry, Maurice Rodgers *

Organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

– Maurice Rodgers *

Percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

–

Eric Darken Eric A. Darken is an American percussionist, composer, and programmer. Biography Drawing inspiration from his grandfather, a band leader. Darken began playing drums at age 12, and played timpani and mallets in high school. Darken attended ...

Piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

– Michael E. Mathis *

Saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

– Sam Levine *

Trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...

– Barry Green *

Trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

– Steve Patrick ;Technical and Production *

Engineers Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...

– Buster & Shavoni, Cedric Courtois, Dan Workman, Larry Sturm, Peter Thyssen, Rich Balmer, Thor Laewe, Wayne Allison * Mixing – Dave "Hard Drive" Pensado, Kevin Parker, Larry Sturm, Buster & Shavoni, Thor Laewe, Wayne Allison *

Music producers A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

– Scott Shavoni Parker, Buster, Warryn Campbell,

, H.R. Crump, Damon Elliott, Luther "Mano" Hanes, Paul Hemphill, Michael E. Mathis, Kayla Parker, Bubba Smith, Erron Williams * Vocal producer – HR Crump, Kayla Parker

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

Awards and nominations

References

{{Authority control 2002 debut albums Michelle Williams (singer) albums Albums produced by Warryn Campbell Columbia Records albums