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''Just Whitney'' is the fifth studio album by American singer and actress
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed " The Voice", she is one of the bestselling music artists of all time, with sales of over 200 million records worldwide. Houston i ...
, released on November 27, 2002, by
Arista Records. It was her first studio album to be released after her greatest hits compilation, ''
Whitney: The Greatest Hits'' (2000), and the follow-up to her multi-platinum fourth studio album, ''
My Love is Your Love
''My Love Is Your Love'' is the fourth studio album by American singer Whitney Houston, released worldwide on November 17, 1998. It was Houston's first studio album in eight years, following ''I'm Your Baby Tonight'' (1990) although she had part ...
'' (1998). ''Just Whitney'' was also Houston's first to be released after re-signing her contract with Arista in 2001 for $100 million - the largest recording contract for a female artist at the time.
In the United States, ''Just Whitney'' debuted at number nine on the
''Billboard'' 200 and number three on the
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 ...
chart, with sales of 205,147 copies in the first week. That beat the previous high first-week sales of 177,284 copies with the ''
Waiting to Exhale
''Waiting to Exhale'' is a 1995 American romance film directed by Forest Whitaker (in his feature film directorial debut) and starring Whitney Houston and Angela Bassett. The film was adapted from the 1992 novel of the same name by Terry McMil ...
'' soundtrack, and also logged her highest debut sales out of her
Nielsen SoundScan-era albums at the time of its release.
The album spawned four
singles (in order), "
Whatchulookinat", "
One of Those Days", "
Try It on My Own", and "
Love That Man", with the first, third and fourth singles peaking at number one on ''
Billboard''s
Dance Club Songs chart. "Try It on My Own" also peaked at number ten on ''Billboard''s
Adult Contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...
chart. ''Just Whitney'' has sold over 2.5 million copies worldwide and has also earned
Platinum
Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver".
Pla ...
certification in the United States and Switzerland, and
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...
in France, Brazil and other countries. In 2003, the album was nominated at the
Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards in the category for
Best R&B/Soul Album of the Year.
Background and production
''Just Whitney'' is Houston's fifth studio album, that she recorded after renewing her contract with Arista for a record $100 million.
It is mixed with R&B ballads, R&B mid-tempo numbers, and dance songs. It also includes a rock song, "Tell Me No". Houston said that she wanted to make a "very soul oriented" album, something she felt was missing on the radio.
It was somewhat a departure from her previous studio album ''
My Love Is Your Love
''My Love Is Your Love'' is the fourth studio album by American singer Whitney Houston, released worldwide on November 17, 1998. It was Houston's first studio album in eight years, following ''I'm Your Baby Tonight'' (1990) although she had part ...
'', which was blended with R&B,
hip hop, and
reggae
Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...
.
She worked with
Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds
Kenneth Brian Edmonds (born April 10, 1959), 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 12 Grammy A ...
, with whom she had worked with previously, and
Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs. Other producers included
Missy Elliott, Teddy Bishop, Gordon Chambers, Rob Fusari, and Troy Taylor. Her then-husband, recording artist
Bobby Brown
Robert Barisford Brown (born February 5, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter and dancer. Brown, alongside frequent collaborator Teddy Riley, is noted as one of the pioneers of new jack swing: a fusion of hip hop and R&B. Brown started h ...
, also co-produced one of the songs.
According to Houston,
She also said that she wanted to give something to the fans, songs which they can sing along to and love the melody.
She also incorporated samples into her songs such as in "One of Those Days" ㅡ album's second single, which sampled
The Isley Brothers
The Isley Brothers ( ) are an American musical group originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, that began as a vocal trio consisting of brothers O'Kelly Isley Jr., Rudolph Isley and Ronald Isley in the 1950s. With a career spanning over seven decade ...
' song "
Between the Sheets". She also covered
Debby Boone
Deborah Anne Boone (born September 22, 1956) is an American singer, author, and actress. She is best known for her 1977 hit, " You Light Up My Life", which spent ten weeks at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and led to her winning the ...
's classic "
You Light Up My Life". The album also contains the rock influenced "Tell Me No", which was produced by Babyface, who also produced some other songs on the album including the ballad "Try It on My Own" and dance-pop song "Love That Man" ㅡ both of which became singles. The song "Whatchulookinat" was produced by Brown and Mohammad 2G and became the project's lead single. The song, co-written by Houston, was taken by critics as an answer to the media for deeply invading her personal life.
Critical reception
Upon its release, ''Just Whitney'' received mixed reviews from critics, with aggregated reviews on
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
awarding the album 53 out of 100. Craig Seymour of ''
Atlanta Journal and Constitution'' gave the album a favorable review stating, "On ''Just Whitney'', Houston comes off as warm, lucid, open, and sharp.
Keysha Davis of
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
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...
gave a favorable review commenting, "With one of the exceptional voices in contemporary music, her latest album, aptly titled ''Just Whitney'' sees the diva return to her former glory with a combination of high-voltage ballads and smooth-liqueur R&B.
..Whitney's return to big ballads will hopefully ensure that this pop princess will be able to lead the rest of her life like a clichéd fairy tale - happily ever after."
Mike Bell from
Jam! Showbiz, was also favorable in his review, saying "Maybe because of everything that's happened in her past, maybe because of the sideshow, she has the ability to give the songs real feeling, real life." In addition, he stated that her voice was in fine form, "showcasing those incredible pipes that launched a thousand imitators." He concluded by saying, "And it shows up all of those followers with recent releases ㅡ including
Mariah Carey and
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...
ㅡ because not only does Houston have the lungs, but she has the soul."
Jon Pareles of ''
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 ...
'' wrote, "Ms. Houston's voice sails and spirals through breathy ballads, staccato constructions and big-build anthems; she's strategic and improvisatory at the same time." He summarized by saying that even when she's seething, she's graceful. Angus Batey from
Yahoo! Music UK & Ireland graded the album seven stars out of ten commenting, "
..this is a cogent, compact and really quite good record, one that mixes upbeat, perhaps slightly clinical R&B with uber-ballads and occasional snatches of what appears to be an attempt at intimacy."
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 databa ...
commented that ''Just Whitney'' was "an assertion that she's returning to her basics."
He also said that "It would be a good standard-issue Whitney album if it wasn't for her disarming, defensive attempt to defuse every rumor hurled in her direction."
''
Billboard'' reviewed the album commenting that "''Just Whitney'' appears and sounds more like a work-in-progress than a finished disk." Steve Jones of ''
USA Today
''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...
'' graded the album fairly well, giving it two-and-half stars out of four, but stating, "At her best, Houston is full of sass and attitude and, most of all, joy. But with so much emphasis on what's bothering her, you can't help but wonder whether the thrill is gone."
According to ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', the album takes "a musical step backwards". Tom Sinclair of ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cu ...
'' graded the album a solid B- and noted that ''Just Whitney'' had quite a refreshingly "old-school vibe." He commented, "Whatever her personal problems, our gal sounds plucky and on top of her game. Still, in her third decade as a diva, Houston remains a formidable role model for ''American Idol'' wannabes.
"
Commercial performance
On the week ending December 28, 2002, ''Just Whitney'' debuted and peaked at number nine on the
''Billboard'' 200 and number three on
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 ...
.
The album spent 26 weeks on the US Album chart. It was certified platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments exceeding one million copies. Since its release, the album has sold 1.3 million copies in the US and roughly 1.2 million copies outside the US for total sales of 2.5 million copies.
In Australia, the album reached number 22 on the ARIA Urban Albums Chart. The album debuted at number 85 on the Canadian Albums chart, selling 3,000 copies in its first week.
In Austria, it entered the albums chart on December 8, 2002 at its peak position of number 33.
In Switzerland, the album saw its second highest peak, when it debuted at number 10 on the charts.
It was certified Platinum by the
IFPI Switzerland
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 1 ...
for shipment/sales of 30,000 copies or more.
In France, the album charted at number 25 and was certified Gold, for shipment of 50,000 copies.
In the Netherlands, it peaked at number 70 on the albums chart.
''Just Whitney'' was certified Gold in Brazil. In the UK, it peaked at number 76.
The album has sold more than 2.5 million copies worldwide.
Singles
The album saw the release of four official singles - two preceding and two succeeding the album's release.
"
Whatchulookinat" became the album's lead single released on September 17, 2002. The song received mixed to unfavorable reviews from critics. The single became a moderate success worldwide, peaking inside the top forty in most countries. In the US, it became her tenth
Hot Dance Club Play
Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as th ...
topper.
The corresponding music video was also considered as Houston's answer to the media for getting too deep into her personal life. The video showed a white set with cameras all over, following Houston's every move. The set was also full with old movie cameras and people dressed as reporters and photographers. Houston is shown dancing in front of them.
"
One of Those Days" was the album's second single and was released on October 29, 2002. The song received many positive reviews from critics. It sampled
The Isley Brothers
The Isley Brothers ( ) are an American musical group originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, that began as a vocal trio consisting of brothers O'Kelly Isley Jr., Rudolph Isley and Ronald Isley in the 1950s. With a career spanning over seven decade ...
' song "
Between the Sheets". The single was a moderate success in the US. The accompanying music video's plot revolved around Houston and her friends, having a day for themselves and going to the club at night.
"
Try It on My Own" became the project's third single and was released on February 11, 2003. The song received acclaim from critics as well as fans; most of them who named it as the album's highlight.
The song, like its predecessors, was a moderate success and topped ''Billboard'' Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart.
It also reached the top ten on the US Adult Contemporary chart. Internationally, the song performed fair. A music video was released to promote the single.
"
Love That Man" was the fourth and final single from the album, released on May 20, 2003. It became another Dance Club chart-topping single, but failed to make the Hot 100. No accompanying video was released for the single.
Promotion
To promote the album, Houston appeared on the 2002
MTV Europe Music Awards
The MTV Europe Music Awards (originally named MTV European Music Awards, commonly abbreviated as MTV EMA) are awards presented by Paramount International Networks to honour artists and music in pop culture. It was originally conceived as an a ...
, performing her new single "Whatchulookinat".
She also appeared on the 2003 ''
VH1 Divas Duets: An Honors Concert for the VH1 Save the Music Foundation'' and performed her hits including two songs from the album; "My Love" and "Try It on My Own". Apart from these, she also performed "One of Those Days" and "Tell Me No" live on ''
Good Morning America''. No major tours were arranged to support the album.
Track listing
;Notes
*
on international editions, "Try It on My Own" is labeled as "On My Own".
*
denotes co-producer
Personnel
Adapted from AllMusic.
* Joey Arbagey – A&R
* Babyface – drum programming, guest artist, acoustic guitar, keyboards, producer, background vocals
* Tom Bender – assistant
* Charile "CSUN" Bereal – producer
* Kenny Bereal – producer
* Ted Bishop – arranger, drum programming, engineer, keyboards, producer, vocal arrangement
* Paul Boutin – engineer
* Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs – arranger, engineer, midi, producer
* Bobby Brown – featured artist, guest artist, primary artist, producer
* Matt Brown – assistant
* Melanie Byrd – production coordination
* Terrence Cash – engineer
* Gordon Chambers – producer, vocal arrangement, vocal producer, background vocals
* Greg Charley – guitar
* Kevin KD Davis – mixing
* Nathan East – bass
* Missy Elliott – producer
* Cortez Farris – engineer
* Steve Fisher – assistant
* Roxanna Floy – make-Up
* Sherree Ford-payne – background vocals
* Rob Fusari – producer
* Jon Gass – mixing
* Steve Genewick – assistant
* Sharlotte Gibson – background vocals
* Kevin Guarnieri – engineer
* Mick Guzauski – mixing
* Gary Houston – background vocals
* Whitney Houston – primary artist, producer, vocal arrangement, vocals, background vocals
* Jimmy Hoyson – assistant
* Kenya Ivey – background vocals
* Scott Kieklak – engineer
* Latrelle – background vocals
* Ellin La Var – hair stylist
* Ricky Lawson – drums
* Marc Stephen Lee – assistant
* Wayne Linsey – fender rhodes
* Manny Marroquin – mixing
* Bill Meyers – string arrangements, string conductor
* Ricky Minor – producer
* Muhammad2G – producer
* Sheryl Nields – photography
* Joe-mama nitzberg – Creative Director
* Greg Phillinganes – piano
* Josean Posey – assistant
* Herb Powers – mastering
* L.A. Reid – executive producer
* Dennis Rivadeneira – assistant
* Jeffrey Schulz – art direction, design
* Ivy Skoff – production coordination
* Antonique Smith – background vocals
* Patrice "ButtaPhly" Stewart – vocal producer
* Craig "Niteman" Taylor – assistant
* Shawndella Taylor – A&R
* Troy Taylor – producer, programming, rhythm arrangements, vocal producer
* Michael Hart Thompson – guitar
* Tweet – vocal producer, background vocals
* Tommy Vicari – string engineer
* Randy Waldman – string arrangements, string conductor
* Mike White – engineer
* Patti Wilson – stylist
* Theresa Wilson – A&R
* Jeffrey "Woody" Woodruff – string engineer
Charts
Weekly charts
Monthly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications and sales
References
External links
*
Just Whitney' at
Discogs
Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Just Whitney
2002 albums
Albums produced by Missy Elliott
Albums produced by Troy Taylor (record producer)
Whitney Houston albums
Arista Records albums
Albums produced by L.A. Reid
Albums produced by Babyface (musician)
Hip hop soul albums
Albums produced by Whitney Houston