''Sparkle'' is the 1998 self–titled debut album by American singer

Sparkle Sparkle may refer to: * Sparkle (catamaran), a catamaran designed by Angus Primrose * Sparkle (drink), a lemon-flavored soft drink * Sparkle, a brand of paper towels owned by Georgia-Pacific * Sparkle Plenty, a character in the ''Dick Tracy'' c ...

. It was released on May 19, 1998, through Interscope Records and was entirely produced by her former mentor R. Kelly. The album was a success in large part to the Sparkle–R. Kelly duet lead single "

Be Careful BE or be may refer to: Linguistics * ''To be'', the English copular verb * Be (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic alphabet * ''be'' (interjection), in several languages * Be language or Ong Be, a language of northern Hainan province, China *Bla ...

", which peaked at number three on the US

Rhythmic Top 40 The Rhythmic chart (also called Rhythmic Airplay, and previously named Rhythmic Songs, Rhythmic Top 40 and CHR/Rhythmic) is an airplay chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The chart tracks and measures the airplay of songs played on ...

and topped the US

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay (previously known as Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay) is a chart published by ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the top R&B and hip hop songs in the United States, based on audience impressions from a panel of radio stations monitored ...

chart. The album itself peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' 200 and was certified gold by the RIAA on December 7, 2000. Further singles "Time to Move On" and "Lovin' You" were also released as singles, but did not make any '' Billboard'' charts.

Critical reception

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 ...

'' gave the album a grade of B+, writing: "Unlike her wannabe-diva peers, this R. Kelly protegee remembers what the 'B' in R&B stands for....R. Kelly surrounds her with blaxploitation-vintage wah-wah guitars, haunting strings, and blue-collar blues; the resulting soul digs far deeper than Kelly's usual bump'n' grind".''

'' June 19, 1998, p. 74

Track listing

All track written, produced and arranged by R. Kelly. Samples *"Time to Move On" samples from "Intimate Friends" by

Eddie Kendricks Edward James Kendrick (December 17, 1939 – October 5, 1992), better known as Eddie Kendricks, was an American singer and songwriter. Noted for his distinctive falsetto singing style, Kendricks co-founded the Motown singing group the Temptation ...

. *"Lovin' You" is a cover of "Loving You" by

Minnie Riperton Minnie Julia Riperton Rudolph (November 8, 1947 – July 12, 1979) was an American singer-songwriter best known for her 1975 single " Lovin' You" and her four octave D3 to F7 coloratura soprano range. She is also widely known for her use ...

. *"Good Life" samples from "Good Times" by

Chic Chic (; ), meaning "stylish" or "smart", is an element of fashion. It was originally a French word. Pronounced Chick. Etymology '' Chic'' is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s. Early references in English diction ...

Credits

*Jason Bacher – assistant engineer *Percy Bady – keyboards *Rick Behrens – assistant engineer, engineer, mixing assistant *Chris Brickley – assistant engineer, engineer, mixing assistant, programming * Cam'ron – rap vocals *Lafayette Carthon, Jr. – keyboards *Trey Fratt – assistant engineer *Stephen George – engineer, mixing, programming *Keith Henderson – guitar *Cynthia Jernigan – backing vocals *Mark Johnson – mixing assistant * R. Kelly – arranger, executive producer, mixing, producer, vocals *Jeff Lane – mixing assistant *Ron Lowe – assistant engineer, engineer, mixing assistant *Mr. Lee – mixing, programming *

Peter Mokran Peter Mokran is an American mixer, producer, engineer and musician. Early life Mokran was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois. Growing up, he studied classical guitar, while also learning engineering and programming as a teen.Paul Tingen“Secr ...

– head engineer, mixing, programmer *Nature – rap vocals *Joshua Shapera – engineer *Sparkle – vocals *Martin Stebbing – engineer, programming *Ed Tinley – assistant engineer *

Poke & Tone The Trackmasters are an American hip hop production duo composed of music producers Poke (Jean-Claude Olivier) and Tone (Samuel Barnes), best known for their commercial hit records in the mid-late 1990s and early 2000s. Frank "Nitty" Pimentel joi ...

– mixing *Jeff Vereb – assistant engineer, mixing assistant

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 1998 debut albums Interscope Records albums Sparkle (singer) albums