The First Lady (Faith Evans album)
The First Lady | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | April 5, 2005 | |||
Genre | R&B | |||
Length | 56:13 | |||
Label | Capitol | |||
Producer |
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Faith Evans chronology | ||||
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Singles from The First lady | ||||
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The First Lady is the fourth studio album by American singer
Generally well received by critics, The First Lady debuted at number two on the U.S.
Background and release
The title of the album was inspired by Evans' original nickname with Bad Boy Records, "The First Lady of Bad Boy." On her decision to use a truncated version of the name Diddy dubbed her with, Evans commented: "[The nickname] did carry over, 'cause I'm the first artist in my genre at Capitol," she said. "More so, I chose the title The First Lady because a lot of my personality reminds me of people like Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Hillary Clinton. [...] Of course, they go through things, 'cause they're human like all of us. But when you see the first lady, you regard her [as] being the first lady. [...] I've made it my business to try and handle certain turbulence in my life with a certain dignity and [remain] ladylike."[1]
Critical response
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | (72/100)[2] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [3] |
Entertainment Weekly | B+[4] |
The Guardian | [5] |
musicOMH | [2][6] |
Paste | (8/10)[2][7] |
PopMatters | [8] |
Rolling Stone | [9] |
Slant | [10] |
Uncut | [2] |
USA Today | [11] |
The First Lady received positive reviews from most
The Washington Post gave it a positive review, stating, "No further proof is needed than The First Lady, a CD that sounds remarkably humble despite its title. It's not her term, anyway. The industry gave it to her—with the appendage "of hip-hop soul"—after she started running in the same circles as Sean "P. Diddy" Combs and Notorious B.I.G. back in the mid-1990s. She's still known as Biggie's widow, even though she married her chief musical collaborator, Todd Russaw, a while back. But all the drama and the sorrow barely matter at this point, because on The First Lady it's the stability that counts."[13] Blogcritics also gave it a favorable review, stating that it "is a musical mood ring, encapsulating and displaying the last ten years of her life. It’s not all reflective, however, as there are plenty of party worthy tracks spread between the affecting intensity and veteran of the game vocals. [...] Evans has released a remarkable album with wide appeal and emotional depth for the more cautious listeners. It doesn’t transcend genres or attempt to reconstruct R&B, but First Lady will surely impress those with a taste for evocative bluesy vocals, dance numbers, and solid slow jams."[14]
Sal Cinquemani from
Commercial performance
Despite the somewhat average commercial performance of the album's leading single, "Again," The First Lady debuted and peaked at number two on the Billboard 200, the official albums chart in the United States, on April 23, 2005.[16] The album sold 157,000 units in its first week of release,[16] falling just 8,000 copies short of the top slot and 50 Cent's The Massacre.[17] Despite this, the album gave Evans her best sales figures of her career yet, marking both her highest-selling debut and best ever first-week sales.[17] In addition, The First Lady became her first album to reach number-one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, surpassing The Massacre.[18] By the end of 2005, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and became the 158th best-selling album of that year in the US.[19]
Tour
In support of the album, Evans embarked on the tour at the
Track listing
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Goin' Out" (featuring Thomas Callaway |
| 4:14 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
14. | "Do My Thang" | Scott Storch | Storch | 3:43 |
Notes
- ^[A] denotes co-producer
Sample credits
- "Again" contains samples of "Genuine", written by Jerry Harris and Venus Dodson, performed by The Whatnauts.
- "I Don't Need It" contains elements of "Nights Over Egypt", written by Dexter Wansel and Cynthia Biggs, performed by The Jones Girls.
- "Mesmerized" contains interpolations from "Who's Making Love", written by Homer Banks, Bettye Crutcher, Don Davis and Raymond Jackson, performed by Johnnie Taylor, and "Footin' It", written by George Benson and Donald Sebesky, performed by Benson.
- "Jealous" contains a sample of "Esta Noche La Paso Contigo", written by Laura Barraza, performed by Los Ángeles Negros.
Credits and personnel
- Tony Aliperti – guitar
- Ben Briggs – engineer
- Russ Brown – guitar
- Matt Cappy – trumpet
- Mike Caren – engineer
- Andrew Coleman – engineer
- Duro – mixing
- Bryan Ellis – assistant engineer
- Serban Ghenea – mixing
- Carvin Haggins – engineer
- Eric Hunter – engineer
- Manny Marroquin – mixing
- Rod Morgan – keyboard
- Todd Russaw – executive producer
- Andrew M. Shack – executive producer
- Andrew Slater – vocal producer
- Jay Shawn Smith – vocal assistance
- Frank Sutton – engineer
- Phil Tan – mixing
- Brad Todd – engineer, mixing
- Harley White – bass
- Howard Willing – engineer
Charts
Weekly charts
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Year-end charts
|
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI)[26] | Gold | 100,000^ |
United States (RIAA)[27] | Gold | 500,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
See also
- List of Billboard number-one R&B/hip-hop albums of 2005
References
- ^ Reid, Shaheem (2005-05-04). "Faith Evans Talks About Her Drug Arrest On New Single". MTV News. VH1.com. Retrieved 2011-07-21.[dead link]
- ^ a b c d e "Critic Reviews for The First Lady". Metacritic. Retrieved 2011-07-20.
- ^ Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-07-20.
- ^ Fiore, Raymond (2005-04-08). "The First Lady Review". Entertainment Weekly. EW.com: 63. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
- ^ Layman, Will (2005-04-28). "Faith Evans: The First Lady". The Guardian. Guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-07-15.
- ^ Shepherd, Sam (2005-05-16). "Faith Evans - The First Lady". musicOMH. MusicOMH.com. Retrieved 2012-12-23.
- ^ Lisle, Andria (2005-06-01). "Faith Evans - The First Lady". Paste. PasteMagazine.com. Retrieved 2012-12-23.
- ^ Layman, Will (2005-04-28). "Faith Evans: The First Lady". PopMatters. PopMatters.com. Retrieved 2011-07-15.
- ^ Walters, Barry (2005-04-07). "Faith Evans: The First Lady : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. RollingStone.com. Archived from the original on 2007-04-30. Retrieved 2012-12-23.
- ^ a b Cinquemani, Sal (2005-04-05). "Faith Evans: The First Lady: Music Review". Slant. SlantMagazine.com. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
- ^ Gardner, Elysa (2005-04-04). "First Lady Puts Evans In Control". USA Today. USAToday.com. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
- ^ Boakye, Belinda (2005-06-15). "Faith Evans: The First Lady". The Situation. TheSituation.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2011-07-09. Retrieved 2011-07-15.
- Washington Post. WashingtonPost.com. p. C05. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
- ^ Benning, Michael (2005-04-22). "CD Review: Faith Evans - The First Lady". Blogcritics. Blogcritics.com. Retrieved 2011-07-15.
- ^ Lima, Orlando (2005-06-01). "The Lady Still Sings The Blues After All This Time". Vibe. p. 156. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
- ^ a b "50 Cent Won't Let Go Of Billboard's #1". MTV News. VH1.com. 2005-04-13. Retrieved 2011-04-13.[dead link]
- ^ E! Online. Eonline.com. Retrieved 2011-06-23.
- ^ "Faith Evans > R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Billboard.com. 2005-04-23. Retrieved 2011-07-23.
- ^ "2005 YEAR END CHARTS: The Billboard 200 Titles". Billboard. Billboard.biz. 2005-11-26. Retrieved 2011-07-22.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Faith Evans – The First Lady". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2017-04-12.
- ^ "Faith Evans | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 2017-04-12.
- ^ "Faith Evans Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 2017-04-12.
- ^ "Faith Evans Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 2017-04-12.
- ^ "2005 Year-End Chart – Billboard 200 Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 2017-04-12.
- ^ "2005 Year-End Chart – Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 2017-04-12.
- ^ "British album certifications – Faith Evans – The First Lady". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2017-04-12. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type The First Lady in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
- ^ "American album certifications – Faith Evans – The First Lady". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2017-04-12.