The Way It Is (Keyshia Cole album)
The Way It Is | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | June 21, 2005 | |||
Genre | R&B[1] | |||
Length | 48:51 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer |
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Keyshia Cole chronology | ||||
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Singles from The Way It Is | ||||
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The Way It Is is the debut
Four official singles were released from The Way It Is; all reached the
The Way It Is received generally positive reviews from music critics, who praised Cole's vocals and musical themes and compared them to the likes of fellow female
Background
Around the age of 12-13, Cole managed to convince American rapper
Once she caught her then boyfriend cheating on her with another woman, she got in her car and drove for nine hours to
Music and lyrics
The Way It Is is a
Cole wrote "Love" while she was at a nightclub in Malibu, California, after spotting one of her ex-boyfriends with his girlfriend at a restaurant in that city.[11] Cole said Ron Fair initially signed her after hearing the first verse and chorus of the song, describing it as "the easiest part".[6] The critically proclaimed "heartbreak song" of the album expresses feeling an emotion not felt before with someone and how it feels when it is felt for the very first time.[12]
"Love" serves as the sixth track from the album, after "Guess What?", an aggressive song about Cole dumping a worthless guy who has been unfaithful to her and caused negative situations for her.[7] "Guess What?" is a collaboration between Cole and rapper Jadakiss, which was written by the latter alongside Sean Garrett who co-produced it with Ron Fair. "You've Changed" is described by critics as a "smooth mix" of "bitter" sentiments and "sweet" soul.[13] The song "You've Changed" samples "Song Cry" by Jay-Z.[14] "You've Changed" was written by Cole, Leonard Huggins, Rich Shelton and Ron Fair while being produced by the latter two alongside Kevin Veney and Loren Hill.[15] The final song, "Never", contains a sample of Luther Vandross's "Never Too Much", and features rapper Eve.[9]
Marketing and release
Following its announcement, The Way It Is was expected to be released in January 2005 but was then delayed to April 26 instead and eventually faced two more delays.[16][17] In anticipation of the album's release, Cole and DJ Green Lantern released a mixtape entitled Team Invasion Presents Keyshia Cole in February 2005 featuring remixes of hip-hop instrumentals and snippets of songs from her and helped build a buzz around Cole's then-upcoming album release.[18][19]
The Way It Is was released on June 21, 2005 through
Promotion
Cole's first broadcast performance of "I Changed My Mind" was on June 26, 2004 on Soul Train, marking Cole's first ever televised performance.[24][25] Cole performed "I Should Have Cheated" at the Vibe Awards on November 15, 2005.[26] She also performed the song during BET's 106 & Park's New Year's Eve special in December 2005.[27] Cole continued to promote the album with televised live performances in 2006 in which she performed "Love" at the Soul Train Music Awards on March 4, 2006.[28]
Cole also promoted the album by performing as an opening act for two hip hop artists' concert tours. She opened for Nelly on several dates, from April 18 to May 3, 2005, included on the Sweatsuit Tour (2005), performing a total of five songs from the album.[29] She also served as opening act on five dates for Kanye West's Touch the Sky Tour (2005–06), performing from October 31, 2005 to February 28, 2006 on both halves of the American and European legs.[30]
Besides televised performances and tours, Cole began doing acoustic sessions and studio performances to promote the album. In December 2005, she performed
Singles
![A picture of Benny Boom.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Benny_Boom.jpg/170px-Benny_Boom.jpg)
"
"(I Just Want It) To Be Over" was released as the second single from The Way It Is. It debuted at number twenty-five on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart before eventually reaching number-one, though it failed to enter the Hot 100.[37][38] Nevertheless, it managed to reach the top forty of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart peaking at number thirty, marking it Cole's second non-consecutive single to reach the top forty on that chart.[39]
"I Should Have Cheated" was released as the third single from the album. The song was critically favored, being described as an "emotion-packed hit".[40][41] "I Should Have Cheated" peaked at number thirty on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent thirteen weeks on that chart. It also became Cole's first top ten on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.[42] The song's music video was directed by Benny Boom.[43]
"
Critical reception
Aggregate scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 77/100[47] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Robert Christgau | ![]() ![]() |
Entertainment Weekly | B[1] |
Los Angeles Times | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Pitchfork | 7.3/10[50] |
Rolling Stone | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Stylus | B[52] |
Vibe | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Upon its release, The Way It is garnered generally favorable reviews from
An editor from the
Rondell Conway of
Accolades
Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
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Rolling Stone | Top 50 Records of 2005 | 41
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Highest Rated R&B Albums of 2005 | — | ||
The Fader | 150 More Great Albums Made By Women | 79
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Awards
Year | Ceremony | Category | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2006 | Soul Train Music Awards | Best Female R&B/Soul Album | Nominated | [60] |
Commercial performance
On the week ending July 16, 2005, The Way It Is debuted at number six on the
Legacy and impact
With the release of her debut album and the combined commercial success of its singles, Cole had established herself a successful solo artist. The album led her to successful endeavors post 2005 until the release of her second album
Web publication Rated R&B celebrated The Way It Is's fifteenth anniversary and highlighted its two singles "(I Just Want It) To Be Over" and "Love", along with Cole's breakthrough performance of "I Should Have Cheated" at the 2005 Vibe Awards and complimented four other songs from the album. The editor, Antwane Folk wrote about the album's lyrical content and sound, describing the songs as "bittersweet songs" and "resilient anthems". Folk later went on to call The Way It Is "a masterpiece that stands on the strength of hard work and dedication".[76]
Track listing
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "(I Just Want It) To Be Over" |
| 4:03 | |
2. | "I Changed My Mind" |
| 3:19 | |
3. | "Love, I Thought You Had My Back" |
|
| 4:10 |
4. | "I Should Have Cheated" |
|
| 5:31 |
5. | "Guess What?" (featuring Jadakiss) |
|
| 3:45 |
6. | "Love" |
|
| 4:15 |
7. | "You've Changed" |
|
| 4:17 |
8. | "We Could Be" |
|
| 3:11 |
9. | "Situations" (featuring Chink Santana) |
|
| 4:46 |
10. | "Down and Dirty" |
| Curtis | 3:52 |
11. | "Superstar" (featuring Metro City) |
|
| 3:48 |
12. | " Eve ) |
|
| 4:03 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
13. | "I Changed My Mind" (Remix) (featuring Shyne) |
| 3:38 | |
14. | "Love" (AOL live version) | 4:35 |
Notes
Sample credits
- "You've Changed" samples "Song Cry" by Jay-Z.[14]
- "Never" contains sampled portions from "Never Too Much", written and performed by Luther Vandross.[9] Cole and Eve also used the same beat.
Personnel
Credits adapted from the album's liner notes[78]
Instruments
- Keyshia Cole – lead vocals, background vocals, Synths also Synclavier and songwriting
- Cyrus DeShield, Kareem Carter, Reynaldo Gilmore, Jyshoun Mcneil (Metro City) – lead vocals, background vocals
- Charlie Bisharat – violin
- Jacqueline Brand – violin
- Roberto Cani – violin
- Nico Carmine Abondolo – bass guitar
- Mario de Leon – violin
- Brian Dembow – viola
- Joel Derouin – violin
- Bruce Dukov – violin
- Stephen Erdody – cello
- Steve Erody – cello
- Marlo Fisher – viola
- Matt Funes – viola
- Armen Garabedian – violin
- Berj Garabedian – violin
- Julie Gigante – violin
- Endre Granat – violin
- Alan Grunfield – violin
- Clayton Haslop – violin
- Dan Higgins – flute, horn
- Josephina Vergara – violin
- David F. Walther – viola
- Jerry Hey – horn
- Suzie Katayama – cello
- Songa Lee – violin
- Natalie Leggett – violin
- Gayle Levant – harp
- Phillipe Levy – violin
- David Low – cello
- Rene Mandel – violin
- Darrin McCann – viola
- Vicki Miskolczy – viola
- Robin Olson – violin
- Simon Oswell – viola
- Sid Page – violin
- Sara Parkins – violin
- Joel Peskin – horn
- Katia Popov – violin
- Steve Rodriguez – bass guitar
- Anatoly Rosinsky – violin
- Sarah Thornblade – violin
- Kenneth Yerks – violin
- Raj Ertui – clarinet
- Miri Ben-Ari – Israel violin
Production
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Charts
Weekly charts
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Year-end charts
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Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United States (RIAA)[84] | Platinum | 1,600,000[71] |
Release history
Region | Date | Format(s) | Label | Ref. |
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United Kingdom | May 24, 2005 | A&M | [85] | |
Italy | June 21, 2005 | [20] | ||
Japan | [21] | |||
United States |
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[86][6] |
References
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- ^ Parales, Jon (December 21, 2010). "Spark missing on latest from Keyshia Cole". The Dispatch. Gannett Co., Inc. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
One of the many R&B singers following through on the street-wise hip-hop soul of Mary J. Blige, Cole arrived as a fighter, going after men who let her down, on the 2005 and 2007 albums The Way It Is and Just Like You - both million-sellers.
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Cole's first two albums have sold 1.6 and 1.7 million units, respectively
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- ASIN B000VZPFN6. Retrieved December 19, 2014.
External links
- The Way It Is at Discogs (list of releases)
- The Way It Is at Metacritic