Something About Faith
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
Something About Faith is the sixth studio album by American singer Faith Evans, released on Prolific Music Group on October 5, 2010 in the United States. Distributed by E1 Music, the album marks Evans' first independent release, following her departure from Bad Boy Records in 2003 and her subsequent but short-lived engagement with Capitol Records in 2005.[2] The album attained a UK release on December 6, 2010.[3]
The project involves production by Chucky Thompson, Mike City, and Salaam Remi, among others and Evans collaborated with singer Keyshia Cole, and rappers Redman, Snoop Dogg and Raekwon for the album.[2] The album's first single, "Gone Already", was released in August 2010 and peaked at number 26 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The song was nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for the 2011 Grammy Awards.
Background and promotion
"Gone Already" was released as the album's lead single on August 10, 2010.[4] Written by Faith Evans, Carvin Haggins, Ivan Barias, Ryan Toby, Corey Williams and Johnathan Smith, and produced by Haggins and Ivan (better known as Carvin & Ivan), the song received warm reception from critics - one of whom listed the "Toni Braxton-worthy breakup ballad" as one of the "standouts" on Something About Faith. Promoted by live performances on The Wendy Williams Show on October 8, 2010[5][6] and The Mo'Nique Show on November 12, 2010.[7] "Gone Already" spent seventeen weeks on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart where it peaked at number 26.[8] The song was also promoted with the release of a music video on Evans' and E1 Music's official YouTube channels.[9]
On February 14, 2011, a high definition music video for "Right Here" was released on Evans' official YouTube account, suggesting that it is the second single from the album, though this is yet to be confirmed.[10] "Right Here" goes for adds at Urban AC on 4/12/11 as the second official single.[citation needed]
Release and reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| About.com |   [11] |
| Allmusic |  [12] |
| AZCentral | [1] |
| BBC Music | (Mixed)[13] |
| Billboard | (favorable)[14] |
| The Canadian Press | (Mixed)[15] |
| Mojo | [16] |
Upon its release, Something About Faith received generally mixed to positive reviews from most music critics. Ed Masley of AZCentral stated that "there's a lot to like" and went on to praise her "honeyed vocals" on "The Way You Move", but despite feeling that "the better songs could definitely hold their own on any future greatest hits collection" he went on to note that "Like a lot of R&B releases, it may be a bit on the top-heavy side".[1] On the contrary Mark Edward Nero of About.com described the album as being "ordinary, non-controversial and unassuming" and felt that Evans' voice had been "toned down" and "harnessed so much that there's very few thickly passionate or dramatic moments...and some songs have such an overproduced feel to them that Faith's essence gets lost in the mix" despite noting that "at her best, she's a compelling, top-tier vocalist who's luscious voice has the power to mesmerize".[11] Likewise, Melanie Sims of The Canadian Press described the album as being a "batch of soulful yet predictable ballads", noting "Party" as sounding "dated" and Evans sounding "choked" on "Can't Stay Away". However, Sims praised the "elegant sound" of "Gone Already", the "super smooth "Right Here" and bedtime ballad "Baby Lay", before going on to state that "Troubled World" is "the only track that manages to show the true depth and richness of the voice that has gotten Evans this far".[15] While Andy Kellman of Allmusic described "this round of songs" as "pleasant" but "merely decent" and stated that the album "does not pack the lasting value boasted by Evans' most recent work" - such as The First Lady which he hailed as being "one of Faith Evans' strongest albums".[12]
Something About Faith debuted (in the US) at number fifteen on the Billboard Top 200, number four on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and at number one on the Billboard Independent Albums chart with 23,586 copies sold.[17]
Track listing
Credits from UrbanBridgez.com[18] and BestBuy.com[19]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Something About Faith" (Intro) | Faith Evans, Kye Russaw | Kye Evans, Russaw | 2:41 |
| 2. | "I Still" | Evans, Kyle Stewart, Ebony Carr-Baskin | KayTwo | 4:10 |
| 3. | "Way You Move" (featuring Snoop Dogg) | Evans, Chucky Thompson, Janeal Ferguson, Don Lee Samuels, Keonte Vincent, Calvin Broadus | Chucky Thompson | 4:55 |
| 4. | "Real Things" | Malik Pendleton | Malik Pendleton | 3:02 |
| 5. | "Worth It" | Evans, Thompson, Ferguson, Samuels | Chucky Thompson | 3:39 |
| 6. | "Gone Already" | Evans, Carvin Haggins, Ivan Barias, Ryan Toby, Corey Williams, Johnathan Smith | Carvin & Ivan | 3:53 |
| 7. | "Party" (featuring Redman) | Evans, Míchael Flowers, Ben Briggs III, Toni Coleman, Ebony Brown, Reginald Noble | Mike City | 3:37 |
| 8. | "Right Here" | Evans, Kye Russaw, Ferguson, Coleman | Kye Russaw | 3:07 |
| 9. | "Your Lover" | Evans, Thompson, Ferguson, Samuels | Thompson | 3:10 |
| 10. | "Can't Stay Away" (featuring Keyshia Cole) | Evans, Ibrahim Soliman, Briggs, Coleman, Keyshia Cole | Ibe | 3:20 |
| 11. | "Sunshine" | Evans, Flowers, Samuels, Briggs | Mike City | 3:33 |
| 12. | "Everyday Struggle" (featuring Raekwon) | Evans, Harvey Mason, Jr., Briggs, Samuels, Coleman, Brown, Corey Woods | Faith Evans, Brad Todd | 4:31 |
| 13. | "The Love in Me" | Evans, Salaam Remi, Briggs, Samuels, Coleman, Ericka Watson, Rufus Moore | Salaam Remi | 3:36 |
| 14. | "Change" | Anthony Bell, Darrell Robinson | 3:44 | |
| 15. | "Troubled World" (featuring Kelly Price & Jessica Reedy) | Evans, Chucky Thompson, Richard Gross, DJ Rogers, Jr | Thompson | 3:53 |
| 16. | "Baby Lay" | Evans, Patrick Briggs, Ben Briggs | Devinaire, Ben Briggs III | 3:51 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17. | "Troubled World (Part 2)" (featuring Estelle & Lil' Mo) | Evans, Chucky Thompson, Cynthia Loving, Estelle Swaray |
Personnel
- Bert Padell, Trevor Baptiste – Management
- Alejandro Barajas – Mixing Assistant
- Ivan "Orthodox" Barias – Engineer, Instrumentation, Producer
- Joe Basurto – Design Consultant
- Darrell Robinson, Carvin "Ransum" Haggins, Anthony Bell – Producer
- Charlie Bereal – Guitar, Guitar Overdubs
- Kristene Bernard – Make-Up
- Derek Blanks – Photography
- Ben Briggs III – Additional Production, Associate Executive Producer, Drums, Engineer, Mixing, Producer, Programming
- Patrick "Devinaire" Briggs – Keyboards, Producer
- Tyler Nicolo, Daniel Laporte, Joe the Butcher, Carvin Haggins, Gleyder "Gee" Disla, Shon Brooks – Engineer
- "You Can Ask" Giz, Bob Horn, Eric "Ebo" Butler – Mixing
- Corey Latif, Ebony Carr-Baskin – backing vocals
- Mike City – Instrumentation, Producer
- Jeffry Rameau, Patrick Hewlett, Brandon Henderson, George Gumbs, Gerald Deus, Fabian Cooke, A.J. Clarke – Assistant Engineer
- Don Lee Samuels, D.J. Rogers Jr., Kirk Moore, Richard Glass, Toni Coleman, Danny Coakley, Alex Clarke – Vocals
- Brian Culberston – Fender Rhodes, Piano, Synthesizer
- Laurel Dann – A&R
- Marleny Dominguez – Label Direction
- Thomas Drayton – bass guitar
- Faith Evans – A&R, Executive Producer, Producer, Vocal Arrangement, Vocals (Background)
- Kenny Olsen, Chuck Gibson – Guitar
- Paul Grosso – Creative Director, Design
- Bernie Grundman – Mastering
- Dae Dae Haddon – Drums
- IBE – Engineer, Instrumentation, Producer
- Eric Ingram – Dubs, Guitar (Bass)
- Derek Lafayette – Marketing
- Bianca Lewis – Grooming
- Lex Lipsitz – Percussion
- Arnold Mischkulnig – Mastering, Mixing
- Bishop Moore – Consultant
- Malik Pendleton – Instrumentation, Mixing, Producer
- Darrell Miller, Fox Rothschild, Julian Petty – Legal Advisor
- Shanell Red – Vocal Arrangement
- Salaam Remi – Arranger, Bass, Drums, Guitar, Producer
- Kye Russaw – Assistant Engineer, Engineer, Instrumentation, Producer
- Todd Russaw – A&R, Executive Producer, Management
- Gil Smith II – Additional Production
- Johnnie "Smurf" Smith – Additional Production, Keyboards
- Dee "Pitboss" Sonaram – A&R, Promoter
- Staybent Krunk A-Delic – Programming
- Kyle Stewart – Engineer, Instrumentation, Producer
- Shadow Stokes – Promoter
- Chucky Thompson – Instrumentation, Moog Synthesizer, Producer
- Brad Todd – Additional Production, Engineer, Executive Producer, Mixing, Producer
- Mickel Valere – Guitar (Acoustic)
- Keonte Vincent – Engineer, Vocals (Background)
Charts
| Chart (2010) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[17] | 15 |
| US R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[17] | 4 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard)[17] | 1 |
References
- ^ a b c Masley, Ed (October 4, 2010). "Faith Evans: 'Something About Faith'". AZCentral. Retrieved October 7, 2010.
- ^ a b "Faith Evans Gets SIRIUS, Reveals Album Cover". Rap-Up.com. 2010-08-31. Retrieved 2010-09-03.
- ^ "Faith Evans: Ever Faithful". Blues & Soul. November 2010. Retrieved February 14, 2011.
- ^ "Gone Already - Single by Faith Evans - Download Gone Already - Single on iTunes". iTunes. August 10, 2010.
- ^ "Video: Faith Evans – Gone Already (Live) on Wendy Williams". Urban Music Direct. October 8, 2010. Retrieved October 22, 2010.
- ^ "Faith Evans Performs On 'Wendy Williams'". ThatGrapeJuice.net. October 9, 2010. Retrieved October 22, 2010.
{{cite web}}:|first=missing|last=(help) - ^ "The Mo'Nique Show Season 02 Episode 28 – 2030 Ed Gordon & Faith Evans Full Episode". BET. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
- ^ "Gone Already - Faith Evans". Billboard.com. December 11, 2010. Retrieved May 27, 2011.
- ^ "Faith Evans - 'Gone Already' Music Video". officialfaithevans. YouTube. 20 September 2010. Retrieved February 14, 2011.
- ^ "Faith Evans - Right Here (Official Music Video)". officialfaithevans. YouTube. 14 February 2011. Retrieved February 14, 2011.
- ^ a b Edward Nero, Mark. "Faith Evans - Something About Faith". About.com. Retrieved October 7, 2010.
- ^ a b Kellman, Andy. "Something About Faith - Faith Evans". Allmusic. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
- ^ Shaw, Natalie (December 2, 2010). "Review of Faith Evans - Something About Faith". BBC Music. Retrieved December 23, 2012.
- ^ Concepcion, Mariel (October 15, 2010). "Faith Evans, 'Something About Faith'". Billboard. Retrieved December 23, 2012.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ a b Sims, Melanie. "Music Review: Faith Evans brings bevy of guests, but can do bad all by herself with choppy CD". The Canadian Press. Retrieved October 7, 2010.
- ^ "Faith Evans - Something About Faith CD Album". CD Universe. Retrieved December 23, 2012.
- ^ a b c d "Something About Faith - Faith Evans". Billboard.com. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
- ^ "Exclusive: Something About Faith Tracklisting". UrbanBridgez.com. Retrieved 2010-09-05.
- ^ "Faith Evans Best Buy® Exclusive". Bestbuy.com. Retrieved 2012-03-10.