| In between her debut and her sophomore album,
Brandy landed the lead role in a sitcom, Moesha. This show was very successful and showed to America and the world, the face and life of the young black teenage female. Many young women found identification and solace in Brandy's portrayl of the intelligent, witty, and fashionable Moesha. She was not a white barbie doll
that young black girls could not look up to, she was just like them. In 1998, her sophomore album Never Say Never was released to much fanfare. It was four times platinum and the
duet with her fellow teen singer Monica, goes down as the most successful female duet ever. "The Boy Is Mine" spent an amazing 13 weeks at the number one position on the Hot 100 Billboard charts. With Never Say Never
Brandy found producer Rodney Jerkins, aka Darkchild. Rodney and
Brandy helped change R&B music with their odd mix of quirky beats mixed with strings.
Brandy matured and grew much from her debut, and it showed. With songs like "Tomorrow", "Almost Doesn't Count", and "Have You Ever"
Brandy was showing that she wasn't that same little 15 year old girl singing "I Wanna Be Down". She was a young woman, and she was living her life
At this time Brandy also made her
debut in movies. The cult horror hit I Still Know What You Did Last
Summer featured Brandy, Jennifer
Love Hewitt, and Mekhi Phiffer. The film did well and helped to
establish Brandy further as a multimedia superstar. Fans got to
see a side of Brandy they never saw before. In the film Brandy
was much more promiscious, used some curse words, and wasn't afraid to
punch and kick. Unfortunately during this time, while Brandy
was smiling, she was inside suffering. A verabally and emotionally
abusive boyfriend was ruining Brandy and pushed her to a eating
disorder. Her career was eclipsing her personal life and the stress of
it all was wearing Brandy down. For five long
years Brandy fans looked on and waited patiently for Brandy
to return to the music scene.
In 2002 Brandy Norwood came back. And she came back a lot different. The stuttering herky-jerky debut single "What About Us" produced by Rodney was a top ten smash. It was different, innovative, and it sounded like nothing else on radio.
Brandy married producer Robert Smith and was also pregnant with her first child! It was an exciting time and Brandy's third album Full Moon didn't disappoint. This was the album of a mature and sophisticated woman. No longer overburdened by her career, boyfriend, eating disorder, TV show, or mother,
Brandy was at a wondeful place. Fans gobbled up the album as it debuted at #2 on the Billboard charts and has gone on to sell 1.5 million in the US. On June 16, Brandy had her babygirl Sy'rai! The entire pregnancy was captured on MTV's show Special Delivery, fans got to glimpse as Brandy went through the ups & downs of the entire process. At the 2002 VMAs
Brandy made her first post baby appearance and she knocked em dead!
With a gold sparkling dress and much cleaveage, Brandy showed up to the VMAs to introduce Justin Timberlake's debut performance. On the horizon for 2003 fans are looking forward to a new album with production from Robert Smith and Timbaland. Brandy still has a lot to show us and the world.
-Written by Ricky Ribeiro
Bio From: House
of Brandy |