Brandy returns with new album

It has been over three years since teen pop diva Brandy disappeared from the showbiz scene. Many of you doubtless remember that there was a time when Brandy was the hottest young thing around. And she was truly remarkable, only 15 years old but already with accomplishments that leave you breathless and that will take other artists several lifetimes to rival.

There were hit records like the albums Brandy and Never Say Never, and the singles I Wanna be Down, Baby, Have You Ever, Sitting Up in My Room from the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack and The Boy is Mine, the Grammy-winning duet with supposed rival Monica. She starred in a high-rating sitcom, Moesha. She appeared in box-office films like I Know What You Did Last Summer with Jennifer Love Hewitt.

Brandy also has the distinction of having been mentored by two of the greatest divas of all time, Diana Ross and Whitney Houston. Brandy worked with Whitney in Cinderella, one of the highest rating TV movies of all time. Brandy played the title role in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, while Whitney was the fairy godmother. She also scored well in the TV special Double Platinum where she co-starred with Diana.

Not only that. Brandy endorsed Cover Girl cosmetics, had her own Brandy doll collection and also modeled for DKNY and Candies. She took on the job of Unicef’s international spokesperson for the youth and gave her time and financial help to other organizations like Girls Incorporated and the National Council of Negro Women.

But along with this incredible success came rumors that Brandy was becoming difficult. She was not getting along with the other members of the cast of Moesha. Her mother was behaving like the classic, demanding stage mother of showbiz lore. One day, I heard in the news that Brandy was in the hospital for nervous exhaustion after she collapsed or had a breakdown on the set of the TV show.

Then silence. Until early this year. Now 23, Brandy has changed for the better. She is married to producer Robert Smith and the union will soon be blessed with a baby daughter. Brandy is not only all grown-up. She has shed the frenetic pace of the first eight years of her career, ditched the sitcom, has not made a film in years, has not been seen in any glossy magazine ad and is concentrating entirely on her music.

The album titled Full Moon has been bruited about as Brandy’s declaration of independence. There are no doubts that it is. The cover art alone already shows a stylish, more mature, sexier woman. No more braids for Brandy. The makeup consists of softer, monochromatic tones and the blend of leather, furs and denim for her wardrobe puts an edgy, more daring feel to her new image.

What I find most exciting about Full Moon though is that the music does not sound like anything we have been hearing these days. It is R&B but it is Brandy’s kind of R&B. Given the big number of R&B albums released featuring young female singers these days, there is this tendency for them to sound the same. In fact there are times when I cannot tell one from the other. But Brandy’s is different and therefore more exciting.

It’s Not Worth It comes off best. It is sleek and funky and filled with new sound bytes. Great too is the clever use of multi-tracking in the ballad He Is. When You Touch Me is so sexy in a sweet sort of way. And get a load of her version of Phil Collins’ Another Day in Paradise which closes the album. Brandy eschews cute in every track and the result is a coherent, confident collection.

Other cuts included are Full Moon, I Thought, Like This, All in Me, Apart, Can We, What About Us?, Anybody, Nothing, Come a Little Closer, Love Wouldn’t Count Me Out and Wow.

To close, here now are the top 10 selling tunes in Billboard’s Hot 100 list: Foolish by Ashanti; I Need a Girl by P. Diddy featuring Usher & Loon; What’s Luv by Fat Joe featuring Ashanti; Without Me by Eminem; Hot in Here by Nelly; A Thousand Miles by Vanessa Carlton; U Don’t Have to Call by Usher; The Middle by Jimmy Eat World; Addictive by Truth Hurts featuring Rakim; and All You Wanted by Michelle Branch.