Tamia
Studio album by
Tamia
ReleasedApril 14, 1998 (1998-04-14)
Length60:57
Label
Producer
Tamia chronology
Tamia
(1998)		 A Nu Day
(2000)
Singles from Tamia
  1. "Imagination"
    Released: February 10, 1998
  2. "So into You"
    Released: June 23, 1998
  3. "Loving You Still"
    Released: March 2, 1999

Tamia is the debut studio album by Canadian recording artist Tamia. It was released on April 14, 1998, on Quincy Jones's Qwest Records, while distribution was handled through Warner Bros. Recorded after the release of her Grammy Award-nominated collaborations with Jones and the single "Missing You", her contribution to the soundtrack of the 1996 motion picture Set It Off, Tamia worked with a plethora of producers on her debut, including Jermaine Dupri, Tim & Bob, Mario Winans, J-Dub, Keith Crouch, and Christopher "Tricky" Stewart, many of which would become frequent producers on subsequent projects.

Upon its release, Tamia received a mixed to positive reception by critics, who complimented Tamia's vocal performance and the progression from her earlier recordings but found the material uneven. It debuted and peaked at number sixty-seven on the Billboard 200 chart and entered the top twenty of the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Five singles were released from the album. "Imagination" was chosen as the album's lead single, reaching the top 20 in Canada and top forty in both the United States and New Zealand. The album's second single produced by Tim & Bob called "So into You" was well-received and charted even higher. A remake of "Careless Whisper" was released as the album's fourth single in Japan. A critical success, Tamia garnered the singer two Juno Award nominations for Best New Solo Artist and R&B/Soul Recording of the Year at the 1999 award ceremony.

Background

After dominating local talent competitions through her teenage years, in 1994, Windsor native Tamia performed at a multiple sclerosis benefit in Aspen, Colorado, when she met music manager, Lionel Richie's ex-wife Brenda Richie, who was cosponsoring the event and introduced herself to Tamia after the show.[1] A few months later, Tamia, who was being courted by Warner Bros. Records at the time, called Richie to say that she was coming to Los Angeles for a photo session, resulting in her lasting stay and a management deal with Richie.[1] Weeks later, Richie arranged for her to perform at a star-studded party that she held for singer Luther Vandross.[1] Her performance reportedly impressed all in attendance, including veteran producer Quincy Jones, who later offered her the chance to appear on his album Q's Jook Joint (1995).[1]

Overwhelmed by his offer, Tamia recorded vocals for "You Put a Move on My Heart", which Jones later selected as the album's first single.[2] A moderate commercial success, the collaboration earned acclaim from critics; it was later nominated for a Grammy Award along with their second collaboration "Slow Jams" and "Missing You", a song she recorded with Brandy, Gladys Knight, and Chaka Khan for the soundtrack of the 1996 motion picture Set It Off.[3] All three track reached the top twenty on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart and gained Tamia additional recognition with nominations from the Soul Train Music Awards and the NAACP Image Awards.[2] Following this, Jones signed her his label Qwest Records, a joint venture with Warner Bros., and enlisted the services of several producers to work on her debut self-titled album.[2] Recording was reportedly intermitted when Tamia filmed the role of Sheri Silver in Speed 2: Cruise Control, playing the part of a featured vocalist at the dinner theatre aboard the luxury cruise ship.[2]

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]

Tamia earned mixed to positive reviews from critics. Leo Stanley of AllMusic remarked that the album "is an appealingly stylish collection of contemporary urban soul", while also stating that "it suffers from some uneven material". He rated the album three out of five stars.[4] Cherie Saunders from Vibe found that "the disc is a deliberate attempt – and successful one – to free Tamia from the steely adult-contemporary cage". Impressed with the up-tempo songs on the album, she however found that Tamia's "strength clearly lies with ballads", concluding that "despite some inconsistency, Tamia's shining vocal skills prove that she won't get pushed around by anyone on today's music playground".[5] In his review for Billboard, Paul Verna wrote that Tamia "excels at ballad and midtempo tracks such as "So into You", "Falling for You", and "Rain on Me". He was less impressed with lead single "Imagination", which he criticized for Jermaine Dupri's unsuitable guest rap and a lack of "vocal punch".[6]

Upon its release, Tamia debuted and peaked at sixty-seven on the US Billboard 200 and reached the eighteenth spot on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.[7] In total, the album sold 416,000 copies in the United States,[8] and finished sixty-second on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums year-end chart in 1998.[9] In Japan, Tamia was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) in June 1998 for more than 100,000 copies shipped to stores.[10] Five singles were released from the album, including "Imagination" and "So into You" both of which reached the top forty of the US Billboard Hot 100. A critical success, Tamia garnered the singer two Juno Award nominations for Best New Solo Artist and R&B/Soul Recording of the Year at the 1999 award ceremony.

Track listing

Tamia – Standard edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Imagination" (featuring Jermaine Dupri)
  • Dupri
  • Seal
3:33
2."So Into You"
Tim & Bob4:21
3."Never Gonna Let You Go"
Winans4:01
4."Falling for You"
Stevie J.5:11
5."Show Me Love"Paige LackeyJ-Dub4:06
6."Rain on Me"
  • Hickson
  • Washington
  • Winans
Winans4:22
7."Is That You?" (featuring Jermaine Dupri)
  • Durpi
  • Seal
  • Durpi
  • Seal
3:22
8."Who Do You Tell?"
Daryl Simmons4:20
9."Gotta Move On"
Crouch5:08
10."This Time It's Love"
Tricky Stewart5:52
11."Loving You Still"SimmonsSimmons5:09
12."Careless Whisper"
  • Samuel J. Sapp
  • Tim Shider
5:12
13."You Put a Move on My Heart"Rod TempertonQuincy Jones6:12
Total length:60:57
Bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
14."So Young"Alex RoweJon-John Robinson 

Notes and sample credits

Personnel

Performance credits

Instruments

Technical and production

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for Tamia
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ)[15] Gold 100,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Canadian-born Bombshell". Vibe. 1998-06-01. Retrieved June 28, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Quincy Jones Introduces Singer Tamia On New Album". Jet. 1995-11-13. Retrieved June 28, 2015.
  3. ↑ "The Complete List of Nominees". Los Angeles Times. 1998-01-08. Retrieved 2015-06-28.
  4. 1 2 Stanley, Leo. "Tamia Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-02-24.
  5. ↑ Saunders, Cherie (1998-04-01). "Reviews". Vibe. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  6. ↑ Verna, Paul (1998-05-16). "Reviews & Previews". Billboard. Retrieved 2011-02-24.
  7. ↑ "Tamia: Tamia (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard.
  8. ↑ Caulfield, Keith (2003-10-29). "Ask Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved 2015-05-21.
  9. 1 2 "R&B/Hip-Hop Albums: Year End 1998". Billboard. Retrieved 2015-06-15.
  10. ↑ "GOLD ALBUM 他認定作品 1998年6月度" [Gold Albums, and other certified works. June 1998 Edition] (PDF). The Record (Bulletin) (in Japanese). Chūō, Tokyo: Recording Industry Association of Japan. 465: 9. August 10, 1998. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 25, 2014. Retrieved January 25, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 3545". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
  12. ↑ "タミアのリリース一覧". Oricon (in Japanese). Archived from the original on March 4, 2014. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
  13. ↑ "Tamia Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Tamia Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  15. ↑ "Japanese album certifications – Tamia – Tamia" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan.
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