Brand New is the fifth studio album by American hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa, released on October 21, 1997, by London Records. The group's international label at the time, Red Ant Entertainment, filed for bankruptcy before the album was officially released; aside from a brief tour and some TV and print ads, almost no promotion was available to boost the record. Brand New spawned two singles: "R U Ready" and "Gitty Up". The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on November 25, 1997, a sharp decline from the group's previous efforts.
Production Brand New was the first Salt-N-Pepa album released after the group parted ways with longtime producer, writer, and manager Hurby "Luv Bug" Azor. Instead, Salt took the lead in co-writing and co-produced the album.
Critical reception
Natasha Stovall of Rolling Stone praised the "richer piano-, guitar- and vocal-filled sound, emphasizing gritty soul and sweet, unadulterated funk." Jon Pareles of The New York Times wrote that the group "still juxtapose catchy come-ons ... and determinedly positive messages." Connie Johnson of the Los Angeles Times wrote that "while it's commendable that they're stretching out in a more uplifting, spiritually motivated arena, the group's forte is still worldly, raunchy, of-the-flesh fare." In a review for The Source, Raquel Cepeda described the album as "[m]elodically heavy, but lacking in the lyrical department".
Track listing
Notes signifies an additional producer signifies a co-producer
Samples "R U Ready" contains excerpts from "Watch Out" by Brass Construction. "Gitty Up" contains samples from "Give It To Me Baby" by Rick James "Say Ooh" contains a sample from "Turn Off the Lights" by Larry Young. "Brand New" contains an interpolation of "Love Is Alive" by Gary Wright.
Personnel
Prince Charles Alexander – mixing Eddie Anzueto Jr. – percussion Steven Augustine – bass Kent Belden – creative director Blue Denim – background vocals Mike Campbell – guitar Melvin Chandler – keyboards Lewis Christian – percussion Day Ta Day – background vocals Andre Debourg – engineer, mixing James Denton – photography Sandy "Pepa" Denton – producer DJ Flexx – background vocals Chad "Dr. Ceuss" Elliott – programming, producer, engineer, mixing Glenn Ellis – bass Esmail – producer Alan Forney – photo imaging Kirk Franklin – performer Wayne Garrick – keyboards Khari Green – guitar Bernard Grobman – guitar Andrew Hellier – guitar, background vocals Cheryl "Salt" James – producer Jon Jones – guitar Gerhard Joost – mixing Carol Kirkendall – executive producer LaTrece – background vocals Michael Lockwood – guitar Al (Taz) Machera – mixing Sean "Mystro" Mather – producer Gary Montoute – synthesizer Michael Moore – photography Rufus Moore – background vocals, performer Joseph Powell – programming, background vocals, producer, engineer, mixing Wayne Rickard – guitar Alicia Rushing – background vocals Ken Schubert – engineer, mixing Dawne Shivers – background vocals Peggy Sirota – photography Sounds of Blackness – performer Spinderella – performer Kevin Thomas – engineer Al West – producer Jimmy White – bass David Wynn – producer George Belton - bass
Charts + Chart performance for Brand New Chart (1997) Peakposition Australian Albums (ARIA) Note: The "High Point" number in the "NAT" column indicates the release's peak position on the national chart. 186
Certifications
Notes
References