Floetic
Encyclopedia
Floetic is the debut album by the English neo soul
duo Floetry
, released by DreamWorks Records
in the United States on 1 October 2002 and in the United Kingdom on 25 November 2002.
, Jazz of Dru Hill
, Glenn Lewis
(Ambrosius only), Bilal, and Michael Jackson
, for whom Ambrosius co-penned the 2002 hit single "Butterflies
". In 2002, they signed with DreamWorks Records
and released their debut album Floetic.
, Rolling Stone
, Yahoo! Music
, and other company sites. Allmusic gave the album three out of five stars.
and number four on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
. On 14 July 2003, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America
with U.S. sales of over 864,000 copies to date.
Bonus tracks
Neo soul
The term neo soul was originally coined by Kedar Massenburg of Motown Records in the late 1990s as a marketing category following the commercial breakthroughs of artists such as D'Angelo, Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, and Maxwell...
duo Floetry
Floetry
Floetry was a British R&B duo comprising Marsha Ambrosius and Natalie Stewart . The group recorded two studio albums, one live album, and sold over 800,000 records worldwide. Formed in 1999, Floetry started on the performance poetry stage.In 2002, the duo released their first album entitled, Floetic...
, released by DreamWorks Records
DreamWorks Records
DreamWorks Records was an American record label. Founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg as a subsidiary of DreamWorks SKG, the label operated until 2005 when it was shut down...
in the United States on 1 October 2002 and in the United Kingdom on 25 November 2002.
Background
Since moving to the U.S. in 2000, the duo have written for Jill ScottJill Scott
Jill Scott is an American soul and R&B singer-songwriter, poet, and actress. In 2007, Scott made her cinematic debut in the films Hounddog and in Tyler Perry's feature film, Why Did I Get Married? That year, her third studio album, The Real Thing: Words and Sounds Vol. 3, was released on...
, Jazz of Dru Hill
Dru Hill
Dru Hill is an American singing group, most popular during the late 1990s, whose repertoire included R&B, soul, and gospel music. Founded in Baltimore, Maryland, and active since 1992, Dru Hill recorded seven Top 40 hits, and is best known for the R&B #1 hits "In My Bed", "Never Make a Promise", ...
, Glenn Lewis
Glenn Lewis
Glenn Lewis is a Canadian R&B and neo soul singer-songwriter. Originally planning to pursue a career in animation as a teenager, Lewis instead decided to focus on music. His father was a member of the musical group Crack of Dawn...
(Ambrosius only), Bilal, and Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
, for whom Ambrosius co-penned the 2002 hit single "Butterflies
Butterflies (Michael Jackson song)
"Butterflies" is a song by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was written and composed by Andre Harris and Marsha Ambrosius, and produced by Jackson and Harris. The track appears on Jackson's tenth studio album, Invincible . "Butterflies" is a midtempo ballad song with R&B musical styles...
". In 2002, they signed with DreamWorks Records
DreamWorks Records
DreamWorks Records was an American record label. Founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg as a subsidiary of DreamWorks SKG, the label operated until 2005 when it was shut down...
and released their debut album Floetic.
Reception
Critical response
The album received favourable reviews from CMJCollege Music Journal
College Music Journal, commonly known as CMJ, is a music events/publishing company which hosts an annual festival in New York City, the CMJ Music Marathon, as well as a weekly magazine of and for the music industry and college radio stations in the United States and Canada. It publishes top 30...
, Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, Yahoo! Music
Yahoo! Music
Yahoo! Music, owned by Yahoo!, is the provider of a variety of music services, including Internet radio, music videos, news, artist information, and original programming...
, and other company sites. Allmusic gave the album three out of five stars.
Commercial performance
Floetic debuted at number nineteen on the Billboard 200Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
and number four on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999...
. On 14 July 2003, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
with U.S. sales of over 864,000 copies to date.
Track listing
- "Big Ben" (Marsha AmbrosiusMarsha AmbrosiusMarsha Ambrosius or Marsha is an English singer/songwriter. A former member of the English Soul/R&B duo Floetry, she released her first solo album Late Nights & Early Mornings on March 1, 2011.-Early career with Floetry:...
, Natalie Stewart, Darren Henson, Keith Pelzer) – 1:54 - "Floetic" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Darren Henson, Keith Pelzer, Mel TorméMel TorméMelvin Howard Tormé , nicknamed The Velvet Fog, was an American musician, known for his jazz singing. He was also a jazz composer and arranger, a drummer, an actor in radio, film, and television, and the author of five books...
, Robert WellsRobert Wells (songwriter)Robert Wells was an American songwriter, composer, script writer and television producer. During his early career, he collaborated with singer and songwriter Mel Tormé, writing several hit songs, most notably "The Christmas Song" in 1945...
) – 4:06- Contains an interpolation of "Born to Be Blue" (Mel Tormé, Robert Wells)
- "Ms. Stress" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Vidal DavisDre & VidalDre & Vidal is a Multi-Grammy Award Winning songwriting and production duo consisting of Andre Harris and Vidal Davis, who are best known as the main producers for Jill Scott and Glenn Lewis...
) – 3:54 - "Sunshine" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Andre HarrisDre & VidalDre & Vidal is a Multi-Grammy Award Winning songwriting and production duo consisting of Andre Harris and Vidal Davis, who are best known as the main producers for Jill Scott and Glenn Lewis...
) – 4:15 - "Getting Late" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Vidal Davis) – 6:49
- "Fun" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Darren Henson, Keith Pelzer,) – 4:14
- "Mr. Messed Up" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Vidal Davis) – 4:22
- "Say Yes" (Marsha Ambrosius, Andre Harris) – 4:28
- "Hello" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Andre Harris, Vidal Davis) – 4:09
- "Headache" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Ivan BariasCarvin & Ivan (Karma Productions)Carvin & Ivan is a multi-platinum production duo out of Philadelphia consisting of Grammy nominated producer/songwriters Ivan "Orthodox" Barias and Carvin "Ransum" Haggins...
) – 4:04 - "Hey You" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Andre Harris) – 5:04
- "If I Was a Bird" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Keith Pelzer) – 5:02
- "Opera" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Ivan Barias) – 4:00
- "Subliminal" (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart, Darren Henson, Keith Pelzer) – 3:57
Bonus tracks
- "ButterfliesButterflies (Michael Jackson song)"Butterflies" is a song by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was written and composed by Andre Harris and Marsha Ambrosius, and produced by Jackson and Harris. The track appears on Jackson's tenth studio album, Invincible . "Butterflies" is a midtempo ballad song with R&B musical styles...
" (Demo Version) (Andre Harris, Marsha Ambrosius) – 4:03 - "Now You're Gone (More Than I Can Feel)" (Natalie Stewart, Sebastian RogersSebastian RogersSebastian Rogers is a vocalist, guitarist and producer who gained fame as a solo artist in 2000 with the release of his self-written album When It Comes And It Will.sebastians brother samuel died from a heart attack and weak heart...
) – 4:52
Alternate version
- "Big Ben" – 1:54
- "Floetic" – 4:06
- "Ms. Stress" – 3:54
- "Fun" – 4:14
- "Sunshine" – 4:15
- "Headache" – 4:04
- "Possibilities" – 4:57
- "Say Yes" – 4:28
- "Hello" – 4:09
- "Getting Late" – 6:49
- "Hey You" – 5:04
- "If I Was a Bird" – 5:02
- "Opera" – 4:00
- "Mr. Messed Up" – 4:22
Charts
| Chart (2002) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
19 |
| U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
4 |