Love Me Back
Encyclopedia
Love Me Back is the second studio album
by American R&B
recording artist Jazmine Sullivan
, released November 29, 2010, on J Records
. Production for the album took place at various recording studios during 2009 to 2010 and was handled by several record producers, including Missy Elliott
, Ne-Yo
, No I.D.
, Los da Mystro
, Salaam Remi
, and Anthony Bell, among others.
The album debuted at number 17 on the US Billboard 200
chart, selling 57,000 copies in its first week. It produced two singles that attained moderate chart success, including "Holding You Down (Goin' in Circles)
" and "10 Seconds
". Upon its release, Love Me Back received general acclaim from music critics, who praised its songwriting, Sullivan's singing, and her performance.
(2008), which was well-received by music critics, sold 517,000 copies, and earned Sullivan seven Grammy Award
nominations. Recording sessions for the album took place at various recording locations, including Carrington House Studios, Goldmind Studios, and Lostas Studi in Atlanta, Georgia, CNSO Recording Studio in Czech Republic, Cutting Room Studios, Germano Studios, KMA Studios, and MSR Studios in New York, New York, Instrument Zoo in Miami, Florida, Metropolis Studios in London, Waya Flow Studios and Westlake Studios in Los Angeles, California, Strawberrybee Studios in California, and The Studio in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
on November 29 in the United Kingdom, November 30 in the United States, and December 8, 2010 in Japan. Prior to its release, Sullivan accompanied R&B recording artist Mary J. Blige
on the latter's Music Saved My Life concert tour during October 2010. The album's cover was premiered on September 21, 2010 and features Sullivan dressed in all black, leaning against a vintage model Chevy Impala, a reference to her hit single "Bust Your Windows
".
and Lloyd Banks
followed its release as a single in July. An official remix featuring Mary J. Blige was released on August 31, 2010. "Holding You Down (Goin' in Circles)" features samples
of several songs, including "La Di Da Di
" by Slick Rick
and Doug E. Fresh
, "Be Happy (Remix)
" by Mary J. Blige featuring Keith Murray
, "Top Billin'
" by Audio Two
, "I Can" and "Affirmative Action" by Nas
featuring AZ
, Nature
, and Foxy Brown, "Let Me Clear My Throat
" and "20 Minute Workout" by DJ Kool
, and "Make the Music with Your Mouth, Biz" by Biz Markie
. The single debuted at number 98 on the Billboard Hot 100, ultimately peaking at number 60, and at number three on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
chart. It spent nine weeks on the Hot 100 and 16 weeks on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. A music video for the single premiered August 30, 2010 on BET
's 106 & Park
program. Directed by Marcus Raboy, the video features references to 1980s hip hop culture
and house parties
, with cameos by hip hop artists Missy Elliot, Doug E. Fresh, Sandra "Pepa" Denton
, Pete Rock
, and Kwamé
. The song has been nominated for a Grammy Award
for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
, set to be presented at the 53rd Grammy Awards
in 2011.
The album's second single, "10 Seconds
", leaked to the Internet in September, and was officially released as a single on October 15, 2010. It has spent 10 weeks on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, peaking at number 18. The single's music video was released to the Internet on November 13, 2010. It features the theme of revenge towards an unfaithful boyfriend. It charted at number 17 and has spent 14 weeks on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.
chart, with first-week sales of 57,000 copies in the United States. It also entered at five on Billboard
s R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and at number 12 on its Digital Albums chart. The album ultimately spent six weeks on the Billboard 200.
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 85, based on 10 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim". Allmusic writer Andy Kellman gave it four-and-a-half out of five stars and commented that it "sprawls and stuns in equal measure". Entertainment Weekly
s Melissa Maerz complimented the album's ballads and dubbed Sullivan "the best kind of R&B paradox: the vulnerable diva". Maura Johnston of Spin
commended her "spunk
", calling Sullivan "both feisty and classy". Elysa Gardner of USA Today
praised Sullivan's "husky, keening vocals" and noted an "exuberant spirit" in some of its songs. The Philadelphia Inquirer
s A.D. Amorosi gave the album three-and-a-half out of four stars and complimented Sullivan's "brash confidence". Michael Cragg of The Guardian
praised her vocal versatility, stating "Sullivan's vocals sound lived-in, cracking and fraying on the stately '10 Seconds' and deftly wrapping themselves around the beat on the sample-heavy, Missy Elliott-produced 'Holding You Down'".
However, Rolling Stone
writer Jon Dolan gave the album three out of five stars and expressed a mixed response towards Sullivan "play[ing] a little nicer, adhering to the Mary J. Blige
school of gritty, nuanced hip-hop soul
". Slant Magazine
's Sal Cinquemani found that the album "fails to reprise many of its predecessor's themes or explore any overarching new ones", but ultimately commended its production and Sullivan's "supple voice". Despite viewing that it "could use more experimentation", Los Angeles Times
writer Margaret Wappler complimented its "soothing intimacy" and praised Sullivan for her performance, writing that she "walks herself to the precipice of emotion without falling off. [...] Sullivan pours herself into the songs yet keeps her ground, no matter the style or tone". Nitsuh Abebe of New York
described her voice as "warm, well-textured, and big — authentically, naturally big" and stated "the warmth and weight of the songwriting and production live up to the singing". Jon Pareles
of The New York Times
noted her voice as "narrow and jagged, with more grain and more tears as she applies gospel dynamics to her venting".
New York Daily News writer Jim Farber gave the album four out of five stars and complimented its "overwrought and plot-heavy songs", writing that it "finds her often singing at the top of her range, playing every song like a grand scene". BBC Online's Natalie Shaw praised its musical variation and Sullivan's thematic depth, describing the album as "a person exposed, emotionally fragmented and delivered with verve [...] an instant and self-assured blast of a record". Alex Macpherson of The Quietus
commented that Sullivan "proves how much more mileage there is in letting your ideas run riot while staying true to genre values - and has made the most creative R&B album of the year to prove it". In his consumer guide for MSN Music
, critic Robert Christgau
gave the album an A- rating and noted the songwriting as "a big extra difference maker, with enough pop moves to lighten the overall mood". Christgau commented that Sullivan is mostly "front and center, role-playing with unflinching intelligence" and praised her "soulful melodrama", stating "Sure these could all be personal history [...] But it's simpler just to wish every pro was such an astute student of the female condition".
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by American R&B
Contemporary R&B
Contemporary R&B is a music genre that combines elements of hip hop, soul, R&B and funk.Although the abbreviation “R&B” originates from traditional rhythm and blues music, today the term R&B is most often used to describe a style of African American music originating after the demise of disco in...
recording artist Jazmine Sullivan
Jazmine Sullivan
Jazmine Marie Sullivan is an American recording artist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is also the protégé of rapper Missy Elliott. Her debut single "Need U Bad" reached number one on Billboards Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, while her second single, "Bust Your Windows" peaked at number four...
, released November 29, 2010, on J Records
J Records
J Records was an American record label, owned and operated by Sony Music Entertainment, and was distributed through the RCA Music Group.-Company history:...
. Production for the album took place at various recording studios during 2009 to 2010 and was handled by several record producers, including Missy Elliott
Missy Elliott
Melissa Arnette "Missy" Elliott , is an American rapper, singer-songwriter, record producer, and actressA five-time Grammy Award winner, Elliott, with record sales of over seven million in the United States, is the only female rapper to have five albums certified platinum by the RIAA, including one...
, Ne-Yo
Ne-Yo
Shaffer Chimere Smith, Jr. , better known by his stage name Ne-Yo, is an American pop and R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, dancer and actor. Beginning his career as a songwriter, Ne-Yo penned the hit "Let Me Love You" for singer Mario...
, No I.D.
No I.D.
No I.D., officially known as Immenslope and also known as Ernest Wilson , is a hip hop and R&B record producer, also the vice-president of Def Jam Recordings, best known for his early work with Chicago rapper Common and is known as "The Godfather of Chicago hip hop".. The nickname No I.D...
, Los da Mystro
Carlos McKinney
Carlos "Los Da Mystro" McKinney is a Grammy-nominated American record producer and jazz pianist.-Biography:McKinney was born into an eminent Detroit jazz family; he is a nephew to pianist Harold McKinney, bassist Ray McKinney, trombonist Bernard McKinney , and drummers Earl McKinney and Walter...
, Salaam Remi
Salaam Remi
Salaam Remi Gibbs, better known as Salaam Remi, is a hip hop producer and keyboard player, known for his association with Nas, Amy Winehouse, and his reggae-tinged approach to production...
, and Anthony Bell, among others.
The album debuted at number 17 on the US 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...
chart, selling 57,000 copies in its first week. It produced two singles that attained moderate chart success, including "Holding You Down (Goin' in Circles)
Holding You Down (Goin' In Circles)
"Holding You Down " is a song by American singer Jazmine Sullivan. It is the lead single from her second album, Love Me Back. The song's production is noted for containing a samples of Slick Rick's "La Di Da Di"; Nas's "Affirmative Action"; The Honey Drippers's "Impeach the President"; Mary J...
" and "10 Seconds
10 Seconds (song)
"10 Seconds" is a song by American singer-songwriter Jazmine Sullivan. It was released on October 15, 2010 as the second single from her second album, Love Me Back .-Music video:...
". Upon its release, Love Me Back received general acclaim from music critics, who praised its songwriting, Sullivan's singing, and her performance.
Background
The album is the follow-up to Sullivan's debut album FearlessFearless (Jazmine Sullivan album)
Fearless is the debut album of American R&B recording artist Jazmine Sullivan, released September 23, 2008, on J Records. Production for the album took place during 2007 to 2008 and was handled by several record producers, including Missy Elliott, Stargate, Carvin & Ivan, Wyclef Jean, and Salaam...
(2008), which was well-received by music critics, sold 517,000 copies, and earned Sullivan seven Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nominations. Recording sessions for the album took place at various recording locations, including Carrington House Studios, Goldmind Studios, and Lostas Studi in Atlanta, Georgia, CNSO Recording Studio in Czech Republic, Cutting Room Studios, Germano Studios, KMA Studios, and MSR Studios in New York, New York, Instrument Zoo in Miami, Florida, Metropolis Studios in London, Waya Flow Studios and Westlake Studios in Los Angeles, California, Strawberrybee Studios in California, and The Studio in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Release and promotion
Love Me Back was initially scheduled for release on September 28, 2010. It was released by J RecordsJ Records
J Records was an American record label, owned and operated by Sony Music Entertainment, and was distributed through the RCA Music Group.-Company history:...
on November 29 in the United Kingdom, November 30 in the United States, and December 8, 2010 in Japan. Prior to its release, Sullivan accompanied R&B recording artist Mary J. Blige
Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
on the latter's Music Saved My Life concert tour during October 2010. The album's cover was premiered on September 21, 2010 and features Sullivan dressed in all black, leaning against a vintage model Chevy Impala, a reference to her hit single "Bust Your Windows
Bust Your Windows
"Bust Your Windows" is the second single by R&B singer-songwriter Jazmine Sullivan from her debut Grammy-nominated album Fearless. It was available as a digital download on Amazon.com in the U.S. on the September 16, 2008...
".
Singles
"Holding You Down (Goin' in Circles)" was released July 10, 2010 as the album's lead single. It had leaked to the Internet on June 29, 2010. Unofficial remixes of the song by rappers Fat JoeFat Joe
Joseph Antonio Cartagena , better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is an American rapper, CEO of Terror Squad Entertainment, and member of musical groups D.I.T.C. and Terror Squad....
and Lloyd Banks
Lloyd Banks
Christopher Charles Lloyd , better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper and member of the rap group G-Unit. Raised in South Jamaica, Queens, he dropped out of high school in 1998. G-Unit released two albums, Beg for Mercy in 2003 and T.O.S. in 2008...
followed its release as a single in July. An official remix featuring Mary J. Blige was released on August 31, 2010. "Holding You Down (Goin' in Circles)" features samples
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
of several songs, including "La Di Da Di
La Di Da Di
"La Di Da Di" is a rap song performed by Doug E. Fresh the beatboxer, and MC Ricky D as the rapper. It was originally released in 1985 as the B-side to "The Show". The song has since gained a reputation as an early hip hop classic, having been referenced in other hip hop songs.There are two...
" by Slick Rick
Slick Rick
Richard Walters , better known by his stage name Slick Rick is a Grammy-nominated English-American rapper...
and Doug E. Fresh
Doug E. Fresh
Douglas E. Davis , better known by the stage name Doug E. Fresh, is an American rapper, record producer, and beat boxer, also known as the Human Beat Box...
, "Be Happy (Remix)
Be Happy (song)
"Be Happy" is a song co-written and performed by American R&B recording artist Mary J. Blige. Alongside Blige, the song was written with Chucky Thompson, Diddy, Arlene DelValle and J.C. Olivier, and produced by both Thompson and Combs. The song is featured on her second album, My Life...
" by Mary J. Blige featuring Keith Murray
Keith Murray (rapper)
Keith Murray is an American rapper and a member of the rap trio Def Squad, which includes fellow rappers Redman and Erick Sermon.-Music career:...
, "Top Billin'
Top Billin'
"Top Billin" was the breakout hit for American hip-hop duo Audio Two, although it was released as the B-side to "Make It Funky" in 1987, from the album What More Can I Say?. The song made a deep cultural impact on hip hop. The song was voted #8 in About.com's Top 100 Rap Songs...
" by Audio Two
Audio Two
Audio Two were the Brooklyn, New York hip hop duo of emcee Kirk "Milk Dee" Robinson and DJ Nat "Gizmo" Robinson, most famous for its first hit, the classic "Top Billin'." The members of the duo are also the older brothers of female hip-hop star MC Lyte.-History:The duo’s debut single, "Make it...
, "I Can" and "Affirmative Action" by Nas
Nas
Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, who performs under the name Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in hip hop and one of the most skilled and influential rappers of all-time...
featuring AZ
AZ (rapper)
Anthony Cruz , better known as AZ is a Grammy-nominated American rapper of Dominican & African American descent. He is known for being a long time and frequent rhyme partner of Nas, and also a member of hip-hop group The Firm alongside Nas, Foxy Brown, Cormega and Nature.In a countdown of the 10...
, Nature
Nature (rapper)
Jermain Baxter , better known as Nature, is an American rapper, best known for his association with fellow Queensbridge-born rapper Nas.-Career:...
, and Foxy Brown, "Let Me Clear My Throat
Let Me Clear My Throat
"Let Me Clear My Throat" is a 1996 song by hip-hop artist DJ Kool from his album of the same name Let Me Clear My Throat. It was recorded live at the Bahama Bay club in Philadelphia.-Track listing:...
" and "20 Minute Workout" by DJ Kool
DJ Kool
John W. Bowman, Jr., better known by his stage name DJ Kool is a rapper who, in the late 1990s, produced several popular rap singles. Born in 1959 in Washington, D.C., his influence from his years of working the go-go and rap circuits became apparent in his music...
, and "Make the Music with Your Mouth, Biz" by Biz Markie
Biz Markie
Marcel Theo Hall better known by his stage name, Biz Markie, is an American rapper, beatboxer, DJ, comedian, singer, reality television personality, and commercial spokesperson. He is best known for his single "Just a Friend", an American Top 10 hit in 1989...
. The single debuted at number 98 on the Billboard Hot 100, ultimately peaking at number 60, and at number three on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
chart. It spent nine weeks on the Hot 100 and 16 weeks on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. A music video for the single premiered August 30, 2010 on BET
Bet
Bet or BET may refer to:* A wager in gambling* Basic Economics Test * Bet , the second letter in many Semitic alphabets, including Aramaic, Hebrew, Phoenician and Syriac* Brunauer-Emmett-Teller isotherm. See BET_theory...
's 106 & Park
106 & Park
106 & Park is a Top Ten Hip-Hop and R&B music video show, set up in a countdown format, that airs weekdays at 6:00 PM on BET . Since its inception, it was the network's #1 rated show...
program. Directed by Marcus Raboy, the video features references to 1980s hip hop culture
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
and house parties
House party
A house party in the English-speaking world is typically a type of party where medium to large groups of people gather at the residence of the party's host. In modern usage, a house party is typically associated with teenage or young adult crowds, loud music, dancing, and the consumption of alcohol...
, with cameos by hip hop artists Missy Elliot, Doug E. Fresh, Sandra "Pepa" Denton
Sandra Denton
Sandra Denton, known as Pepa, is a Jamaican American rap/hip hop artist, actress, and a member of the female rap trio Salt-N-Pepa.-Biography:...
, Pete Rock
Pete Rock
Peter Phillips , better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapper. He rose to prominence in the early 1990s as one half of the critically acclaimed group Pete Rock & CL Smooth...
, and Kwamé
Kwamé
Kwamé Holland is an American emcee who enjoyed brief popularity in the late-1980s and early-1990s. He is currently a music producer sometimes credited as K-1 Million or K1 Mil.-Biography:...
. The song has been nominated for a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance was an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to female recording artists for quality R&B songs...
, set to be presented at the 53rd Grammy Awards
53rd Grammy Awards
The 53rd annual Grammy Awards were held on February 13, 2011, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. They were broadcast on CBS with a rating of 26.6 million viewers. Barbra Streisand was honored as the MusiCares Person of the Year two nights prior to the telecast on February 11. Nominations were...
in 2011.
The album's second single, "10 Seconds
10 Seconds (song)
"10 Seconds" is a song by American singer-songwriter Jazmine Sullivan. It was released on October 15, 2010 as the second single from her second album, Love Me Back .-Music video:...
", leaked to the Internet in September, and was officially released as a single on October 15, 2010. It has spent 10 weeks on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, peaking at number 18. The single's music video was released to the Internet on November 13, 2010. It features the theme of revenge towards an unfaithful boyfriend. It charted at number 17 and has spent 14 weeks on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.
Commercial performance
The album debuted at number 17 on the US 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...
chart, with first-week sales of 57,000 copies in the United States. It also entered at five on Billboard
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
s R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and at number 12 on its Digital Albums chart. The album ultimately spent six weeks on the Billboard 200.
Critical response
Love Me Back received general acclaim from music critics. At MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 85, based on 10 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim". Allmusic writer Andy Kellman gave it four-and-a-half out of five stars and commented that it "sprawls and stuns in equal measure". Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
s Melissa Maerz complimented the album's ballads and dubbed Sullivan "the best kind of R&B paradox: the vulnerable diva". Maura Johnston of Spin
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
commended her "spunk
Spunk
The term Spunk may refer to:* courage or spirit, pluck* Australian slang, meaning hot, sexy, referring to the person with an x-factor* quality of mind showing enthusiasm, boldness, energy, courage, determination and motivation...
", calling Sullivan "both feisty and classy". Elysa Gardner of USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
praised Sullivan's "husky, keening vocals" and noted an "exuberant spirit" in some of its songs. The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer is a morning daily newspaper that serves the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, metropolitan area of the United States. The newspaper was founded by John R. Walker and John Norvell in June 1829 as The Pennsylvania Inquirer and is the third-oldest surviving daily newspaper in the...
s A.D. Amorosi gave the album three-and-a-half out of four stars and complimented Sullivan's "brash confidence". Michael Cragg of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
praised her vocal versatility, stating "Sullivan's vocals sound lived-in, cracking and fraying on the stately '10 Seconds' and deftly wrapping themselves around the beat on the sample-heavy, Missy Elliott-produced 'Holding You Down'".
However, 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...
writer Jon Dolan gave the album three out of five stars and expressed a mixed response towards Sullivan "play[ing] a little nicer, adhering to the Mary J. Blige
Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
school of gritty, nuanced hip-hop soul
Hip hop soul
Hip hop soul is sub-genre of contemporary R&B which fuses R&B, neo soul and dance elements with hip hop. The term did not originate until the promotion for Mary J. Blige's debut album What's the 411? in 1992 when Uptown Records proclaimed her to be the "Queen of Hip Hop Soul" and generally...
". Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine is an online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York Film Festival.- History :...
's Sal Cinquemani found that the album "fails to reprise many of its predecessor's themes or explore any overarching new ones", but ultimately commended its production and Sullivan's "supple voice". Despite viewing that it "could use more experimentation", Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
writer Margaret Wappler complimented its "soothing intimacy" and praised Sullivan for her performance, writing that she "walks herself to the precipice of emotion without falling off. [...] Sullivan pours herself into the songs yet keeps her ground, no matter the style or tone". Nitsuh Abebe of New York
New York (magazine)
New York is a weekly magazine principally concerned with the life, culture, politics, and style of New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to The New Yorker, it was brasher and less polite than that magazine, and established itself as a cradle of New...
described her voice as "warm, well-textured, and big — authentically, naturally big" and stated "the warmth and weight of the songwriting and production live up to the singing". Jon Pareles
Jon Pareles
Jon Pareles is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of the New York Times. He played jazz flute and piano, and graduated from Yale University with a degree in music. In the 1970s he was an associate editor of Crawdaddy!, and in the 1980s an associate...
of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
noted her voice as "narrow and jagged, with more grain and more tears as she applies gospel dynamics to her venting".
New York Daily News writer Jim Farber gave the album four out of five stars and complimented its "overwrought and plot-heavy songs", writing that it "finds her often singing at the top of her range, playing every song like a grand scene". BBC Online's Natalie Shaw praised its musical variation and Sullivan's thematic depth, describing the album as "a person exposed, emotionally fragmented and delivered with verve [...] an instant and self-assured blast of a record". Alex Macpherson of The Quietus
The Quietus
The Quietus is a British online rock music and pop culture magazine, focusing on arts news, reviews, and features. The site is an editorially independent publication led by John Doran and a group of freelance journalists and critics, some of whom have worked for other media outlets...
commented that Sullivan "proves how much more mileage there is in letting your ideas run riot while staying true to genre values - and has made the most creative R&B album of the year to prove it". In his consumer guide for MSN Music
MSN Music
MSN Music was a part of the MSN web services. It delivered music news, music videos, spotlights on new music, artist information, and live performances of artists. In 2004, Microsoft created an MSN Music download store to compete with Apple's iTunes Music Store, though its sales in comparison were...
, critic Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
gave the album an A- rating and noted the songwriting as "a big extra difference maker, with enough pop moves to lighten the overall mood". Christgau commented that Sullivan is mostly "front and center, role-playing with unflinching intelligence" and praised her "soulful melodrama", stating "Sure these could all be personal history [...] But it's simpler just to wish every pro was such an astute student of the female condition".
Track listing
Personnel
Credits for Love Me Back adapted from Allmusic.- Guy Aroch – photography
- Christian Baker – engineer
- Anthony Bell – instrumentation, producer, programming
- Ricky Blaze – drum programming, producer
- Jesse Bonds – guitar
- Anita Marisa Boriboon – art direction, design
- Cary Clark – engineer
- Los DaMystro – conductor, producer
- Gleyder "Gee" Disla – engineer
- DJ Showoff – vocals
- Peter Edge – producer
- Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott – engineer, executive producer, producer
- Paul J. Falcone – engineer
- Rick Frederick – engineer
- Toby Gad – engineer, piano, producer
- Anthony "Rocky" Gallo – engineer
- Erwin Gorostiza – creative director
- Chuck Harmony – producer
- Brandon Henderson – assistant
- Vincent Henry – flute, alto saxophone, baritone saxophone, tenor saxophone, wah wah guitar
- Trevor Jerideau – producer
- Mike "TrakGuru" Johnson – engineer
- Rob Kinelski – engineer
- StayBent KrunkaDelic – keyboards
- Dave Kutch – mastering
- Lamb – drum programming, engineer, producer
- Erik Madrid – assistant, mixing engineer
- Bei Maejor – producer
- Manny Marroquin – mixing
- Scott Naughton – engineer
- Ne-Yo – producer, vocals
- No I.D. – producer
- Brandon Parks – engineer
- Calvin Parmer – bass
- Christian Plata – assistant
- Prolyfic – additional production
- Questlove – drums, engineer
- Kevin Randolph – keyboards
- Rebel One – management
- Geno Regist – engineer
- Salaam Remi – bass, drum programming, drums, executive producer, Fender rhodes, keyboards, producer, strings
- Harold Robinson – bass
- Andros Rodriguez – engineer
- Davide Rossi – cello, string arrangements, strings, viola, violin
- Ashunta Sheriff – make-up
- Jazmine Sullivan – producer, vocals
- Pam Sullivan – management
- Pamela Watson – stylist
- Sam Wheat – engineer
- Yusef Williams – hair stylist
- Steve Wyreman – guitar
Charts
| Chart (2010) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| US 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... |
17 |
| US Billboard 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... |
5 |
Release history
| Country | Date |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom | November 29, 2010 |
| United States | November 30, 2010 |
| Japan | December 8, 2010 |
External links
- Love Me Back at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
- Love Me Back at MetacriticMetacriticMetacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...