''So Real'' is the debut studio album by American singer
Mandy Moore
Amanda Leigh "Mandy" Moore (born April 10, 1984) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She rose to fame with her 1999 debut single "Candy (Mandy Moore song), Candy", which peaked at number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot ...
. The album was released on December 7, 1999, in the United States by
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony
is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...
. It was part of the teen-pop revival which saw other teen artists such as
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she has sold over 150 million records worldwide, making her one of the world's best-selling music artists. Cultural impact of Brit ...
,
Christina Aguilera
Christina María Aguilera ( , ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter, actress and television personality. Recognized as Cultural impact of Christina Aguilera, an influential figure in music and having received Public imag ...
and
Jessica Simpson
Jessica Ann Johnson (née Simpson; born July 10, 1980) is an American singer, actress, and fashion designer. After performing in church choirs as a child, Simpson signed with Columbia Records in 1997, aged seventeen. Her debut studio album, '' ...
release their debut albums that same year to commercial and critical success. Conceptually, the album addresses themes such as teenage love, romance and heartbreak, all of which were common subjects in teen pop music at the time.
''So Real'' became a moderate hit in the United States, reaching a peak of 31 on the
''Billboard'' 200 albums chart, as well as being certified Platinum by the
RIAA
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
, for shipments of over 1 million. The album spawned a top 50 hit with "
Candy
Candy, alternatively called sweets or lollies, is a Confectionery, confection that features sugar as a principal ingredient. The category, also called ''sugar confectionery'', encompasses any sweet confection, including chocolate, chewing gum ...
" and went gold within three months in the RIAA.
[RIAA certification searchable database - "Mandy Moore"](_blank)
. Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
Five months following the release of ''So Real'', it was reissued as ''
I Wanna Be with You'', which also served as Moore's debut album internationally.
Singles
"
Candy
Candy, alternatively called sweets or lollies, is a Confectionery, confection that features sugar as a principal ingredient. The category, also called ''sugar confectionery'', encompasses any sweet confection, including chocolate, chewing gum ...
" was released as Moore' debut single on August 17, 1999. The song received generally favorable critical reviews from critics, mostly praising its composition. It performed moderately well on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking just outside the top 40 at #41. It entered the chart on #88 and reached its peak in its eighth week on the chart. It received more success abroad, peaking at #6 in the UK and #2 in Australia. The music video, which was directed by
Chris Robinson, had a cameo by the
girl group
A girl group is a music act featuring two or more women in music, female singers who generally vocal harmony, harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense in the United States to denote the wave of American female p ...
PYT.
"
Walk Me Home" was released on December 4, 1999, as the second single in the US; the song failed to chart when it was first released. On October 14, 2000, the song was re-released to promote ''I Wanna Be with You'' and peaked at #38 on the ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
''
Pop 100
The Pop 100 was a songs chart that debuted in February 2005 and was released weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States until its discontinuation in 2009. It ranked songs based on airplay on Mainstream Top 40 radio stations, singles ...
chart.
Reception
Reviews among music critics were generally mixed. William Ruhlmann of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
said, "Fifteen-year-old Mandy Moore's debut album sounded like it was inspired almost entirely by listening to recent hit albums by
'N Sync, the
Backstreet Boys
Backstreet Boys (often abbreviated as BSB) are an American vocal group consisting of Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, AJ McLean, and cousins Brian Littrell and Kevin Richardson (musician), Kevin Richardson. The band formed in 1993 in Orlando, Flori ...
, and Britney Spears", citing stylistic similarities between album tracks "So Real" and "Let Me Be the One" to the Backstreet Boys' "
Backstreet's Back", and saying that Moore's "occasional growls" were similar to Spears' "
...Baby One More Time". Ruhlmann stated that Moore could "carry a tune", but "with no particular distinction", saying that aside from her singing, the music was "mediocre".
Stephanie Mcgrath from the Canadian publication ''
Jam!
Jam! was a Canadian website which covered entertainment news. It was part of the Canoe.com online portal, formerly owned and operated by Quebecor through its Sun Media division, and now owned by Postmedia Network.
Jam! was the only media outl ...
'' compared the album to the work of Spears and Jessica Simpson; she also labeled the material as "a mediocre collection that could fade quickly unless "Candy" continues to catch on with young pop fanatics".
Overall, she stated, "If female pop is what you crave, opt for Jessica Simpson or Britney Spears".
Commercial performance
In the United States, ''So Real'' had moderate success. The album debuted at number 71 on the US
''Billboard'' 200 and later peaked at number 31. The album spent a total of 23 weeks on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart. It ranked at 116 on the 1999 ''Billboard'' 200 year-end chart. ''So Real'' was certified RIAA Platinum in the US after four months with 1 million copies sold.
Track listing
Personnel
Credits for ''So Real'' adapted from
Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
.
*
Mandy Moore
Amanda Leigh "Mandy" Moore (born April 10, 1984) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She rose to fame with her 1999 debut single "Candy (Mandy Moore song), Candy", which peaked at number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot ...
– primary artist
* Tony Battaglia – composer
* Dakari – guest artist
* Shaun Fisher – composer
* Jive – guest artist
* Billy Lawrence – guest artist
* T. Moran – composer
* David Rice – composer
* Mark Stevens – composer
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
{{Authority control
1999 debut albums
Mandy Moore albums
Epic Records albums
Contemporary R&B albums by American artists
Bubblegum pop albums