''Sparkle'' is the 1998 debut album by American singer Sparkle. It was released on May 19, 1998, through Rockland Records and was entirely produced by her former mentor R. Kelly. The album was a success in large part to the Sparkle–R. Kelly duet lead single " Be Careful", which peaked at number three on the US

Rhythmic Top 40 The Rhythmic chart (also called Rhythmic Airplay, and previously named Rhythmic Songs, Rhythmic Top 40 and CHR/Rhythmic) is an airplay chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The chart tracks and measures the airplay of songs played on ...

and topped the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart. The album itself peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' 200 and was certified gold 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 ...

on December 7, 2000. Further singles "Time to Move On" and "Lovin' You" were also released as singles, but did not make any ''

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 ...

'' charts.

Critical reception

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'' gave the album a grade of B+, writing: "Unlike her wannabe-diva peers, this R. Kelly protegee remembers what the 'B' in R&B stands for....R. Kelly surrounds her with

blaxploitation In American cinema, Blaxploitation is the film subgenre of action movie derived from the exploitation film genre in the early 1970s, consequent to the combined cultural momentum of the black civil rights movement, the black power movement, ...

-vintage wah-wah guitars, haunting strings, and blue-collar blues; the resulting soul digs far deeper than Kelly's usual bump'n' grind".''

'' June 19, 1998, p. 74

Track listing

All track written, produced and arranged by R. Kelly. Samples *"Time to Move On" samples from "Intimate Friends" by

Eddie Kendricks Edward James Kendrick (December 17, 1939 – October 5, 1992), better known as Eddie Kendricks, was an American tenor singer and songwriter. Noted for his distinctive falsetto singing style, Kendricks co-founded the Motown singing group the Temp ...

. *"Lovin' You" is a cover of "Loving You" by

Minnie Riperton Minnie Julia Riperton (November 8, 1947 – July 12, 1979) was an American soul singer and songwriter best known for her 1974 single " Lovin' You", her five-octave vocal range, and her use of the whistle register. Born in 1947, Riperton grew ...

. *"Good Life" samples from "Good Times" by

Chic Chic (; ), meaning "stylish" or "smart", is an element of fashion. It was originally a French word. Etymology '' Chic'' is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s. Early references in English dictionaries classified ...

Credits

*Jason Bacher – assistant engineer *Percy Bady – keyboards *Rick Behrens – assistant engineer, engineer, mixing assistant *Chris Brickley – assistant engineer, engineer, mixing assistant, programming *

Cam'ron Cameron Ezike Giles (born February 4, 1976), known Mononym, mononymously as Cam'ron, is an American rapper. Beginning his career in the early 1990s as Killa Cam, Giles signed with Lance Rivera, Lance "Un" Rivera's Lance Rivera, Untertainment, a ...

– rap vocals *Lafayette Carthon, Jr. – keyboards *Trey Fratt – assistant engineer *Stephen George – engineer, mixing, programming *Keith Henderson – guitar *Cynthia Jernigan – backing vocals *Mark Johnson – mixing assistant * R. Kelly – arranger, executive producer, mixing, producer, vocals *Jeff Lane – mixing assistant *Ron Lowe – assistant engineer, engineer, mixing assistant *Mr. Lee – mixing, programming *

Peter Mokran Peter Mokran is an American mixer, producer, engineer, and musician. Early life Mokran was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois. Growing up, he studied classical guitar, while also learning engineering and programming as a teen.Paul Tingen“ ...

– head engineer, mixing, programmer *Nature – rap vocals *Joshua Shapera – engineer *Sparkle – vocals *Martin Stebbing – engineer, programming *Ed Tinley – assistant engineer *

Poke & Tone The Trackmasters, also known as Poke & Tone, is an American hip hop production outfit composed of Poke (Jean-Claude Olivier born January 21, 1970; Brooklyn, New York ) and Tone (Samuel Barnes born January 20, 1969; Brooklyn, New York). Active fro ...

– mixing *Jeff Vereb – assistant engineer, mixing assistant

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 1998 debut albums Interscope Records albums Sparkle (singer) albums