The problem with Brandy is that her own competence and grounded-ness work against her when it comes to expectations, which means that her new album, Human, while perfectly, yes, competent and grounded, is just a little bit boring when you get right down to it. In the works since 2005, it contains no bad tracks, but it also doesn't have many that are particularly interesting. She's never going to confess her preference for kinky sex or her secret love of the paparazzi, and this makes her a fine human indeed, but pop stars should perhaps be a little more than human. Part of the problem with Human lies in its sub-par production, which requires Brandy to sing a bit above her normal range and makes her sound both breathy and strained at times. It also lacks a bass depth and a genuine sparkle, no matter who's working on a track, although it is full of "twinkle" sound effects that fall flat.
The best song here is "A Capella (Something's Missing)," which steps back and lets Brandy's ability to do a quiet, non-obnoxious melisma shine. However, it is, for no discernible reason, buried at the very back of the album. "The Definition," on the other hand, which could be a rejected boy band song and is one of the weakest here, is right up front, immediately prejudicing the listener against anything else to come. Perhaps it would be better to listen to the album in reverse order, as the better stuff is all back-loaded.
—Hillary Brown
01.13.08
Videos from Human
Human Review
All Music Guide Review
Human's release marked the longest wait between Brandy albums, if only by a few months, and it's easy to understand why. After Afrodisiac's June 2004 release, Brandy dropped her manager, left Atlantic, broke off an engagement, was a judge on America's Got Talent, got into a car accident that caused the death of a driver, and signed with Epic (possibly in that order). Issued a few months prior to facing a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the husband of the woman who died in the accident, Human is easily the most platitudinal Brandy album, but it is no less compelling for it, even when blocking out the complicated context of the singer's personal life. Renewing her alliance with Rodney Jerkins, whose production and co-songwriting work dominate the album's first half, Brandy is clearly in a comfort zone that enables her to open up more than ever. This is demonstrated from the beginning, in "The Definition," where she declares a clean slate with trembling resilience. Through most other voices, optimistic "everyone together now" songs like "Warm It Up (With Love)" and soul-searching adult contemporary ballads like "Human" and "Fall" (written with Natasha Bedingfield) would wilt, but there's no denying Brandy's unforced sincerity. Nothing here will get any party started; Human is nothing if not a serious album, not to mention the least enjoyable release in Brandy's catalog. But it could very well be her most useful one. ~ Andy Kellman, Rovi
Human Track Listing
Human Notes
“HUMAN is my most personal
album to date. I have grown so
much since my last album. Being
able to express myself and my
journey through my music is a
feeling I can’t describe.”
Reunited with executive producer
Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, who
first collaborated with Brandy on
her 1998 multi-platinum-selling
album Never Say Never. HUMAN
shows a side of Brandy no one has
ever seen before.
Credits of Human
- Chase N-Cashe
- Producer, Audio Production
- Christian Plata
- Mixing Assistant, Audio Engineer
- Erik Madrid
- Mixing Assistant, Audio Engineer
- Adam Messinger
- Piano
- Ryan Ramsey
- A&R
- Brian Seals
- Composer
- E. Kidd Bogart
- Composer
- Jordan Omley
- Composer, Vocal Producer, Audio Production
- Christopher "Lonny" Breaux
- Composer
- Daniel Groover
- Guitar
- Bruno Mars
- Composer, Audio Production, Producer, Vocal Producer
- Lindy Sevier
- A&R
- Kenneth Charles Coby
- Composer
- Chad C. Roper
- Composer
- Le-Che D. Martin
- Composer
- Tiyon Mack
- Composer
- Brian Seals
- Composer
- Jesse Woodard
- Composer
- Waynne Nugent
- Composer
- Rich King
- Composer
- Kevin Risto
- Composer
- David Quinones
- Composer
- Kee
- Vocals (Background)
- Jenny Bea-Englishman
- Composer
- Erika Nuri
- Composer
- Chauncey "Hit-Boy" Hollis
- Composer, Audio Production
- LaShawn "The Big Shiz" Daniels
- Audio Production
- Phillip Lawrence
- Composer, Audio Production
- Josh Mosser
- Audio Engineer
- Marvin 'Tony' Hemmings
- Composer
- The Darkchild Orchestra Strings
- Ensemble
- John D. Norten
- Audio Engineer
- Manny Marroquin
- Mixing
- Jim Sitterly
- Violin, Arranger
- Jens Gad
- Drums
- Rodney Jerkins
- Arranger, Conductor, Executive Producer, Mixing, String Conductor, Audio Production, String Arrangements, Producer, Composer
- Brandy Norwood
- Composer, Audio Production, Vocal Producer, Vocal Arrangement, Vocals, Vocals (Background), Executive Producer
- Mike Donaldson
- Engineer, Audio Engineer
- Paul Foley
- Engineer, Audio Engineer
- Crystal Johnson
- Composer
- LaShawn Daniels
- Composer, Vocal Producer
- Red One
- Piano, Programming, Vocals (Background), Vocal Arrangement, String Engineer, Vocal Editing, Instrumentation, String Arrangements, Producer
- Lindy Robbins
- Composer
- Victoria Horn
- Composer
- Dapo Torimiro
- Composer, Producer
- Bruce Waynne
- Producer, Audio Production
- Dirty Swift
- Audio Production
- Fusako Chubachi
- Art Direction, Design
- John D. Norten
- Engineer
- Natasha Bedingfield
- Composer
- Andy Gwynn
- Engineer, Audio Engineer
- Jeff Bhasker
- Composer
- Toby Gad
- Bass, Arranger, Guitar, Composer, Producer, Audio Production, Bass Programming, Vocal Recording, Audio Engineer, Vocal Producer, Mixing, Programming
- James Fauntleroy
- Composer, Audio Engineer, Vocal Producer
- Greg Ogan
- Engineer, Vocal Recording, Audio Engineer
- Dernst Emile
- Audio Production
- Claude Kelly
- Composer, Vocal Arrangement
- Kee
- Vocals (Background)
- Mattias Bylund
- Arranger
- Soundz
- Producer, Audio Production
- Brian Kennedy
- Producer
- Brandon Creed
- Executive Producer, A&R
- Michael Brandt
- Photography
- RedOne
- Arranger, Composer, Audio Production
- Hit Boy
- Producer
- Ryan Santomauro
- A&R
- Brian Kennedy
- Audio Production
- Brian Gardner
- Mastering, Remastering
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