Christmas with Brandy
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Christmas with Brandy
| type = studio
| artist = Brandy
| cover = Christmas with Brandy.jpg
| released = {{Start date|2023|11|10}}
| border = yes
| alt =
| recorded = 2023{{cite web|first=Steven J.|last=Horowitz|url=https://variety.com/2023/music/news/brandy-christmas-with-brandy-holiday-album-interview-1235785070/|website=Variety|title=Brandy’s Back, and She Wants You to Listen to Her New Christmas Album All Year Round|date=November 9, 2023|access-date=November 10, 2023|archive-date=November 10, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231110034311/https://variety.com/2023/music/news/brandy-christmas-with-brandy-holiday-album-interview-1235785070/|url-status=live}}
| studio =
- TAG Recording Studios (Los Angeles, CA)
- Ahh Haa Studios (Burbank, CA)
| genre =
| length = 35:07
| label =
| producer =
- Nasri Atweh
- DJ Camper
- Theron Feemster
- Kyle Mann
- Adam Messinger
- David Williams II
| prev_title = B7
| prev_year = 2020
| next_title =
| next_year =
| misc = {{Singles
| name = Christmas with Brandy
| type = studio
| single1 = Christmas Party for Two
| single1date = November 3, 2023
}}
}}
Christmas with Brandy is the eighth studio album by American singer Brandy Norwood. It was released on November 10, 2023, through her own label Brand Nu, Inc. and Motown. A follow-up to her 2020 album B7, it marked her first Christmas album as well as her debut release with Motown. Chiefly produced by Theron "Neff-U" Feemster," with additional production from DJ Camper, Kyle Mann, and Nasri Atweh and Adam Messinger from The Messengers, Christmas with Brandy consists of twelve tracks, featuring six original songs co-penned by Norwood and six cover versions of Christmas standards songs.
The album earned largely positive reviews from music critics who called it a delightful edition to modern Christmas music. Upon its release, Christmas with Brandy debuted at number 29 on the Billboard US Top Holiday Albums and reached number 50 on Billboard{{'}}s Current Album Sales chart. Its release date coincided with the release of the Netflix Christmas comedy film Best. Christmas. Ever!, which Norwood had filmed alongside Heather Graham, Jason Biggs, and Matt Cedeño. The album was preceded by R&B ballad "Christmas Party for Two," the album's lead single, released on November 3, 2023.
Background and release
In March 2022, Deadline Hollywood reported that Norwood had signed on to star opposite Heather Graham, Jason Biggs, and Matt Cedeño in the Netflix film Best. Christmas. Ever!.{{cite web | url=https://deadline.com/2022/03/best-christmas-ever-heather-graham-jason-biggs-to-star-in-netflix-pic-1234983906/| title=‘Best. Christmas. Ever.’: Heather Graham, Brandy Norwood, Jason Biggs & Matt Cedeño To Star In Netflix Holiday Film From ‘Pet Sematary’s Mary Lambert| access-date=December 10, 2023 |website=Deadline Hollywood|date=March 22, 2022|first=Matt|last=Grobar}} Co-written by Charles Shyer and directed by Mary Lambert, the Christmas comedy deals with two frenemies stuck together for Christmas. In June 2022, Norwood signed with Motown Records.{{cite web | url=https://www.billboard.com/pro/brandy-signs-motown-records-new-album/| title=Brandy Partners With Motown Records Ahead of Eighth Album| access-date=December 10, 2023 |website=Billboard|date=June 24, 2022|first=Heran|last=Mamo}} The partnership marked her first major label deal in over a decade. In September 2023, Motown A&R executive Jaha Johnson revealed that Norwood was working on a Christmas album whose release date would coincide with the release of Best. Christmas. Ever!.{{cite web|url=https://ratedrnb.com/2023/09/brandy-christmas-album/|title=Brandy Readies Christmas Album|website=Rated R&B|last=Samuels|first=Keithan|date=14 September 2023|access-date=October 20, 2023|archive-date=November 2, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231102115847/https://ratedrnb.com/2023/09/brandy-christmas-album/|url-status=live}} On October 20, 2023, Norwood announced that the album would be released on November 10, 2023, writing: "I feel so blessed to be able to create an album surrounding joy, Family, love and quality divine time with the ones you love."{{Cite instagram |user=brandy|postid=Cym0DGPs303|title=For all my beautiful fans, my new album ‘Christmas With Brandy’ comes out November 10|date=October 20, 2023|access-date=December 10, 2023}}
In an interview with Variety, Norwood stated that even though Christmas with Brandy is the artist's eighth studio album, "[t]his isn’t the B8 album, no [...] this is just my contribution to Christmas and how much Christmas means to me and that’s all it is [...] I’m not going to stop doing music, but I would love to get into some new records in the future. But I just want to really get this out here and see how people feel about this record first." First called A Brandy Christmas, the album was renamed late into the production, with Norwood commenting: "Different people on your team have opinions and you try to make sure everybody's opinion gets in there. We had a toss-up between A Brandy Christmas and Christmas with Brandy. I like Christmas with Brandy. It has a ring to it."{{cite web|url=https://www.ebony.com/brandy-norwood-first-christmas-album/#google_vignette|title=It's Brandy Season With Her First Christmas Album|website=Ebony|last=Baker|first=Josh|date=November 10, 2023|access-date=December 10, 2023}}
Singles
Christmas with Brandy{{'}}s first single "Christmas Party for Two" was released on November 3, 2023,{{cite web|url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwmusic/article/Brandy-Releases-Romantic-New-Single-Christmas-Party-for-Two-20231103|title=Brandy Releases Romantic New Single 'Christmas Party for Two'|website=Broadway World|last=Major|first=Michael|date=November 3, 2023|access-date=November 3, 2023|archive-date=November 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231103152328/https://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwmusic/article/Brandy-Releases-Romantic-New-Single-Christmas-Party-for-Two-20231103|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://ratedrnb.com/2023/11/brandy-snuggles-with-santa-on-new-song-christmas-party-for-two/|title=Brandy Snuggles With Santa on New Song 'Christmas Party for Two'|website=Rated R&B|last=Folk|first=Antwane|date=November 3, 2023|access-date=November 3, 2023|archive-date=November 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231103042654/https://ratedrnb.com/2023/11/brandy-snuggles-with-santa-on-new-song-christmas-party-for-two/|url-status=live}} along with a snippet of Norwood's rendition of the Stevie Wonder classic "Someday at Christmas."{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/4everBrandy/status/1717979451693142164|title=Christmas Party For Two will be yours next Friday, 11/3. Pre-order Christmas With Brandy|website=Twitter|date=October 27, 2023|access-date=October 28, 2023|archive-date=October 28, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231028155525/https://twitter.com/4everBrandy/status/1717979451693142164|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pn5YCsTa1Jo|title=Someday At Christmas|via=YouTube|access-date=November 3, 2023|archive-date=November 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231103104518/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pn5YCsTa1Jo|url-status=live}} A lyric video for "Christmas Party for Two" was released the same day,{{cite web|url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OErJcbN_Vmw|title=Brandy – Christmas Party for Two (Lyric Video)|website=YouTube|date=November 3, 2023|access-date=December 10, 2023}} followed by a lyric video for "Christmas Everyday," issued on November 17, 2023.{{cite web|url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OErJcbN_Vmw|title=Brandy – Christmas Everyday (Lyric Video)|website=YouTube|date=November 17, 2023|access-date=December 10, 2023}} A black-and-white music video for "Christmas Party for Two," directed by William Sikora, was released on December 5, 2023.{{cite web|url= https://twitter.com/4everBrandy/status/1731766585105244319|title=Christmas Party for Two -Tomorrow 🎥|website=Twitter|date=December 4, 2023|access-date=December 5, 2023}}
Critical reception
{{Music ratings
| title = Professional ratings
| rev1 = Columbia Daily Tribune
| rev1score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite web |url=https://eu.columbiatribune.com/story/entertainment/music/2023/11/26/2023-christmas-albums-feature-brandy-cher-creed-guitarist-tremonti/71385409007/|title=Get Christmas cozy with new holiday records from Brandy, Cher, Creed guitarist and more|first=Aarik|last=Danielsen |website=Columbia Daily Tribune|access-date=December 10, 2023}}
| rev2 = Cryptic Rock
| rev2score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite web |url=https://crypticrock.com/brandy-christmas-with-brandy-album-review/|title=Brandy – Christmas with Brandy (Album Review)|first=Aarik|last=Danielsen |website=Cryptic Rock|date=November 24, 2023|access-date=December 10, 2023}}
}}
Antwane Folk, reviewing for Rated R&B, praised the album as "a delightful change of pace that provides comfort and joy during the holiday season now and for several years to come." He found that Norwood's "assured imagination and warm vocals take center stage to reveal a deeper musical personality."{{cite web|url=https://ratedrnb.com/2023/11/christmas-with-brandy-album-review/|title=Brandy Brings Comfort and Joy on ‘Christmas With Brandy’: Album Review|website=Rated R&B|last=Folk|first=Antwane|date=November 10, 2023|access-date=November 10, 2023|archive-date=November 10, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231110122402/https://ratedrnb.com/2023/11/christmas-with-brandy-album-review/|url-status=live}} Columbia Daily Tribune critic Aarik Danielsen found that "on the first holiday record of her 30-year career, Brandy leans into the string- and keyboard-driven R&B she has practically perfected. Nimbly mingling heartbroken holiday-set ballads and standards, Brandy offers that rarest of Christmas-music gifts — an album that sounds exactly like an artist being themselves." Cryptic Rock called that Christmas with Brandy "a delightful edition to modern Christmas music" and described it as "a rather smooth R&B Christmas tingling collection [...] done with passion, love, and a sincere sense of Christmas spirit." The website's editorial staff noted that "it would not be out of place to spin some of these original songs before or after the Christmas season either."
Soul Bounce{{'}}s Suzy Sonshyn remarked that "our wish has finally been fulfilled with Christmas with Brandy, which is an R&B gift that will keep on giving." She felt that "while Brandy’s new entries to the catalog of Christmas music are top-notch, we are also smitten with her spin on some of our favorite carols and classics [that] listeners will be drawn to."{{cite web |url=https://soulbounce.com/2023/11/brandy-christmas-with-brandy-album/|title=Brandy Delivers An R&B Gift On ‘Christmas With Brandy’|first=Suzy |last=Sonshyn|website=Soul Bounce|date=November 11, 2023|access-date=December 10, 2023}} Associated Press editor Maria Sherman ranked the album among the best holiday released of 2023 and wrote: "For those looking for a seductive holiday album: the search is over. R&B great Brandy has released Christmas with Brandy, a collection of sultry – and in other moments, soulful – imaginations of Christmas classics and originals."{{cite web |url=https://apnews.com/article/holiday-albums-christmas-music-b4e16a7400b4b0db563fa409f8450ec4|title=Fill your holiday stocking with Cher, Ella Fitzgerald, Brandy, Andrea Bocelli and more|first=Maria |last=Sherman|website=Associated Press|date=November 21, 2023|access-date=December 10, 2023}} Riff magazine's Sery Morales felt that the album "showcases Brandy’s signature style of warm soulful vocals, as well as a willingness to experiment" and "successfully infuses her soulful singing into both original and classic holiday tracks."{{cite web|url=https://riffmagazine.com/album-reviews/brandy-christmas-with-brandy/|title=ALBUM REVIEW: Brandy melts the snow on ‘Christmas with Brandy’|website=riffmagazine.com|last=Morales|first=Sery|date=November 10, 2023|access-date=November 20, 2023}} Jim Harrington, writing for Mercury News, called Christmas with Brandy a "worthwhile experience for fans of smooth R&B/pop. It’s a nice enough collection of holiday tunes, ranging from a somewhat forgettable lead single [...] to enjoyable covers."{{cite web |url=https://eu.detroitnews.com/story/entertainment/music/2023/12/05/christmas-2023-here-are-12-new-holiday-albums-to-enjoy-this-season/71810574007/|title=Christmas 2023: Here are 12 new holiday albums to enjoy this season|first=Jim|last=Harrington|website=Mercury News|via=Detroit News|date=November 21, 2023|access-date=December 10, 2023}} Similarly, Gazette critic Alan Sculley noted that "the original material (including the sexy, silky ballad "Christmas Party for Two" and the bouncy "Christmas Gift") makes Christmas with Brandy an album worth noticing."{{cite web |url=https://www.thegazette.com/music/spin-on-2023-holiday-albums/|title=Spin on 2023 holiday albums|first=Alan|last=Sculley |website=Gazette|date=December 2, 2023|access-date=December 10, 2023}}
Commercial performance
Christmas with Brandy debuted at number 29 on the US Top Holiday Albums in the week dated November 25, 2023. It also reached number 50 on Billboard{{'}}s Current Album Sales chart.
Track listing
{{Track listing
| headline = Christmas with Brandy track listing
| extra_column = Producer(s)
| title1 = Feels Different
| writer1 = {{hlist|Brandy Norwood|Theron Feemster|Sebastian Kole|David Williams II}}
| extra1 = {{hlist|Feemster|Williams|Jaha Johnson{{ref|b|[b]}}}}
| length1 = 2:56
| title2 = Somebody’s Waiting
| writer2 = {{hlist|Norwood|Darhyl Camper|Sean Wander|Vania Khaleh-Pari|Xenia Karungu}}
| extra2 = {{hlist|DJ Camper|Johnson{{ref|b|[b]}}}}
| length2 = 3:01
| title3 = Christmas Party for Two
| writer3 = {{hlist|Norwood|Feemster|Kole|Williams}}
| extra3 = {{hlist|Feemster|Williams|Kyle Mann{{ref|a|[a]}}|Johnson{{ref|b|[b]}}}}
| length3 = 3:54
| title4 = Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
| writer4 = {{hlist|Hugh Martin|Ralph Blane}}
| extra4 = {{hlist|Feemster|Williams|Johnson|Mann}}
| length4 = 3:32
| title5 = Santa Baby
| writer5 = {{hlist|Joan Javits|Philip Springer|Tony Springer}}
| extra5 = {{hlist|Feemster|Williams{{ref|a|[a]}}|Johnson{{ref|b|[b]}}}}
| length5 = 3:31
| title6 = Christmas Gift
| note6 = featuring Sy'rai
| writer6 = {{hlist|Norwood|Feemster|Kole|Mann|Williams}}
| extra6 = {{hlist|Feemster|Johnson{{ref|b|[b]}}}}
| length6 = 4:12
| title7 = Shine Out Your Light
| writer7 = {{hlist|Norwood|Feemster|Kole}}
| extra7 = {{hlist|Feemster|Williams{{ref|a|[a]}}|Johnson{{ref|b|[b]}}}}
| length7 = 2:37
| title8 = The Christmas Song
| writer8 = {{hlist|Robert Wells|Mel Tormé}}
| extra8 = {{hlist|Feemster|Williams{{ref|a|[a]}}|Johnson{{ref|b|[b]}}}}
| length8 = 3:10
| title9 = Someday at Christmas
| writer9 = {{hlist|Ron Miller|Bryan Wells}}
| extra9 = {{hlist|Feemster|Williams{{ref|a|[a]}}|Johnson{{ref|b|[b]}}}}
| length9 = 2:56
| title10 = Jingle Bells
| writer10 = James Lord Pierpont
| extra10 = {{hlist|Feemster|Williams{{ref|a|[a]}}|Johnson{{ref|b|[b]}}}}
| length10 = 2:50
| title11 = Deck the Halls
| writer11 = {{hlist|John Thomas|Thomas Oliphant}}
| extra11 = {{hlist|Feemster|Johnson{{ref|b|[b]}}}}
| length11 = 2:28
| total_length = 35:07
}}
{{Track listing
| headline = Digital bonus track
| extra_column = Producer(s)
| title12 = Christmas Everyday
| writer12 = {{hlist|Adam Messinger|Nasri Atweh|Norwood}}
| extra12 = {{hlist|Messinger|Atweh}}
| length12 = 3:26
| total_length = 38:33
}}
Notes
- {{note|a|[a]}} signifies additional producer(s)
- {{note|b|[b]}} signifies associate producer(s)
Charts
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+ Chart performance for Christmas with Brandy |
| scope="col" | Chart (2023)
! scope="col" | Peak |
|---|
| scope="row" |US Top Current Album Sales (Billboard){{cite magazine|title=Brandy Chart History (Current Album Sales)|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/brandy/chart-history/tcl/|access-date=November 21, 2023|magazine=Billboard}}
| 50 |
| {{album chart|BillboardHoliday|29|artist=Brandy|rowheader=true|access-date=November 21, 2023|refname="BillboardHoliday"}} |