Songoftheday 7/8/19 - Cause when I look at you I feel something tell me, that you're the kind of guy that I should make a move on...

"I Wanna Be Down" - Brandy
from the album Brandy (1994)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #6 (three weeks)
Weeks in the Top-40: 25

Today's song of the day comes from singer/actress Brandy Norwood. Born in Mississippi to a minister father, her first music experience was in the church, before the family moved to Los Angeles. She went to an arts-leaning high school, but it was her own motivation that got her discovered and signed up first as a backing singer, and then as a solo act. She also acted in the shortly-lived but well-remembered sitcom Thea. Brandy released her self-titled debut in 1994, with production and arrangements helped by the R&B group Somethin' For The People, who eventually would have their own string of successful hit singles. For now, her debut single was the midtempo slinky seductive R&B jam "I Wanna Be Down". Written by producer Keith Crouch along with Kipper Jones, the song was an urban hit that crossed over to mainstream stations quite well following in the footsteps of younger soul singers like Aaliyah...

"I Wanna Be Down", Brandy's debut single, became her first hit, reaching the top ten on the pop Hot 100 in America in December of 1994. The song was a massive success in the "urban" market, spending four weeks at #1 on the R&B chart in Billboard magazine. Internationally, the single was a top-40 hit in New Zealand (#11), Australia (#12), and the UK (#36). At the 1996 Grammy Awards, Brandy was nominated for Best New Artist, losing out to Hootie & The Blowfish.

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Part of the reason for "I Wanna Be Down"'s long-lasting success on the R&B and pop charts was the remix done on the song when it was halfway up the charts. Including female rappers Queen Latifah, MC Lyte, and Yo-Yo, the revamp gave it a fresh sound that made people who couldn't buy it request it on the radio (it would eventually end up on the CD Single for her second hit "Baby")...