Songoftheday 2/14/24 - There is only one for me you have made that a possibility, we could take that step to see if this is really gonna be...

 

 

"Say Yes" - Floetry

from the album Floetic (2002)

Billboard Hot 100 peak: #24 (one week)

Weeks in the Top-40: 9

 

Today's song comes from the R&B duo Floetry, who came together in London in the late 1990's. Marsha Ambrosius and American-born Natalie Stewart moved to America, where they wrote for bigger acts, such as Michael Jackson, whom Marsha wrote his last big hit while he was living, "Butterflies".  Eventually signed by DreamWorks records, the pair released their debut album Floetic in the autumn of 2002, with the title track as the lead single. the alternative hip-hop gem "Floetry" rose to #29 on Billboard magazine's R&B Singles chart, and "bubbled under" the all-genre Hot 100 at #113. It also was a minor hit in the United Kingdom at #73. Despite the muted reception, the song was critically revered, and in the beginning of 2003 was nominated for two Grammys, losing Best R&B Song to Erykah Badu's top ten crossover hit "Love Of My Life (An Ode To Hip-Hop" as well as Best Urban Alternative Performance in its inaugural year, which went home with India.Arie for "Little Things".

For the follow-up Floetry put out the neo-soul slow burner "Say Yes". Written by Ambrosius and Stewart with producer Andre Harris, the song has the duo ease into a come-on for romantic times, but with the building intensity that Maxwell and D'Angelo thrived on. While its great to hear the unsure notions from a female point of view, they state their intentions to "let me undress you" repeatedly. The production from Harris is tastefully sparse and allows the instruments to shine behind their voices especially the organ and piano. There's no resolution at the end, so your imagination can take it to whatever conclusion you'd like. The music video has the pair in different settings in Los Angeles before reuniting on a subway...

"Say Yes" crossed over and became Floetry's first and only hit on Billboard's Hot 100 in June of 2003, while climbing to #8 on their R&B Singles chart. The Floetic album, released in October of 2002, peaked at #19 on the Billboard 200 sales tally and #4 on the R&B Albums list, going on to sell over a half million copies. At the Grammys in 2003, Floetic was nominated for Best Contemporary R&B Album (also in its first year), which went to Ashanti for her self-titled debut set. A year later, "Say Yes" was up for Best Duo/Group R&B Performance with Vocals, which Usher and Alicia Keys took for "My Boo". 

A third single from the debut album, "Getting Late", was another immaculately produced slice of neo-soul with prominent organ and added record player noise. The song scored a third top-40 R&B hit at #31, while it "bubbled under" the Hot 100 at #114. By the end of the year, Floetry released a concert record Floacism "Live", which included new studio songs as well including the single "Wanna B Where U R (Thisizzaluvsong)". The album spent a few weeks on the Billboard 200 with a high of #74, while nearly making the R&B Albums top ten at #11.

In 2005, Marsha and Natalie returned with their second full studio album Flo'Ology, which came in at #7 on the Billboard 200 and #2 on the R&B Albums list, but sold much less in the long run. The first single, "Supastar" featured rapper/actor Common, but it stalled at #55 on the R&B Singles chart. Nevertheless, critics liked the effort, and "Supastar" was nominated for the Best Urban Alternative Grammy Award the year after, losing to nepo-baby Damian Marley for "Welcome To Jamrock". After a second rather un-noticed single "Lay Down", the duo split for solo careers. 

Stewart continued on as "The Floacist", and her first solo album Floetic Soul on the indie label Shanachie in 2010 went to #95 on the Billboard 200 and #20 on the R&B Albums chart. Since then she's released two more records on the imprint, most recently Rise Of The Phoenix in 2014.

As for Ambrosius, who was originally set to start with Dr. Dre's Aftermath label before eventually teaming up with Clive Davis' J Records, she released her debut solo set Late Nights & Early Mornings in 2011. The record was a big success, spending a week at #2 on the Billboard 200 while topping the R&B Albums chart for a week. The first single "Hope She Cheats On You (With A Basketball Player)" (man, I love that title) placed at #22 on Billboard's R&B Singles chart and #88 on the Hot 100. That was followed by "Far Away", which did much better on urban radio, taking a week at #3 on the R&B Singles chart, though still stopping down at #74 on the Hot 100. "Far Away" was nominated for two Grammy Awards in 2012, losing Best R&B Song to Cee Lo Green and Melanie Fiona's "Fool For You", as well as Best R&B Performance which Corinne Bailey Rae took home for "Is This Love". 

After a three-year break hampered by the dissolution of J Records into parent company RCA, Marsha came back in 2014 with her sophomore solo effort Friends & Lovers. The record came in at #12 on the Billboard 200 and #2 on the R&B Albums list, and again sold a fraction of her debut. A year later, she teamed up with Anthony Hamilton for a cover of the Stevie Wonder classic "As" from the soundtrack to the movie The Best Man Holiday. While it didn't make the R&B Singles chart, it was nominated for a Grammy for Best Traditional R&B Performance, which went to the Robert Glasper Experiment for "Jesus Children". 

Ambrosius and Stewart briefly reunited for a tour and what they thought would be a comeback album, but that record never came to pass. Marsha's most recent solo set Nyla came out in 2018. At the close of 2023, she released a new single, "The Greatest". 

 

(8/10)

 

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Here's Floetry from their live album in 2003..

 

 

 and lastly, on their reunion tour...

Up tomorrow: Singing competition contestants jump the patriotic/jingoistic train into the top ten.