Chyna Doll (album)

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Chyna Doll
Chyna Doll cover
Studio album by Foxy Brown
Released January 26, 1999
Recorded 1998
Genre Rap/Hip Hop
Label Def Jam/Ill Na Na Entertainment
Professional reviews
Foxy Brown chronology
The Firm: The Album
(1997)		 Chyna Doll
(1999)		 Broken Silence
(2001)

Chyna Doll is the second full-length studio album and third recording by American hip-hop artist Foxy Brown. The album was released in North America on January 26, 1999 and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, making Foxy Brown the first female hip-hop artist in history to debut at the number one spot on the Billboard 200. The album was later certified Platinum. Chyna Doll was released in the United Kingdom on June 18, 1999.

Contents

[edit] Album Information

Chyna Doll is the follow-up to Foxy Brown's 1996 platinum album Ill Na Na and was recorded in 1998. The album features guest appearances by DMX, Mýa, Total, Jay-Z, Beanie Sigel, Memphis Bleek, Eightball & MJG, Juvenile, Too Short, Pretty Boy (also known as Young Gavin and Nino Brown), Mia X, Gangsta Boo, and Norega. It also features a special appearance by Pam Grier, the actress who played the original Foxy Brown in the 1974 blaxploitation film. About this album, Foxy Brown said, "I wanted to captivate everyone. I wanted to get all the crowds. I wanted to get the Down South crowd, West Coast crowds, East Coast crowds, all the dopest MCs from each part of the world -- and we just did our thing. It was dope, it was real hot. I'm very proud with this album."[1]

[edit] Production

Recording for her second album began in the summer of 1998.

In September 1998, it was reported that Foxy Brown would remake Janet Jackson's classic "What Have You Done for Me Lately" for the upcoming album, as well as an update to N.W.A.'s Niggaz With Attitude, calling it "Bitches with Attitude" featuring southern female rappers Mia X and Gangsta Boo.[2]

During the recording process of the album, alternative rock singer Fiona Apple agreed to make a guest appearance on the album after an invitation from Brown, but due to scheduling differences, the session could not be arranged in enough time to make the final cut. Foxy Brown had also asked pop singer Madonna to collaborate on the album, but due to unknown circumstances, nothing ever became of it.[3]

The original release date for Chyna Doll was November 17, 1998, but Brown decided to delay the release of the album to give her enough time to make sure everything was the way she wanted it.

[edit] Track-Listing

  1. "The Birth of Foxy Brown" - 1:27
  2. "Chyna Whyte" - 3:01
  3. "My Life" - 4:27
  4. "Hot Spot" - 3:50
  5. "Dog and a Fox" (featuring DMX) - 2:57
  6. "J.O.B." (featuring Mýa) - 3:42
  7. "Bomb Ass" - 0:59
  8. "I Can't" (featuring Total) - 4:47
  9. "Bonnie & Clyde Part 2" (featuring Jay-Z) - 4:50
  10. "4-5-6" (featuring Beanie Sigel and Memphis Bleek) - 5:01
  11. "Ride (Down South)" (featuring Eightball & MJG, Juvenile, and Too Short) - 5:41
  12. "Can U Feel Me Baby" (featuring Pretty Boy) - 3:49
  13. "Baller Bitch" (featuring Pretty Boy and Too Short) - 3:49
  14. "B.W.A." (featuring Mia X and Gangsta Boo) - 3:26
  15. "Tramp" - 3:28
  16. "Baby Mother" - 1:25
  17. "It's Hard Being Wifee" (featuring Noreaga) - 4:44

[edit] Critical Reception

Despite Chyna Doll's overwhelming beginning success, journalists critically panned the album for its sexual explicit nature. All Music Guide's journalist Jose F. Promis rating the album 2.5 stars. He cites, "...for the most part, this album is full of unappealing, pornographic raps, lame beats, and pathetic gangster posturing. The sophomore slump is evident here...". [4] Amazon journalist Oliver Wang states, "Chyna Doll just sounds like any number of New York-based rap albums, especially with its commercial formula of shuffling high hats, catchy hooks, and recycled funk loops. In the end, Brown's self-exploitive (sexually and racially) cover art is likely to offer more provocative statements than the album itself."[5]

[edit] Commercial Reception

The album was released on January 26, 1999 and debuted on the Billboard 200 charts at No. 1, making Foxy Brown the first female rap artist to ever conquer the chart's top position. On March 24, 1999, Chyna Doll was certified platinum.

[edit] Chyna Doll Touring

In March 1999, it was announced that Foxy Brown would tour with R. Kelly on the "Get Up on a Room" tour featuring Busta Rhymes, Nas, Deborah Cox, and Kelly Price. After cancelling several dates due to slow ticket sales, a fateful stabbing in Miami, and Busta Rhymes pulling out of the tour, Foxy Brown left the tour and pursued her own North American tour that began in August 1999 and stopped at 22 cities in America.[6]

[edit] Charts

Chart (1999) Peak
Position
The Billboard 200 1
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums 1
Top Canadian Albums 6

[edit] Unreleased Music

  • Star Wars (featuring Busta Rhymes) An unreleased song from the Chyna Doll sessions that did not make the final release of the album. The song has remained unreleased.
  • Unknown Title (featuring R. Kelly) MTV reported that Foxy Brown collaborated with R. Kelly for the album Chyna Doll. Although it is not confirmed, the song could have possibly been "Dollar Bill", which appeared on R. Kelly's "R." album.
  • Lately A remake of Janet Jackson's "What Have You Done for Me Lately". The song featured a sample of Janet Jackson's voice and she did not make an official appearance on the song, as was reported. The song did not make the final version of the album.
  • Rolls Royce Also known as "Cream Drop". Although the song did not appear on the album, it was released through the mixtape circuits in New York City.

[edit] References

  1. ^ MTV. "Foxy Brown Goes Coast-To-Coast For "Chyna Doll"", MTV, January 21, 1999. 
  2. ^ MTV. "Foxy Brown To Cover Janet Jackson And N.W.A.", MTV, September 4, 1998. 
  3. ^ MTV. "Foxy Brown-Fiona Apple Collaboration Scuttled By Schedule, Apple Eyes Work On New Album"", MTV, January 19, 1999. 
  4. ^ Jose F. Promis. "Chyna Doll"", AllMusic, 1999. 
  5. ^ Oliver Wang. "Chyna Doll", Amazon, 1999. 
  6. ^ MTV. "R. Kelly/Nas/Foxy Brown Tour Cancels More Dates", AllMusic, May 19, 1999. 

[edit] External links

Preceded by
Made Man by Silkk The Shocker		 Billboard 200 number-one album
February 13 - February 19, 1999		 Succeeded by
Fanmail by TLC