Two Eleven

After listening to this album by Brandy, I see this as the Phoenix Rise of Brandy. When I listen to this album, I hear the hunger; I can feel the confidence in which she sings the material this time around. Brandy's vocals are so textured and layered with much diversity. We all know how vocally versatile she is and this album puts her voice on display. The material in which she crafted along with her contributors is meant to change the direction in which her career had been going. When I hear Two Eleven, I hear shades of Full Moon but mostly as a professional viewer noted; it is the album that should have been made after Aphrodisiac. I would have to agree. This album has some haunting beats much in the same way that Aphrodisiac had. When someone makes a good meal there is a saying that the person "put their foot in it". Brandy and her contributors did more than that, they put their hands and their feet in this project and you can tell. Brandy should be proud of herself. A top ten R&B single with put it down, although not the best of the set. This album can take Brandy places if the machine behind her believes in the project because there is substance to the album and it deserves the promotion. Right now the track that is hauntingly playing in my head is Wish You Love Away. A very solid effort by Brandy and one that she should be proud.

Brandy has delivered one if not best R&B album of the year. She took a risk and it paid off in a good away. I've been a long Brandy fan from the 90s (94 to be correct), and to me Two Eleven is her best body of work to date.

The album opens up to a hard beat that ask the users to "Pump Me Up" then dives right into the sexy yet soulful "Wildest Dreams". "So Sick" has Norwood telling her man how she has had enough and is questioning the relationship. "Slower" is sexy - telling her lover to slow it down speed racer, and take it slower. "No Such Thing As Too Late, Let Me Go, Without You" add to the fire on the second half of the album.

Then comes Norwood's chart topping "Put It Down" feat. Chris Brown that drives the album into a different space that set's the mood for the follow up tracks. "Hardly Breathing" is the heart of the album. Brandy's voice truly shines on this song as well as "Do You Know What You Have?". "Scared of Beautiful" is a pure and honest song emotionally (one of the gems of the album), and "Wish Your Love Away", takes Norwood wishing she could get the love of her life out her head.

After the end of the tracks 11 & 12, my eyes were heavy but then Norwood spices things up with the sexy "Paint This House", followed by the Outro.

Stand out tracks

Wildest Dreams
So Sick
Slower
Let Me Go
Hardly Breathing
So You Know What You Have?
Scared of Beautiful
Wish Your Love Away

If you're looking for album that delivers from play to stop then "Two Eleven" is, an album that will speak to your heart in many ways. Brandy is back, and as a die hard star - her voice has truly been missed in music.

Let's Talk About Brandy. After all, a real conversation about music that doesn't include Brandy is incomplete.

We've all participated in the age-old debate about the best artists of our time. It's a list reserved for the usual suspects - the artists who dominate the repetitive airplay on the radio or the performance lineup of music award shows on TV, or conveniently, both. Anyone who has followed Brandy's career from the release of her first self-titled album to the eagerly anticipated release of 'Two Eleven' have always rated her in the top tier of that list despite her preposterous absence from the music industry's relevance radar.

Not only is Brandy relevant, but absolutely, undeniably necessary.

'Two Eleven' is more than just the album's moniker or her cleverly masqueraded birthday, it's a celebration of what is most loved and respected about Brandy as an artist, singer, songwriter, and performer. It's about her growth, her courage, her talent, and her uncanny ability to deliver records that motivate her fans to create new lists upon which to perch her at the top -- Best Runs in "Wildest Dreams", Sickest Harmonies in "Slower", Sweetest Pillow-Soft Tone in "Scared of Beautiful", Slickest Reinvention of Cool in "Let Me Go", Most Classic Delivery of the Brandy Sound in "Do You Know What You Have?", and the Realest Conversation about Music in "Music".

I always say that an artist in today's musical landscape should be exceptional. And that should be the rule. Brandy stands solidly as an exceptional artist. This album, like its predecessors, once again prove that fact beyond a doubt. "Two Eleven" is Brilliant. Whole. and Very Honest. Each song delivers a piece of Brandy - vulnerable, yet defiantly strong and beautiful - she puts it all out there with sweet nods to being a woman, fully in love, unafraid of her sexuality, and tenderly appreciating the blessings of her life. It's a gift. To Her. From Her. To Us.

Happy Two Eleven, Brandy.