Music Throughout the Ages

The music scene changed dramatically in the nineties. New genres were popping up rapidly and more musicians were reverting back to ‘folk style’ with a modern twist sound. Notable multi-styled singer-songwriters include Tori Amos, Alanis Morissette, Beck, Elliott Smith, Jeff Buckley, and Jewel. There was also the explosion of grunge band Nirvana into the mainstream, who found a large audience in the youths of the ’90s through their apathetic attitude and their appeal to Generation X. Music of the nineties is hard to miss.

Nineties Style of Music

From the early raves of 1990 to about 1996, electronic music gradually gained widespread recognition as a new genre in its own right. Hip-hop culture grows; by the end of the decade hip hop gained more and more popularity. Alternative rock overtakes Grunge in popularity around 1995. Teen pop makes a comeback in the mid-1990s. R&B Music and hip-hop influenced R&B are big in the 1990s. Female R&B groups achieve great success in the 1990s with groups such as Destiny Child, En Vogue, TLC and All Saints.

Popular styles include alternative rock (Red Hot Chili Peppers, R.E.M., Sonic Youth, The Smashing Pumpkins), grunge (Nirvana, Stone Temple Pilots, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden), post-grunge (Matchbox Twenty, Soul Asylum, Collective Soul, Third Eye Blind, Everclear, Creed, Foo Fighters, Our Lady Peace, Stiltskin, Silverchair), heavy metal and alternative metal (Helmet, Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails, Metallica, Pantera, Tool).

In America, country music becomes more mainstream with popular chart topping artist such as Garth Brooks, George Strait, Shania Twain, LeAnn Rimes, Sara Evans, Faith Hill, and Tim McGraw. During most of the 1990s, anything “Eighties” was considered to be ultimately uncool. As a result, people start wearing straighter hair, darker clothes and acoustic music becomes popular in opposition to the bright synthpop of the 1980s. The most noticeable 80s backlash being glam rock, hair metal and glam metal’s sudden loss of popularity and eventual demise. Some recording artist were blowing up the airwaves in the nineties.

‘Pop’ Divas

Whitney Elizabeth Houston (born August 9, 1963) is a Grammy Award-winning American pop and R&B singer, actress, film producer, arranger, songwriter, and former fashion model.

In 1990, the pop singer decided to take a more urban direction in her music. I’m Your Baby Tonight, Houston’s third studio album, was released in November 1990. Houston was given more control as she had a hand in production and choosing producers. As a result, the album featured productions from Babyface and Antonio Reid, Luther Vandross, and Stevie Wonder. The album showed Houston’s versatility on a new batch of tough rhythmic grooves, soulful ballads and up-tempo dance tracks. Reviews were mixed. Rolling Stone felt it was her “best and most integrated album”.

The album peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 and went on to be certified four times platinum in the U.S., selling ten million worldwide. The first two singles, the new jack swing “I’m Your Baby Tonight” and the soul ballad “All The Man That I Need” each hit number one on both the pop and R&B singles charts respectively. The third and fourth singles: “Miracle”, and “My Name Is Not Susan” peaked at numbers nine and twenty, respectively.

In November 1992, Houston made her big screen debut, opposite Kevin Costner, in The Bodyguard, which became a huge success at the box office thanks in large part to the accompanying soundtrack. Houston recorded six songs for the film’s adjoining soundtrack album, which featured productions from David Foster. The soundtrack’s lead single was a cover of the Dolly Parton country hit “I Will Always Love You”. It peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for a then-record-breaking 14 weeks and topping the charts in nearly every other country including the big markets of the UK, Germany, France and Australia.

The song has sold approximately ten million copies worldwide, making it the best selling single by a female solo artist. The soundtrack debuted at number 1 and remained there for twenty consecutive weeks. The follow-up singles “I’m Every Woman”, a Chaka Khan cover, and “I Have Nothing” both peaked in the top five. The album was certified 17x platinum in the United States with worldwide sales of forty-two million, and went on to become the best-selling soundtrack album ever. Houston won three Grammys for the project including two of the Academy’s highest honors, Album of the Year and Record of the Year.

In December 1995, Whitney co-produced, with Babyface, the critically acclaimed cultural phenomenon Waiting to Exhale: Original Soundtrack Album. Though Babyface originally wanted Houston to record the entire album, she declined. Instead, she “wanted it to be an album of women with vocal distinction” to go along with the film’s strong women message. As a result, the album featured a range of contemporary R&B female recording artists including Aretha Franklin, Toni Braxton, Brandy, and Mary J Blige. Houston herself contributed three songs including the smash “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)”.

After debuting at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, the song spent a record 11 weeks at the #2 spot. Houston also contributed two other songs: the top 10 hit “Count on Me”, a duet with friend Cece Winans and the top 30 hit, “Why Does It Hurt So Bad”. The album debuted at #1, has since been certified seven times platinum in America, and has sold thirteen million worldwide, according to her official site. The soundtrack received strong reviews. It has since ranked it as one of the 100 Best Movie Soundtracks. Newsday called it “the most significant R&B record of the decade.”

After spending much of the early and mid 1990s working on films, with their adjacent soundtrack albums as an outlet for new music, Houston’s first studio album in eight years, the critically acclaimed My Love Is Your Love was released in November 1998. The album’s first single, the Academy Award-winning “When You Believe” (a duet with Mariah Carey for 1998s The Prince of Egypt soundtrack) didn’t do as well as expected and only reached the Top 20 in the U.S.

As a result, the album debuted at #13. However, the next three singles, “Heartbreak Hotel”, which featured Faith Evans and Kelly Price; “It’s Not Right but It’s Okay”, which won Houston her sixth Grammy Award, and “My Love Is Your Love” all reached the U.S. Top 5 and became international hits. Whitney Houston’s voice continues to be heard with over 170 million albums, singles and videos sold worldwide.

Mariah Carey was born in Long Island, NY on March 27, 1970. Her nationality includes an African-American/Venezuelan Father and Irish-American Mother. Mariah began singing at the tender age of four and began writing songs in junior high school. Although the innate desire for music was there from early on, her mother’s profession as an Opera Singer was a positive influence which led to Mariah’s ultimate destiny as a powerful vocalist.

In 1990 Mariah’s self titled debut album was one of the biggest first hit albums of all time. Between this album and her follow up Emotions she obtained a staggering 5 No. 1 singles in a row. With songs like ‘Vision of Love’, ‘Someday’, and Emotions’ taking over the radio airwaves, there seemed to be no end to the hits. The world of music was to find out that her string of chart toppers was just the beginning. In 1993, Mariah released her third album Music Box which ultimately sold 10 million copies. This Album spawned hits like, ‘Dream Lover’ and ‘Anytime You Need A Friend’. In 1995 Mariah musically became a triple threat. Her Album Daydream debuted at #1 with single ‘Fantasy’ debuting at the top of the single charts, the first ever to be accomplished by a female artist. On the same album another single, ‘One Sweet Day’ sung with male vocal group ‘Boys II Men’ remained on the billboard hot 100 singles chart for a phenomenal 16 weeks!

Carey’s next album, Butterfly (1997), yielded the number-one single “Honey”. She stated that Butterfly marked the point that she attained full creative control over her music. “My All” (her thirteenth Hot 100 number-one) gave her the record for the most U.S. number-ones by a female artist. The song “When You Believe”, a duet with Whitney Houston, was recorded for the soundtrack of The Prince of Egypt (1998) and won an Academy Award.

Rainbow, Carey’s seventh studio album, was released in 1999 and comprised more R&B/hip hop-oriented songs, many of them co-created with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. “Heartbreaker” and “Thank God I Found You” (the former featuring Jay-Z, the latter featuring Joe and boy band 98 Degrees) reached number one in the U.S., and the success of the former made Carey the only act to have a number-one single in each year of the 1990s. A cover of Phil Collins’s “Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)” went to number one in the UK after Carey re-recorded it with boy band Westlife.

Carey’s tenth studio album is, The Emancipation of Mimi (2005). The album earned Carey a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Album, and the single “We Belong Together” won Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song. “We Belong Together” held the Hot 100’s number-one position for fourteen weeks, her longest run at the top as a solo lead artist. Subsequently, the single “Shake It Off” reached number two for a week, making Carey one of fewer than a dozen music acts to have simultaneously held the Hot 100’s top two positions, and the first female to do so with two lead vocals.

E=MC² (released April 2008) is the eleventh studio album by American pop/R&B singer Mariah Carey. It debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 with 463,000 copies sold, making it the biggest opening week sales of her career. The first single from the album, “Touch My Body”, reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. Other singles include “Bye Bye”, “I’ll Be Lovin’ U Long Time”, and the forthcoming “I Stay in Love”.

Carey continues to top the charts with her eighteenth number one single second only to the Beatles who has twenty number-one singles.

Toni Braxton (on October 7, 1967) is an American singer and actress. With Braxton’s low register sounding similar to that of Anita Baker, Reid and Babyface recruited her to record a demo of “Love Shoulda Brought You Home”, a song that they had written for Anita Baker for the soundtrack of Eddie Murphy’s film, Boomerang. Baker, who was pregnant at the time, didn’t record the song but suggested that Braxton record it. Her recording was later included on the soundtrack along with “Give U My Heart” - a duet by Braxton and Babyface. Braxton, meanwhile, was signed to Reid and Edmonds’ Arista-distributed imprint, LaFace Records, and immediately began recording her solo debut album.

On June 29, 1993, LaFace Records released Braxton’s self-titled debut album, Toni Braxton. The album, which was primarily produced by Reid, Babyface, and Daryl Simmons, peaked at number one on the US Billboard 200 albums chart. The first single, “Another Sad Love Song”, peaked at number seven and number two on Billboard’s Hot 100 and R&B Singles charts respectively. The album’s second single, “Breathe Again” peaked in the top five of both the Hot 100 and R&B singles charts and no 2 in the UK. More singles from Toni Braxton were released in 1994, including “You Mean the World to Me”, “Seven Whole Days”, and “How Many Ways”.

Braxton’s debut album won her several awards, including three Grammy Awards (for “Best New Artist” and two consecutive awards for “Best Female R&B Vocal Performance” in 1994 and 1995). She also won two American Music Awards (for “Favorite Soul/R&B New Artist”, “Favorite New Adult Contemporary Artist”) in 1994 and another one in 1995 (for “Favorite Soul/R&B Album”). Toni Braxton was certified 8x Platinum and has sales of over 15 million worldwide.

In 1996, Braxton released her second and most successful album, Secrets. Braxton has said about the album. Along with Babyface, Braxton also worked with R. Kelly, Tony Rich, and David Foster on the album. Braxton was the co-executive producer of the album and co-wrote two of its songs, including the 1997 single “How Could an Angel Break My Heart”, which was also later included on Diana Princess of Wales Tribute, a Princess Diana memorial album.

“You’re Makin’ Me High” (which became Braxton’s first number one hit on the Hot 100 singles chart),the album peaked at number two on the Billboard 200 albums chart. “You’re Makin’ Me High” also topped the R&B singles chart for two weeks and saw similar success in Europe and Asia. The album’s second single, “Un-Break My Heart” (written by Diane Warren) - which would later become the singer’s signature song - became the biggest hit of her career spending eleven weeks at number one on the Hot 100 and also topping the Hot Dance Singles Sales chart for eleven weeks and the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart for four weeks as well as reaching no 2 in the UK.

After 92 weeks charting on the charts, Secrets is certified 8x platinum, becoming the second Braxton’s straight 8 million seller. Internationally, Secrets sold more than 20 million copies, concreting Braxton’s superstar status.