Chrisette Michele Epiphany

• Epiphany (I'm Leaving)
• Notebook
• What You Do
• Blame It on Me
• All I Ever Think About
• Playin' Our Song
• Another One
• On My Own
• Fragile
• Mr. Right
• Porcelain Doll
• I'm Okay

When compared to other Def Jam R&B acts like Ne-Yo and Rihanna during Jay-Z's reign as president, Chrisette Michele's debut album, I Am, seemed to be an afterthought. Despite singing on hooks for songs by Nas and Jay-Z himself, the album could only muster up a small but devoted fanbase, only now inching towards gold status two years later. The formula of sultry jazz vocals mixed with modern beats that played such a huge role on her debut is also a big factor on the lead single, "Epiphany," which was written by Ne-Yo, who is also co-executive producer of the album. Michele has also promised a more upbeat sound this time around, ditching Babyface and John Legend, who contributed songs to the last album, in favor of more contemporary producers and songwriters like Claude Kelly, B Major and Chuck Harmony.

Abstract by Ivan Mitchell