Invincible (album)
Encyclopedia
Invincible is the tenth studio album
by American recording artist Michael Jackson
, released October 30, 2001, on Epic Records
. His last studio album, it was the first release of new Jackson material since Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix in 1997 and the first studio album in six years since HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I. Jackson, Rodney Jerkins
, R. Kelly
and Teddy Riley received producing and writing credits, among others. Similar to Jackson's previous material, Invincible explores themes such as love, romance, isolation, media criticism, and social issues. Invincible received generally mixed reviews from contemporary music critics. The album's singles were incomplete in their release. Jackson was able to use these conflicts as leverage to exit his contract early.
Three singles were released from the album: "You Rock My World
", "Cry
" and "Butterflies
" of which the first and second were released as physical singles internationally (except the USA) and the third one being a US-only radio-airplay single. The album's first and last singles charted within the top twenty on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart
, and they peaked at number one and within the top ten in several markets worldwide; "Cry" was less commercially successful. Following a conflict between Jackson and his record label, Sony Music stopped promoting the album. The album was the recipient of one Grammy Award
nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance - Male, as well as being voted, by readers of Billboard magazine, the best album of the decade.
The album peaked at number one in eleven territories worldwide, including the United States (with sales of 363,000 units its first week), the United Kingdom, Australia, France and Switzerland. Invincible charted within the top ten in six other territories; its least successful charting area was Mexico, where the album peaked at number twenty nine. Invincible re-entered music charts several times during the decade. Despite selling 13 million copies worldwide, the album has been viewed as a commercial failure compared to Jackson's previous albums sales.
, he frequently wrote material for the group and began working on projects as a solo artist, which eventually led to recording his own studio albums, notably Off The Wall
(1979) and Thriller
(1982). The success of Thriller, which still holds its place as the best selling album of all time with a reported 110 million units sold, often over shadowed Jackson's other projects. Prior to the release of Invincible, Jackson had not released any new material since Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix in 1997, or a studio album since HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I in 1995. Invincible was thus looked at as Jackson's 'career come back'.
Invincible is dedicated to the fifteen year old Afro-Norwegian boy Benjamin "Benny" Hermansen
who was stabbed to death by a group of neo-Nazis in Oslo
, Norway, in January 2001. The reason for this tribute was partly due to the fact that another Oslo youth, Omer Bhatti, Jackson's friend, was also a good friend of Hermansen. The dedication in the album reads, "Michael Jackson gives 'special thanks': This album is dedicated to Benjamin 'Benny' Hermansen. May we continue to remember not to judge man by the color of his skin, but the content of his Character. Benjamin ... we love you ... may you rest in peace." The album is also dedicated to Jackson's grandmother Nicholette Sottile and his parents Joseph and Katherine Jackson
.
stated that Jackson was looking to record material in a different musical direction than his previous work, describing the new direction as "edgier". Jackson received credit for both writing and producing a majority of the songs on Invincible. Aside from Jackson, the album features productions by Jerkins, Teddy Riley, Andre Harris, Andraeo "Fanatic" Heard
, Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, R. Kelly
and Dr. Freeze
and writing credits from Kelly, Fred Jerkins III
, LaShawn Daniels
, Nora Payne and Robert Smith. The album is the third collaboration between Jackson and Riley, the other two being Dangerous and Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix. Invincible is Jackson's tenth and final studio album to have been recorded and released. It was reported that it cost thirty million dollars to make the album.
, hip hop
, dance-pop
, adult contemporary
and urban
songs. Fourteen out of the album's sixteen tracks were written by Jackson. The album's full length is seventy-seven minutes eight seconds, and it contains 16 songs. It was noted that the album shifts between aggressive songs and ballads. Invincible opens with "Unbreakable"; the last line in the first verse recites the lyrics, "With all that I've been through/I'm still around". In a 2002 interview with the magazine Vibe, Jackson commented on his inspiration for writing "Speechless", saying
"Privacy", a reflection on Jackson's own personal experiences, is about media invasions and tabloid inaccuracies. "The Lost Children" is about imperiled children. Jackson sings in a third person in "Whatever Happens". The song's lyrics, described as having a "jagged intensity", narrate the story of two people involved in an unnamed threatening situation. Invincible features four ballads: "You Are My Life", "Butterflies", "Don't Walk Away" and "Cry". "Cry", similar to Jackson's "Man in the Mirror
", is about healing the world together. The lyrics to "Butterflies" and "Break of Dawn" were viewed as "glaringly" and being able to "emanate" to listeners. "Threatened" was viewed as being a story teller. The song was viewed as a "Thriller redux". The song "You Are My Life" is about Jackson's two children at the time, Prince and Paris. The song features Jackson singing, "You are the sun, you make me shine, more like the stars."
"Ekam Satyam", a track composed by Indian musician A. R. Rahman
, was supposed to be included in the album. The song, written by Rahman along with Kanika Myer was performed by Jackson. Also considered to be released as a single, it was never released.
. Jackson was also concerned about another conflict of interest. For a number of years, Sony had been negotiating to buy Jackson's music catalog
. If Jackson's career or financial situation were to deteriorate, it would be in Jackson's financial interest to sell his catalog. Thus, Sony had something to gain from Jackson's career failing. Jackson was able to use these conflicts as leverage to exit his contract early.
Just before the release of Invincible, Jackson informed the head of Sony Music Entertainment, Tommy Mottola
he was leaving the record label. As a result, all singles releases, video shootings and promotions concerning the Invincible album were cancelled. Jackson made allegations in July 2002 that Mottola was a "devil" and a "racist" who did not support his African-American artists, using them merely for his own personal gain. He charged that Mottola had called his colleague Irv Gotti
a "fat black nigger
". Sony disputed claims that they had failed to promote Invincible with sufficient energy, maintaining that Jackson refused to tour in the United States. The singer accused Sony and the record industry of racism, deliberately not promoting or actively working against promotion of his album.
at Madison Square Garden occurred in September 2001 to mark Jackson's 30th year as a solo artist. The singer performed a song from Invincible and marked his first appearance onstage alongside his brothers for the first time since The Jacksons' Victory Tour in 1984. The show also featured performances by Britney Spears
, Mýa
, Usher
, Whitney Houston
, Tamia
, 'N Sync
, and Slash
, among other artists. The show aired on CBS
in November 2001, as a two-hour television special.
The album spawned three singles, "You Rock My World
", "Cry
" and "Butterflies
". "Cry" was released outside the United States. "Butterflies" did not have a music video. "You Rock My World" was released in late October 2001. The albums lead single. "You Rock My World" peaked within the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart
, and at number ten in its third week of release. The song was more successful internationally, mainly charting within the top five and charted within the top ten in twelve territories. "You Rock My World" peaked at number one France, and number two in Norway, Finland, Denmark, Belgium as well as number three in Italy, number four in Australia, and five in Sweden and Switzerland.
The album's third single, "Butterflies", was released in early January 2002. It peaked within the top twenty at number fourteen on the Billboard Hot 100 and at number two for five weeks on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Chart
. Internationally, "Cry" mainly charted within the top forty; the song's most successful territories were Denmark, France and Belgium, charting at number sixteen, thirty and thirty one. "Heaven Can Wait
" also charted at the bottom of the R&B/Hip-Hop Charts, at number seventy two due to radio airplay without an official release; the song did not chart internationally. "Unbreakable" was supposed to be released as the albums fourth single, but was cancelled for unspecified reasons.
, which assigns a normalised
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 51 based on 19 reviews, which indicates "mixed or average reviews". Stephen Thomas Erlewine
, a writer for Allmusic, gave the album three out of five stars, commenting that Invincible had a "spark" and "sound better than anything Jackson has done since Dangerous [in 1991]." Erlewine noted that while the album had good material it was "not enough to make Invincible the comeback Jackson needed - he really would have had to have an album that sounded free instead of constrained for that to work - but it does offer a reminder that he can really craft good pop." James Hunter, a writer for Rolling Stone, gave Invincible three out of five stars noted that the album's later ballads made the record too long. Hunter also commented that Jackson and Riley made Invincible "something really handsome and smart", allowing listeners "to concentrate on the track's momentous rhythms" such as "Santana's passionate interjections and Lubbock's wonderfully arranged symphonic sweeps".
Mark Beaumont, a writer for NME
, gave the record six out of ten, stating, "Invincible is a relevant and rejuvenated comeback album made overlong". Reviewer Robert Christgau
gave the album an "A-", commenting Jackson's skills as a musician are often forgotten, but noting that the album seemed too long compared to other Jackson albums. While Christgau felt some material was "offensive", he described the albums first three tracks as being the "Rodney Jerkins of the year" adding that he did not "believe the [album's] hype matters". David Browne, a writer for Entertainment Weekly
, rated the album a "C-" commenting that Invincible is Jackson's "first album since Off the Wall that offers virtually no new twists" but remarked that the album "feels like an anthology of his less-than-greatest hits". In a retrospective 2004 review, Jon Pareles
for Rolling Stone gave Invincible one out of five stars, writing "Only allowing himself one anti-tabloid song, he tried to play the gentle, adoring lover and concentrated on ballads. But three decades after he had first charmed the world, his old suavity was gone, and all that was left was grim calculation".
Shortly after the release of the album, in a poll conducted by Billboard magazine, "an overwhelming majority" of people - 79% of 5,195 voters - were not surprised by Invincible entering the Billboard 200 at number one. Billboard also reported that 44% agreed with the statement, proclaiming that Jackson was "still the King of Pop". Another 35% said they were not surprised by the album's ranking, but doubted Invincible would hold on for a second week at the top of the chart. Only 12% of people who responded to the poll said they were surprised by the album's charting debut because of Jackson's career over past six years and another 9% were taken aback by the album's success, due to light of the negativity that preceded the album's release. Invincible received one Grammy Award
nomination at the 2002 ceremony. The album's song "You Rock My World
" was nominated for "Best Pop Vocal Performance - Male
", but lost to James Taylor
's "Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight". Due to the album's release in October 2001, it was not eligible for any other nomination from the 2002 Grammy Awards. In December 2009, readers of Billboard magazine voted Invincible as the best album of the decade, from their readers poll.
on the charts issue date of November 17, 2001. Invincible was Jackson's fifth number one entry on the Billboard 200, and the fourth to chart at number one in its debut week as a solo artist. Despite the first week sales of Invincible being good, the album sold less than HIStory in its opening week, with the album having sold 391,000 units. Invincible also charted at number one on Billboards R&B/Hip Hop Albums Chart
for four weeks. After eight weeks of release, in December 2001, Invincible was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America
(RIAA) for the sales of five hundred thousand units. In the same month the album was certified platinum for the sale of one million units. On January 25, 2002, the album was certified two times platinum for the sales of two million units.
Internationally, Invincible was a commercial success. The album peaked at number one in twelve countries worldwide, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Belgium, Denmark, The Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland. It also charted within the top ten in several countries, including Austria, Canada, Finland, Italy, New Zealand, and Norway. Mexico was the album's least successful charting territory, peaking within the top thirty at number twenty nine. The album has reportedly sold 13 million units worldwide. However, the sales for Invincible were notably low compared to his previous releases, due in part to a diminishing pop music industry, the lack of promotion, no supporting world tour and the label dispute. Commenting on the sales of Invincible back in late 2003, Bernard Zuel of The Sydney Morning Herald
stated:
In 2004, Invincible re-entered Billboard charts. Invincible placed at 154 on the Billboard 200 on December 4, 2004. The album also peaked at number forty eight on the Billboards R&B/Hip Hop Albums Chart on the charts issue date of December 4. Following Jackson's death in June 2009, his music experienced a surge in popularity. Invincible charted at number twelve on Billboards Digital Albums Chart on July 11, 2009. Having not charted on the chart prior to its peak position, the album was listed as the ninth biggest jump on that chart that week. It also charted within the top ten, peaking at number nine, on Billboards Catalog Albums Chart on the issue date of July 18. On the week of July 19, 2009, Invincible charted at number eighteen in Italy. Invincible peaked at number sixty four on the European Albums Chart on the charts issue date of July 25. The album also charted at number twenty nine in Mexico in July, and eighty four on the Swiss Albums Chart on July 19, 2009.
Internationally, the album has received multiple certifications. Invincible was certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry
, for the sales of over 300,000 units in the United Kingdom. The album was certified platinum by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for the sales of 40,000 units in Switzerland. The IFPI also certified the album gold in Austria for the sales of 15,000 units. Australian Recording Industry Association
certified Invincible two times platinum for the sales of 140,000 units in Australia. Other certifications include, a gold certification from Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers
for the sales of 20,000 units in Argentina.
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by American recording artist Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
, released October 30, 2001, on Epic Records
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
. His last studio album, it was the first release of new Jackson material since Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix in 1997 and the first studio album in six years since HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I. Jackson, Rodney Jerkins
Rodney Jerkins
Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins is an American songwriter, record producer, and musician. Jerkins received two Grammy nominations in 2011.-Biography:...
, R. Kelly
R. Kelly
Robert Sylvester Kelly , better known by his stage name R. Kelly, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. A native of Chicago, Kelly began performing during the late 1980s and debuted in 1992 with the group Public Announcement. In 1993, Kelly went solo with the album 12 Play...
and Teddy Riley received producing and writing credits, among others. Similar to Jackson's previous material, Invincible explores themes such as love, romance, isolation, media criticism, and social issues. Invincible received generally mixed reviews from contemporary music critics. The album's singles were incomplete in their release. Jackson was able to use these conflicts as leverage to exit his contract early.
Three singles were released from the album: "You Rock My World
You Rock My World
"You Rock My World" is a song by American recording artist Michael Jackson from his tenth, and final, studio album Invincible . The song was released as the lead single from the album in August 2001 by Epic Records. The lyrics pertain to being in love and trying to gain a woman's affection...
", "Cry
Cry (Michael Jackson song)
"Cry" is a song recorded by American recording artist Michael Jackson that features on his tenth and final studio album, Invincible . The song was written by R&B singer-songwriter R. Kelly, who had previously written Jackson's 1995 single "You Are Not Alone". "Cry" was produced by Jackson and Kelly...
" and "Butterflies
Butterflies (Michael Jackson song)
"Butterflies" is a song by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was written and composed by Andre Harris and Marsha Ambrosius, and produced by Jackson and Harris. The track appears on Jackson's tenth studio album, Invincible . "Butterflies" is a midtempo ballad song with R&B musical styles...
" of which the first and second were released as physical singles internationally (except the USA) and the third one being a US-only radio-airplay single. The album's first and last singles charted within the top twenty on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, and they peaked at number one and within the top ten in several markets worldwide; "Cry" was less commercially successful. Following a conflict between Jackson and his record label, Sony Music stopped promoting the album. The album was the recipient of one Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance - Male, as well as being voted, by readers of Billboard magazine, the best album of the decade.
The album peaked at number one in eleven territories worldwide, including the United States (with sales of 363,000 units its first week), the United Kingdom, Australia, France and Switzerland. Invincible charted within the top ten in six other territories; its least successful charting area was Mexico, where the album peaked at number twenty nine. Invincible re-entered music charts several times during the decade. Despite selling 13 million copies worldwide, the album has been viewed as a commercial failure compared to Jackson's previous albums sales.
Background
During Jackson's time as a member of The Jackson 5The Jackson 5
The Jackson 5 , later known as The Jacksons, were an American popular music family group from Gary, Indiana...
, he frequently wrote material for the group and began working on projects as a solo artist, which eventually led to recording his own studio albums, notably Off The Wall
Off the Wall (album)
Off the Wall is the fifth studio album by the American recording artist Michael Jackson, released August 10, 1979 on Epic Records, after Jackson's critically well received film performance in The Wiz. While working on that project, Jackson and Quincy Jones had become friends, and Jones agreed to...
(1979) and Thriller
Thriller (album)
Thriller is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was released on November 30, 1982, by Epic Records as the follow-up to Jackson's critically and commercially successful 1979 album Off the Wall...
(1982). The success of Thriller, which still holds its place as the best selling album of all time with a reported 110 million units sold, often over shadowed Jackson's other projects. Prior to the release of Invincible, Jackson had not released any new material since Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix in 1997, or a studio album since HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I in 1995. Invincible was thus looked at as Jackson's 'career come back'.
Invincible is dedicated to the fifteen year old Afro-Norwegian boy Benjamin "Benny" Hermansen
Benjamin Hermansen
Benjamin Hermansen was a Norwegian-Ghanaian boy whose father was born in Ghana, his mother was Norwegian. He was stabbed to death at Holmlia in Oslo, Norway, just before midnight on January 26, 2001 by people from the Neo-Nazi group BootBoys...
who was stabbed to death by a group of neo-Nazis in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
, Norway, in January 2001. The reason for this tribute was partly due to the fact that another Oslo youth, Omer Bhatti, Jackson's friend, was also a good friend of Hermansen. The dedication in the album reads, "Michael Jackson gives 'special thanks': This album is dedicated to Benjamin 'Benny' Hermansen. May we continue to remember not to judge man by the color of his skin, but the content of his Character. Benjamin ... we love you ... may you rest in peace." The album is also dedicated to Jackson's grandmother Nicholette Sottile and his parents Joseph and Katherine Jackson
Katherine Jackson
Katherine Esther Jackson is the matriarch of the Jackson musical family.-Early life:...
.
Production
Jackson began recording new material for the album in October 1997, and finished with the album's recordings with "You Are My Life" being recorded only eight weeks before the album's release in October 2001. The tracks with Rodney Jerkins were recorded at The Hit Factory in Miami, Florida. Jackson had shown interest in including a rapper on at least one song, and had noted that he did not want a 'known rapper'. Jackson's spokesperson suggested New Jersey rapper named Fats; after Jackson heard the finished product of the song, the two agreed to recorded another song together for the album. Rodney JerkinsRodney Jerkins
Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins is an American songwriter, record producer, and musician. Jerkins received two Grammy nominations in 2011.-Biography:...
stated that Jackson was looking to record material in a different musical direction than his previous work, describing the new direction as "edgier". Jackson received credit for both writing and producing a majority of the songs on Invincible. Aside from Jackson, the album features productions by Jerkins, Teddy Riley, Andre Harris, Andraeo "Fanatic" Heard
Andreao Heard
Andreao Heard is Grammy award-winning record producer from Greensboro, North Carolina, USA who is known by his nickname "Fanatic" and who has worked with artists such as Michael Jackson, Beyonce, Notorious B.I.G., Will Smith and Lil Kim. Heard was a member of P Diddy's Hitmen production team...
, Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, R. Kelly
R. Kelly
Robert Sylvester Kelly , better known by his stage name R. Kelly, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. A native of Chicago, Kelly began performing during the late 1980s and debuted in 1992 with the group Public Announcement. In 1993, Kelly went solo with the album 12 Play...
and Dr. Freeze
Dr. Freeze
Elliot Straite also known by his pseudonym Dr. Freeze, is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. His songs are mostly in New Jack Swing style...
and writing credits from Kelly, Fred Jerkins III
Fred Jerkins III
Fred Jerkins III is an American songwriter and record producer, best known for his work with his brother Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins. Jerkins has co-written several hit songs with Rodney Jerkins and LaShawn Daniels, among them "The Boy Is Mine" by Brandy and Monica, "Say My Name" and "Lose My...
, LaShawn Daniels
LaShawn Daniels
LaShawn Ameen Daniels is an American songwriter, best known for his work with longtime colleague Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins. Daniels has written several of the Darkchild Team's hit songs, among them "The Boy Is Mine" by Brandy & Monica, "Say My Name" and "Lose My Breath" by Destiny's Child, "You...
, Nora Payne and Robert Smith. The album is the third collaboration between Jackson and Riley, the other two being Dangerous and Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix. Invincible is Jackson's tenth and final studio album to have been recorded and released. It was reported that it cost thirty million dollars to make the album.
Composition
Invincible is composed of R&BContemporary R&B
Contemporary R&B is a music genre that combines elements of hip hop, soul, R&B and funk.Although the abbreviation “R&B” originates from traditional rhythm and blues music, today the term R&B is most often used to describe a style of African American music originating after the demise of disco in...
, hip hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
, dance-pop
Dance-pop
Dance-pop is dance-oriented pop music that originated in the early 1980s. Developing from post-disco, it is generally up-tempo music intended for clubs with the intention of being danceable or merely dancey...
, adult contemporary
Adult contemporary music
Adult contemporary music is a broad style of popular music that ranges from lush 1950s and 1960s vocal music to predominantly ballad-heavy music with varying degrees of rock influence, as well as a radio format that plays such music....
and urban
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
songs. Fourteen out of the album's sixteen tracks were written by Jackson. The album's full length is seventy-seven minutes eight seconds, and it contains 16 songs. It was noted that the album shifts between aggressive songs and ballads. Invincible opens with "Unbreakable"; the last line in the first verse recites the lyrics, "With all that I've been through/I'm still around". In a 2002 interview with the magazine Vibe, Jackson commented on his inspiration for writing "Speechless", saying
"Privacy", a reflection on Jackson's own personal experiences, is about media invasions and tabloid inaccuracies. "The Lost Children" is about imperiled children. Jackson sings in a third person in "Whatever Happens". The song's lyrics, described as having a "jagged intensity", narrate the story of two people involved in an unnamed threatening situation. Invincible features four ballads: "You Are My Life", "Butterflies", "Don't Walk Away" and "Cry". "Cry", similar to Jackson's "Man in the Mirror
Man in the Mirror
"Man in the Mirror" is a song recorded by Michael Jackson and written and composed by Glen Ballard and Siedah Garrett. It peaked at number one in the United States when released as a single in January 1988 off his seventh solo album, Bad. It is one of Jackson's most critically acclaimed songs and...
", is about healing the world together. The lyrics to "Butterflies" and "Break of Dawn" were viewed as "glaringly" and being able to "emanate" to listeners. "Threatened" was viewed as being a story teller. The song was viewed as a "Thriller redux". The song "You Are My Life" is about Jackson's two children at the time, Prince and Paris. The song features Jackson singing, "You are the sun, you make me shine, more like the stars."
"Ekam Satyam", a track composed by Indian musician A. R. Rahman
A. R. Rahman
Allah Rakha Rahman is an Indian composer, singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and philanthropist. Described as the world's most prominent and prolific film composer by Time, his works are notable for integrating eastern classical music with electronic music sounds, world music genres and...
, was supposed to be included in the album. The song, written by Rahman along with Kanika Myer was performed by Jackson. Also considered to be released as a single, it was never released.
Sony Music contract issues
Jackson was waiting for licenses to the masters of his albums to revert back to him, thus allowing him to promote his old material and preventing Sony from getting a cut of the profit. Jackson expected this to occur early in the new millennium, however, due to the fine print and various clauses in the contract, the revert date is still many years away. Jackson began an investigation, and it emerged that the attorney who represented the singer in the deal was also representing Sony, creating a conflict of interestConflict of interest
A conflict of interest occurs when an individual or organization is involved in multiple interests, one of which could possibly corrupt the motivation for an act in the other....
. Jackson was also concerned about another conflict of interest. For a number of years, Sony had been negotiating to buy Jackson's music catalog
Sony/ATV Music Publishing
Sony/ATV Music Publishing is a music publishing company co-owned by The Michael Jackson Family Trust and Sony. The organisation was originally founded as Associated TeleVision in 1955 by Lew Grade. In 1957, ATV acquired Pye Records as a wholly owned subsidiary...
. If Jackson's career or financial situation were to deteriorate, it would be in Jackson's financial interest to sell his catalog. Thus, Sony had something to gain from Jackson's career failing. Jackson was able to use these conflicts as leverage to exit his contract early.
Just before the release of Invincible, Jackson informed the head of Sony Music Entertainment, Tommy Mottola
Tommy Mottola
Thomas Daniel "Tommy" Mottola is an American music executive, co-owner of Casablanca Records in a joint venture with the Universal Music Group. He is the ex-husband of Mariah Carey and is married to Mexican singer Thalía...
he was leaving the record label. As a result, all singles releases, video shootings and promotions concerning the Invincible album were cancelled. Jackson made allegations in July 2002 that Mottola was a "devil" and a "racist" who did not support his African-American artists, using them merely for his own personal gain. He charged that Mottola had called his colleague Irv Gotti
Irving Lorenzo
Irving Domingo Lorenzo, Jr., better known as Irv Gotti is an American hip hop and R&B record producer and is the head and founder of The Inc record label....
a "fat black nigger
Nigger
Nigger is a noun in the English language, most notable for its usage in a pejorative context to refer to black people , and also as an informal slang term, among other contexts. It is a common ethnic slur...
". Sony disputed claims that they had failed to promote Invincible with sufficient energy, maintaining that Jackson refused to tour in the United States. The singer accused Sony and the record industry of racism, deliberately not promoting or actively working against promotion of his album.
Promotion and singles
It was reported that the album had a budget of twenty five million dollars set aside for promotion. To help promote the album, a special 30th Anniversary celebrationMichael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Special
The Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Special was a 2001 New York City revue show by American megasuperstar Michael Jackson. It took place on September 7, 2001 and September 10, 2001...
at Madison Square Garden occurred in September 2001 to mark Jackson's 30th year as a solo artist. The singer performed a song from Invincible and marked his first appearance onstage alongside his brothers for the first time since The Jacksons' Victory Tour in 1984. The show also featured performances by Britney Spears
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...
, Mýa
Mya
-A person:* Bo Mya , Chief Commander of the Karen National Union* Mýa , American R&B singer-songwriter and actress** Mýa , a 1998 album by Mýa-A code:* Burmese language, ISO 639-3 code is mya* Moruya Airport's IATA code...
, Usher
Usher (entertainer)
Usher Terry Raymond IV , who performs under the mononym Usher, is an American singer-songwriter, and actor. He is considered around the world to be the reigning King of R&B. Usher rose to fame in the late 1990s with the release of his second album My Way, which spawned his first Billboard Hot 100...
, Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
, Tamia
Tamia
Tamia Hill , and known professionally as Tamia, is a four-time Grammy-nominated Canadian R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producer, composer, model, entrepreneur and philanthropist, as well as an occasional actress.She is best known for her 2000 hit "Stranger In My House" and Fabolous' 2003...
, 'N Sync
'N Sync
N Sync was an American boy band formed in Orlando, Florida, in 1995 and launched in Germany by BMG Ariola Munich, *NSYNC consisted of JC Chasez, Justin Timberlake, Lance Bass, Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick...
, and Slash
Slash (musician)
Saul Hudson , known by his stage name Slash, is a British-American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the former lead guitarist of the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. During his later years with Guns N'...
, among other artists. The show aired on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
in November 2001, as a two-hour television special.
The album spawned three singles, "You Rock My World
You Rock My World
"You Rock My World" is a song by American recording artist Michael Jackson from his tenth, and final, studio album Invincible . The song was released as the lead single from the album in August 2001 by Epic Records. The lyrics pertain to being in love and trying to gain a woman's affection...
", "Cry
Cry (Michael Jackson song)
"Cry" is a song recorded by American recording artist Michael Jackson that features on his tenth and final studio album, Invincible . The song was written by R&B singer-songwriter R. Kelly, who had previously written Jackson's 1995 single "You Are Not Alone". "Cry" was produced by Jackson and Kelly...
" and "Butterflies
Butterflies (Michael Jackson song)
"Butterflies" is a song by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was written and composed by Andre Harris and Marsha Ambrosius, and produced by Jackson and Harris. The track appears on Jackson's tenth studio album, Invincible . "Butterflies" is a midtempo ballad song with R&B musical styles...
". "Cry" was released outside the United States. "Butterflies" did not have a music video. "You Rock My World" was released in late October 2001. The albums lead single. "You Rock My World" peaked within the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, and at number ten in its third week of release. The song was more successful internationally, mainly charting within the top five and charted within the top ten in twelve territories. "You Rock My World" peaked at number one France, and number two in Norway, Finland, Denmark, Belgium as well as number three in Italy, number four in Australia, and five in Sweden and Switzerland.
The album's third single, "Butterflies", was released in early January 2002. It peaked within the top twenty at number fourteen on the Billboard Hot 100 and at number two for five weeks on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Chart
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
. Internationally, "Cry" mainly charted within the top forty; the song's most successful territories were Denmark, France and Belgium, charting at number sixteen, thirty and thirty one. "Heaven Can Wait
Heaven Can Wait (Michael Jackson song)
“Heaven Can Wait" is a song written by Michael Jackson, originally released on his 2001 studio album Invincible. The song was written by Jackson, Teddy Riley, Andreao Heard, Nate Smith, Teron Beal, Eritza Laues and Kenny Quiller.-Background:...
" also charted at the bottom of the R&B/Hip-Hop Charts, at number seventy two due to radio airplay without an official release; the song did not chart internationally. "Unbreakable" was supposed to be released as the albums fourth single, but was cancelled for unspecified reasons.
Critical and public reception
Invincible received generally mixed reviews from contemporary music critics. At MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalised
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 51 based on 19 reviews, which indicates "mixed or average reviews". Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
, a writer for Allmusic, gave the album three out of five stars, commenting that Invincible had a "spark" and "sound better than anything Jackson has done since Dangerous [in 1991]." Erlewine noted that while the album had good material it was "not enough to make Invincible the comeback Jackson needed - he really would have had to have an album that sounded free instead of constrained for that to work - but it does offer a reminder that he can really craft good pop." James Hunter, a writer for Rolling Stone, gave Invincible three out of five stars noted that the album's later ballads made the record too long. Hunter also commented that Jackson and Riley made Invincible "something really handsome and smart", allowing listeners "to concentrate on the track's momentous rhythms" such as "Santana's passionate interjections and Lubbock's wonderfully arranged symphonic sweeps".
Mark Beaumont, a writer for NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
, gave the record six out of ten, stating, "Invincible is a relevant and rejuvenated comeback album made overlong". Reviewer Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
gave the album an "A-", commenting Jackson's skills as a musician are often forgotten, but noting that the album seemed too long compared to other Jackson albums. While Christgau felt some material was "offensive", he described the albums first three tracks as being the "Rodney Jerkins of the year" adding that he did not "believe the [album's] hype matters". David Browne, a writer for Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
, rated the album a "C-" commenting that Invincible is Jackson's "first album since Off the Wall that offers virtually no new twists" but remarked that the album "feels like an anthology of his less-than-greatest hits". In a retrospective 2004 review, Jon Pareles
Jon Pareles
Jon Pareles is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of the New York Times. He played jazz flute and piano, and graduated from Yale University with a degree in music. In the 1970s he was an associate editor of Crawdaddy!, and in the 1980s an associate...
for Rolling Stone gave Invincible one out of five stars, writing "Only allowing himself one anti-tabloid song, he tried to play the gentle, adoring lover and concentrated on ballads. But three decades after he had first charmed the world, his old suavity was gone, and all that was left was grim calculation".
Shortly after the release of the album, in a poll conducted by Billboard magazine, "an overwhelming majority" of people - 79% of 5,195 voters - were not surprised by Invincible entering the Billboard 200 at number one. Billboard also reported that 44% agreed with the statement, proclaiming that Jackson was "still the King of Pop". Another 35% said they were not surprised by the album's ranking, but doubted Invincible would hold on for a second week at the top of the chart. Only 12% of people who responded to the poll said they were surprised by the album's charting debut because of Jackson's career over past six years and another 9% were taken aback by the album's success, due to light of the negativity that preceded the album's release. Invincible received one Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nomination at the 2002 ceremony. The album's song "You Rock My World
You Rock My World
"You Rock My World" is a song by American recording artist Michael Jackson from his tenth, and final, studio album Invincible . The song was released as the lead single from the album in August 2001 by Epic Records. The lyrics pertain to being in love and trying to gain a woman's affection...
" was nominated for "Best Pop Vocal Performance - Male
Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance was awarded between 1966 and 2011...
", but lost to James Taylor
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
's "Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight". Due to the album's release in October 2001, it was not eligible for any other nomination from the 2002 Grammy Awards. In December 2009, readers of Billboard magazine voted Invincible as the best album of the decade, from their readers poll.
Commercial performance
Invincible was Jackson's first studio album to be released in four years, since Blood on the Dance Floor in 1997. In the album's first week of release, with the sales of 363,000 units, the album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
on the charts issue date of November 17, 2001. Invincible was Jackson's fifth number one entry on the Billboard 200, and the fourth to chart at number one in its debut week as a solo artist. Despite the first week sales of Invincible being good, the album sold less than HIStory in its opening week, with the album having sold 391,000 units. Invincible also charted at number one on Billboards R&B/Hip Hop Albums Chart
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
for four weeks. After eight weeks of release, in December 2001, Invincible was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
(RIAA) for the sales of five hundred thousand units. In the same month the album was certified platinum for the sale of one million units. On January 25, 2002, the album was certified two times platinum for the sales of two million units.
Internationally, Invincible was a commercial success. The album peaked at number one in twelve countries worldwide, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Belgium, Denmark, The Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland. It also charted within the top ten in several countries, including Austria, Canada, Finland, Italy, New Zealand, and Norway. Mexico was the album's least successful charting territory, peaking within the top thirty at number twenty nine. The album has reportedly sold 13 million units worldwide. However, the sales for Invincible were notably low compared to his previous releases, due in part to a diminishing pop music industry, the lack of promotion, no supporting world tour and the label dispute. Commenting on the sales of Invincible back in late 2003, Bernard Zuel of The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald is a daily broadsheet newspaper published by Fairfax Media in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831 as the Sydney Herald, the SMH is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Australia. The newspaper is published six days a week. The newspaper's Sunday counterpart, The...
stated:
"Holly ValanceHolly ValanceHolly Valance is an Australian actress, singer, and model, who has dual United Kingdom citizenship. Valance began her career as Felicity "Flick" Scully on the Australian soap opera Neighbours...
or Delta GoodremDelta GoodremDelta Lea Goodrem is an Australian singer-songwriter, pianist, and actress. Signed to Sony at the age of 15, Goodrem rose to prominence in 2002, starring in the Australian soap opera Neighbours as Nina Tucker. Goodrem has achieved eight number-one singles and three number-one albums in her home...
would think their Christmases had come at once if they sold five or six million copies of their albums worldwide. Michael Jackson did something similar in the past two years with his seventh solo album, Invincible, and he's been branded a failure in the industry and the media. Unfair? Yes, of course, because his Invincible figures are better than those for 95 per cent of the thousands of artists released each year and would provide a healthy retirement fund for anyone. What's more, that failure tag is consistently applied by comparisons with his 1982 album, ThrillerThriller (album)Thriller is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was released on November 30, 1982, by Epic Records as the follow-up to Jackson's critically and commercially successful 1979 album Off the Wall...
, which has sold about 100 million copies and its follow-ups, BadBad (album)Bad is the seventh studio album by American songwriter and recording artist Michael Jackson. The album was released on August 31, 1987 by Epic/CBS Records, nearly five years after Jackson's previous studio album, Thriller, which went on to become the world's best-selling album...
, that sold about 30 million copies. However, selling 10 million copies is still phenomenal compared to the album sales of most artists."
In 2004, Invincible re-entered Billboard charts. Invincible placed at 154 on the Billboard 200 on December 4, 2004. The album also peaked at number forty eight on the Billboards R&B/Hip Hop Albums Chart on the charts issue date of December 4. Following Jackson's death in June 2009, his music experienced a surge in popularity. Invincible charted at number twelve on Billboards Digital Albums Chart on July 11, 2009. Having not charted on the chart prior to its peak position, the album was listed as the ninth biggest jump on that chart that week. It also charted within the top ten, peaking at number nine, on Billboards Catalog Albums Chart on the issue date of July 18. On the week of July 19, 2009, Invincible charted at number eighteen in Italy. Invincible peaked at number sixty four on the European Albums Chart on the charts issue date of July 25. The album also charted at number twenty nine in Mexico in July, and eighty four on the Swiss Albums Chart on July 19, 2009.
Internationally, the album has received multiple certifications. Invincible was certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry
British Phonographic Industry
The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies...
, for the sales of over 300,000 units in the United Kingdom. The album was certified platinum by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for the sales of 40,000 units in Switzerland. The IFPI also certified the album gold in Austria for the sales of 15,000 units. Australian Recording Industry Association
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...
certified Invincible two times platinum for the sales of 140,000 units in Australia. Other certifications include, a gold certification from Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers
Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers
The Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers is an Argentine organization member of the IFPI, which represents the music industry in the country. It is a nonprofit organization integrated by multinational and independent record labels....
for the sales of 20,000 units in Argentina.
Track listing
Notes:- The rap verse The Notorious B.I.G. in "Unbreakable" was originally from the song "You Can't Stop the ReignYou Can't Stop the Reign (song)"You Can't Stop the Reign" is the first single released from Shaquille O'Neal's third album, You Can't Stop the Reign. The song was not much of a success, only making it to 54 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks. Three versions of the song were released, the single version featuring three...
" by Shaquille O'NealShaquille O'NealShaquille Rashaun O'Neal , nicknamed "Shaq" , is a former American professional basketball player. Standing tall and weighing , he was one of the heaviest players ever to play in the NBA...
. - "Break of Dawn", "2000 Watts", and "Threatened" are excluded from the Chinese release.
Personnel
- Michael JacksonMichael JacksonMichael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
– arranger, conductor, programming, vocals, multiple instruments, producer - Rodney Jerkins – programming, multiple instruments, producer, engineer, mixing, instrumentation
- Marsha Ambrosius – additional vocals
- Maxi Anderson – additional vocals
- David Ashton – assistant engineer
- Gloria Augustus – vocals
- Babyface – guitar (acoustic and bass), keyboards, additional vocals, producer, drum programming
- Tom Bahler – choir, chorus
- Emanuel Baker – drums
- Daniel Barrera – choir
- Edie Lehmann Boddicker – choir, chorus
- Robert Bolyard – choir, chorus
- Paul Boutin – engineer, mixing
- BrandyBrandy NorwoodBrandy Rayana Norwood , known professionally as Brandy, is an American singer-songwriter, producer, actress, and dancer. In 2009, she introduced her rap alter-ego Bran'Nu....
– additional vocals, background vocals - Stuart Brawley – whistle (human and instrument), engineer, digital editing, mixing, soloist
- Mary Brown – background vocals
- Tim Fulford Brown – vocals
- Brad Buxer – keyboards, programming, engineer, digital editing, drum programming, mixing, keyboard programming
- David Campbell – arranger
- Matt Cappy – horn
- Chris Carroll – assistant engineer
- David Daoud Coleman – art direction
- Paulinho Da Costa – percussion
- LaShawn Daniels – background vocals
- Vidal Davis – assistant engineer
- Valerie Doby – vocals
- Dr. Freeze – background vocals, multiple instruments, producer
- Nancy Donald – art direction
- Kevin Dorsey – vocals
- Craig Durrance – assistant engineer
- Nathan East – bass guitar
- Jason Edmonds – choir, chorus
- Tess Escoto – choir
- Eq – mixing
- Voncielle Faggett – vocals
- Karen Faye – make-up, hair stylist
- Lynn Fiddmont – choir, chorus
- Kirstin Fife – violin
- Paul Foley – digital editing
- Jon Gass – engineer, mixing
- Humberto Gatica – engineer, mixing
- Uri GellerUri GellerUri Geller is a self-proclaimed psychic known for his trademark television performances of spoon bending and other supposed psychic effects. Throughout the years, Geller has been accused of using simple conjuring tricks to achieve the effects of psychokinesis and telepathy...
– illustrations - Steve Genewick – assistant engineer, assistant
- Brad Gilderman – engineer, mixing
- Mike Ging – engineer, mixing
- Judy Gossett – vocals
- Franny "Franchise" Graham – assistant engineer
- Harold Green – vocals
- Alexander Greggs – digital editing
- Bernie Grundman – mastering
- Mick Guzauski – engineer, mixing
- Justine Hall – choir, chorus
- Steven Hankinson – cover design
- Andre Harris – producer, engineer, instrumentation
- Scottie Haskell – choir, chorus
- Micha Haupman – choir, chorus
- Gerald Heyward – drums
- Andreao "Fanatic" Heard – producer
- Rob Herrera – digital editing, assistant engineer
- Jean-Marie Horvat – engineer, mixing
- Tabia Ivery – choir, chorus
- Luana Jackman – choir, chorus
- Prince Jackson – narrator
- Tenika Johns – vocals
- David Coleman – art direction
- Andraé Crouch – vocals
- Sandra Crouch – vocals
- Paul F. Cruz – engineer, digital editing
- Brandon Lucas – choir, chorus
- Jonathon Lucas – choir, chorus
- Ricky Lucchse – choir, chorus
- Melissa MacKay – choir, chorus
- Angela Johnson – vocals
- Late Great Daniel Johnson – vocals
- Zaneta M. Johnson – vocals
- Laquentan Jordan – vocals
- KB – mixing
- R. Kelly – arranger, producer, choir arrangement
- Peter Kent – violin
- Gina Kronstadt – violin
- Michael Landau – guitar
- SlashSlash (musician)Saul Hudson , known by his stage name Slash, is a British-American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the former lead guitarist of the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. During his later years with Guns N'...
- guitar solo - James Lively – choir, chorus
- Robin Lorentz – violin
- Rob Lorentz – violin
- Jeremy Lubbock – arranger, conductor, orchestral arrangements
- Fabian Marasciullo – digital editing
- Harvey Mason, Jr. – digital editing
- Harvey Mason, Sr. – digital editing
- George Mayers – engineer, digital editing, mixing
- Howard McCrary – vocals
- Linda McCrary – vocals
- Sam McCrary – vocals
- Alice Jean McRath – vocals
- Sue Merriett – vocals
- Bill Meyers – arranger
- Mischke – background vocals
- Patrice Morris – vocals
- Kristle Murden – vocals
- The Notorious B.I.G. – rap
- Novi NovogNovi NovogNovi Novog, born in North Hollywood, California is an American viola player. She is sometimes simply credited as "Novi" and is the cousin of Lauren Wood .-Albums :...
– viola, contractor - Adam Owett – art direction
- Nora Payne – background vocals
- Michael Prince – engineer, digital editing
- Seth Riggs – vocal consultant
- Teddy Riley – multiple instruments, producer, mixing, digital drums
- Steve Robillard – assistant engineer
- John "J.R." Robinson – drums
- Carlos Santana – guitar, whistle (human, instrument), soloist
- Dexter Simmons – engineer, mixing
- Ivy Skoff – production coordination
- Andrew Snyder – choir, chorus
- Sally Stevens – choir, chorus
- Richard Stites – background vocals, producer
- Bruce Swedien – engineer, mixing
- Thomas Tally – viola
- Brett Tattersol – choir, chorus
- Jeff Taylor – remixing
- Ron Taylor – vocals
- Michael Hart Thompson – guitar
- Michael Thompson – guitar
- Christine Tramontano – assistant engineer
- Chris Tucker – introduction
- Mario Vasquez – background vocals
- Tommy Vicari – engineer, mixing
- Nathan Walton – choir, chorus
- Albert Watson – photography
- Rick Williams – guitar
- Yvonne Williams – vocals
- Zandra Williams – vocals
- John Wittenberg – violin
Charts
| Chart (2001/2002) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart | 1 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 2 |
| Belgium Albums Chart | 1 |
| Canadian Top 50 | 3 |
| Danish Albums Chart | 1 |
| Denmark Albums Chart | 1 |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 7 |
| French Albums Chart | 1 |
| German Albums Chart | 1 |
| Italian Albums Chart | 2 |
| Mexican Albums Chart | 29 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart | 4 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart | 1 |
| Portuguese Albums Chart | 8 |
| Swedish Albums Chart | 1 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 1 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
1 |
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
1 |
| US Billboard R&B/Hip Hop Album Billboard charts The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine... |
1 |
| Chart (2004) | Peak position |
| US Billboard 200 | 154 |
| US Billboard R&B/Hip Hop Albums Chart | 48 |
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
| Australian Albums Chart | 43 |
| European Albums Chart | 64 |
| Italian Albums Chart | 18 |
| Mexican Albums Chart | 29 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 84 |
| Billboard Catalogue Albums Chart Billboard charts The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine... |
9 |
| Billboard Digital Albums Chart Billboard charts The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine... |
12 |
Certifications
| Country | Certification Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales thresholds) |
|---|---|
| Argentina | Gold |
| Australia Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956... |
2× Platinum |
| Austria | Gold |
| Finland | Gold |
| France Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
Platinum |
| Germany | Platinum |
| Netherlands NVPI The NVPI is the Dutch tradeassociation of the entertainment industry... |
Platinum |
| New Zealand Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
Platinum |
| Norway | Platinum |
| Poland Polish Music Charts The Polish Music Charts are two official album charts and seven singles charts in Poland, provided by ZPAV, the Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry . The first, the Top 100, is a monthly chart based on data received from the album companies... |
Gold |
| Portugal | Gold |
| Sweden | Gold |
| Switzerland | Platinum |
| United Kingdom British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies... |
Platinum |
| United States Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... |
2× Platinum |