There you are! Welcome back to the third installment of Hidden Singles: Songs That Should Have Been Released! Today, I’m covering another classic Brandy album called Full Moon. Before I start, I know. Full Moon is everything and was pretty much why singer Brandy was solidified as the vocal bible by everyone. But in my opinion (and probably most of the Stars’ opinion), Full Moon was not given its just dues. The album was met with mixed critical acclaim. However, it was and is still loved by many. Several artists have attributed Full Moon as influential to their careers, with Brandy herself calling Full Moon one of her favorite albums she ever recorded. 

As her third studio album, proceeding the mega-successful freshman and sophomore release of Brandy and Never Say Never, Full Moon surpassed expectations. Full Moon became a sample of what Brandy could bring to the table as a vocalist and set the bar very high for pretty much the rest of her peers in the industry. To provide perspective, Full Moon was like the senior year/graduation of Brandy’s career at that point. 

Released to the world on March 5, 2002, Full Moon debuted at number 2, peaked at number 1 on March 22, 2002, and spent 34 weeks on the chart. Due to becoming a mother in 2002 to daughter Sy’Rai, the album was not promoted as it should have been. As a result, just two songs, What About Us and title track Full Moon, were featured as singles from the project with one single, He Is, an inspirational piece known as a promotional single. 

I Thought

This song is very catchy, and it has a very modern edge, considering it was produced 18 years ago. Written by Fred Jenkins III, the late LaShawn Daniels, and Rodney Jerkins, I Thought should have been given another thought. After perusing YouTube, I noticed that Brandy has performed this song in several of her concerts and show appearances throughout the years. It also seems to be a Stars (her fans) favorite so, it only makes sense that if we could go back in time, this song should have been an official single with a video to boot. Given the futuristic take they established on both of the visuals released from the album, this would have been the perfect addition. Check out the vibes of I Thought below. 

Nothing 

Now. I have “nothing” to say other than why was this song not selected? This gem was also written by Fred Jenkins III and LaShawn Daniels with the addition of Kenisha Pratt. The instrumentation. The vocals. The… .it’s just too much. If this had been selected as one of her singles from the Full Moon album, I know this would have had significant airplay. Since both singles that were released were mid-tempo paced, this ballad would have been the perfect balance for not only the Brandy ballad lovers but R&B overall. Get into the smoothness of Nothing right here.

There you have it. Once again, thank you for checking out my picks for Hidden Singles: Songs that Should Have Been Released! Check back soon for another album and singles rewind. 

Referenced Articles:

https://www.billboard.com/music/brandy/chart-history/BLP/song/417390

Embed video courtesy of YouTube