- Toni Braxton · 1993
- The Heat · 2000
- The Heat · 2000
- Toni Braxton · 1993
- Sex & Cigarettes · 2018
- Secrets · 1996
- Secrets · 1996
- Secrets · 1996
- Toni Braxton · 1993
- Toni Braxton · 1993
- Love, Marriage? & Divorce · 2013
- Toni Braxton · 1993
- Libra · 2005
Essential Albums
- With its seamless blend of hip-hop, jazz, and quiet storm, Toni Braxton’s Secrets is a high-water mark for ’90s R&B. A hip-hop beat that feels like a slow jam, “You’re Makin’ Me High” might be Braxton’s most effortlessly seductive single. She's authentic enough to appeal to rap fans, but her sumptuous, husky voice also suits the soft rock of “There’s No Me Without You” and the windswept balladry of “Un-Break My Heart.” The smoldering “Talking in His Sleep” leaves no doubt that she’s the decade’s most sensual diva.
- The first clue that Toni Braxton would become a household name was in 1992 when she was featured on the soundtrack for the movie Boomerang. Two songs—“Give U My Heart,” a duet with legendary producer and singer-songwriter turned longtime collaborator Babyface, and “Love Shoulda Brought You Home”—became instant hits on the R&B charts and introduced Braxton’s signature soulful and sultry vocals to the world. On her 1993 self-titled debut, she proves herself to be a studio-made diva, being compared to the likes of other legendary divas of the time, Whitney Houston and Anita Baker. Producers and co-writers L.A. Reid and Babyface mixed elements of R&B, new jack swing, and pop throughout the album’s 12 tracks, helping her become a mainstream mainstay. Toni Braxton checks all the boxes of a quintessential ’90s album: slow jams and ballads about love, sex, loss, heartbreak, and everything in between. “Another Sad Love Song” is filled with romantic angst that perfectly flows into the bittersweet track “Breathe Again,” which chronicles Braxton’s emotions after losing a lover and a best friend. The album weaves in a couple of uptempo pop-leaning tracks, such as “Spending My Time With You,” “I Belong to You,” and “How Many Ways,” on which Braxton finds joy in a newfound love. On every track, she sings with the assurance of a veteran artist while conveying the freshness of a newcomer. Braxton makes it all sound effortless. More hits followed during a long and storied career, including and especially on 1996’s Secrets, which featured “Un-Break My Heart.” But all the ingredients were here right out of the gate. Braxton’s ability to glide in and out of many different genres set a precedent for the rest of her career, as well as the acts that followed in her footsteps, all while staying true to the core of who she is.
Albums
- 2001
Artist Playlists
- Her sensuous ballads are more decadent than chocolate.
- Soul singers and R&B belters who put honesty above all.
- The powerful, ferocious women who informed her sophisticated R&B.
- A bottomless well of deep, purring vocals.
Compilations
Appears On
More To Hear
- The story behind the breakup song Toni Braxton never wanted to sing.
About Toni Braxton
If TLC and Mary J. Blige epitomized the hip-hop/soul hybrid of the 1990s, Toni Braxton was the mature, sophisticated older cousin you listened to when you turned the lamps down low. For decades, the singer has struck a balance between hip-hop/R&B and adult contemporary, bolstered by her smoky contralto voice and a magical ability to sound both sultry and smooth. That chameleon-like flexibility helped make her a ubiquitous and multiplatinum-selling artist in the 1990s, with Quiet Storm slow jams that graced both dance floors and doctors’ offices. Braxton was born in 1967 in Severn, MD, and raised in a big and very religious family; she’s famously tight with her four sisters. The girls grew up officially listening to (and singing) only gospel music, but they snuck in viewings of Soul Train when their parents were out of the house. In time, the secular won out, and in the late 1980s they formed The Braxtons, a short-lived singing group that brought Toni to the attention of R&B singer, songwriter, and producer Babyface. It was love at first listen, and Braxton soon signed to his and L.A. Reid’s LaFace Records. Her first two records, 1993’s Toni Braxton and 1996’s Secrets, topped charts and went multiplatinum with seductive yet palatable singles like “Breathe Again,” “You’re Makin’ Me High,” and “Un-Break My Heart.” Financial disputes and a private struggle with lupus slowed the singer down as the 21st century dawned, but she battled through, releasing albums that consistently hit the charts while staying true to her sensual, measured sound.
- HOMETOWN
- Severn, MD, United States
- BORN
- October 7, 1967
- GENRE
- R&B/Soul