Fame Album

[Martta]

OnF.A.M.E., Brown worked with several record producers and songwriters; including Kevin McCall, H Money, Timbaland, The Underdogs, Diplo and Benny Benassi among others. The album features guest appearances, from Lil Wayne, Ludacris, Busta Rhymes, Wiz Khalifa, Game, Justin Bieber and Big Sean, among others. The album was supported by eight singles, "Deuces" featuring Tyga and Kevin McCall, "No BS", "Yeah 3x", "Look at Me Now" featuring Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes, "Beautiful People" featuring Benny Benassi, "She Ain't You", "Next to You" featuring Justin Bieber, and "Wet the Bed" featuring Ludacris.

The album was worked on simultaneously with the three mixtapes that anticipated it; In My Zone, Fan of a Fan, and In My Zone 2. The album's aesthetics feature a multicolored pop-art graffiti imagery, conceived by Brown himself, Courtney Walter and American contemporary artist Ron English. F.A.M.E. shows a wide variety of musical genres including R&B, pop, hip hop, dancehall, soft rock and Europop, while the lyrical content concentrates on finding positivity in life. The album received mixed reviews from music critics, who generally praised the production, but criticized the content, while Brown's performances garnered a more mixed response. The album received three Grammy Award nominations at the 54th Grammy Awards, winning Best R&B Album which was Brown's first Grammy Award. It also won Top R&B Album at the 2012 Billboard Music Awards and Album of the Year at the 2011 Soul Train Music Awards.

F.A.M.E. debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 270,000 copies. It was Brown's first number-one album in the United States and his fourth consecutive top ten album following Graffiti. "Yeah 3x", "Look at Me Now" and "Beautiful People" were commercially successful worldwide. In the United States, "Look at Me Now" reached the number one spot on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs charts, and became the best-selling rap song of 2011, as well as one of all-time best-selling singles in the United States. F.A.M.E. is certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA),[2] which makes this Brown's third multi-platinum selling album following Exclusive (2007). To support the release of the album, Brown embarked on his F.A.M.E. Tour in Australia and North America.

Brown's third studio album, Graffiti, was released in December 2009, and was considered to be a critical and commercial failure compared to the singer's previous works, because the singer was in the middle of controversies following his 2009 scandal of domestic violence that had him and his ex-girlfriend Rihanna as protagonists.[3] In 2010, following the release of Graffiti, Brown composed and released three free mixtapes: In My Zone (Rhythm & Streets), Fan of a Fan (a collaborative mixtape with rapper Tyga), and In My Zone 2, which featured a new writing style for the singer, facing more grown themes, showcasing a different musical style as well, that mixed R&B with hip hop. For the mixtapes he started to work with new producers, most notably Kevin McCall.[4] Meantime, the work for F.A.M.E. started.

Originally, Brown wanted the album to be a double-disc, consisting of 25-30 tracks, but the record company was contrary to that,[7] so he cut down the project to 13 tracks for the standard version, extending it to 19 songs in the most expanded deluxe edition of the record.[8] On September 18, 2010, Brown announced the title to the album; F.A.M.E.[9] Brown supplied a backronym for the title: "Forgiving All My Enemies",[10] and he has also referred to it as "Fans Are My Everything".[11]

Prior to its release, the artists that were listed for working with Brown on F.A.M.E. were Kevin McCall, Timbaland,[12] Justin Bieber,[13] Bruno Mars,[14] Wiz Khalifa,[15] Asher Roth[16] and Game.[17] In describing the album, Brown said, .mw-parser-output .templatequoteoverflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 32px.mw-parser-output .templatequote .templatequoteciteline-height:1.5em;text-align:left;padding-left:1.6em;margin-top:0

This album compared to my previous ones has contents aimed to a more adult audience. The sound that i did for F.A.M.E. represents different parts of me, there are various types of songs with different genres: from street songs with a soul style, to songs with 808 and heavy bass that you'll hear in the clubs, and then others that come from the heart; songs that mothers and grandmothers can listen to and love. Overall, F.A.M.E. is me giving my audience every aspect of who I am as far as my art, my culture, and my concepts."[18]

F.A.M.E. was defined by critics as a "musical kaleidoscope", containing songs of many genres including R&B, pop, hip hop, dancehall, soft rock and Europop. Its sound was complimented for being consistent despite its diversity of genres.[1] The lyrical content concentrates on finding positivity in life, through genuineness, romantic love, desire, self-assurance, sex and light-hearted pleasure. F.A.M.E. is considered to be Brown's album that defined his musical style and persona.[1]

Brown's vocal performances on the album mostly exhibit his R&B singing, characterized by harmonization and melisma.[1] Critics commended the singing performances on the album for being "variegated", mostly displaying his natural timbre, but also having sporadic usages of autotune. On the record the singer occasionally raps, marking his first studio album that features this type of performance by Brown.[1]

The opening track, "Deuces", which features Kevin McCall and Tyga, is a slow, downtempo alternative R&B track that starts off the album telling "a bitter male point of view of his failed relationship", where the artists affirm that they moved on to a better moment in their life, reminiscing the pain caused by their past lover.[1] Joanne Dorken of MTV UK noted that the song shows off Brown's "well-harmonized smooth vocals".[1] The following tracks of F.A.M.E. have a more uplifting mood, showcased by lively musical arrangements. "Up 2 You" is an R&B ballad, which follows on from the break-up theme. The song was likened to the musical styles of Bobby Brown[19] and Usher.[1] "Next to You", featuring Justin Bieber, is a "thumping mid-tempo pop&B track".[1][20] In the song, they both sing about their love for a girl.[1] Sarah Rodman from The Boston Globe wrote that the song "offers one of Brown's most tender vocals to date".[21] The third track, "No Bullshit", is an R&B slow-jam, which features sexual content and a "classic 90's feel", with its instrumental combining percussion instruments, piano chords and a tenor flute.[1]

The album's up-tempo tracks, "Yeah 3x", and the album's last track "Beautiful People", both feature house and Europop influences.[1] "Yeah 3x" was compared to Brown's single "Forever" (2008), and was likened to the musical styles of The Black Eyed Peas, Usher and Jay Sean, while "Beautiful People" was noted for its progressive house and dancehall influences. Its lyrics encourage a positive view of life.[22][23][24][25] The fourth track, "Look at Me Now", which features American rappers Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes, is a braggadocious "dirty south" hip hop song,[26][27] featuring "fast-rapping" from Brown, Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes.[28] The song was musically compared to Soulja Boy's work and Cali Swag District's "Teach Me How to Dougie" (2010).[29] The fifth track, "She Ain't You", is an R&B mid-tempo, with Brown paying tribute to his biggest inspiration, Michael Jackson. It samples Jackson's single "Human Nature" (1983) and SWV's "Right Here" (1993).[1] "Should've Kissed You", is a "pop&B" ballad about the indecision of giving an overthought first kiss to the loved one.[1] The ninth track, "All Back", is a soft rock ballad that features "raw vocals and prominent guitar".[1] It was musically compared to Ryan Tedder's work.[30] Brown revisits his rapping skills on the alternative hip-hop tracks "Say It With Me" and "Oh My Love", that both feature influences from disco in their chouruses, and from rock in their productions.[1] "Bomb", which features Wiz Khalifa, is a dancehall-rap track, and was musically compared to Beenie Man's work.[1] The closing track of the deluxe edition, "Beg for It", is an R&B slow-jam with sexual lyrics, inspired by early works of singer R. Kelly.[1]

To promote the album, Brown performed "Yeah 3x" and "No Bullshit" on Saturday Night Live on February 12, 2011.[35] During the week leading up to the US release of the album, Brown treated fans to a series of secret listening sessions, and gave them an exclusive bonus track and music video.[36] It was a campaign that Brown launched on behalf of his worldwide fan base, nicknamed "Team Breezy".[36] The first listening session was held on March 14 in Los Angeles.[36] It was then followed by consecutive sessions in Atlanta (March 15), Washington, D.C. (March 16) and New York City (March 17).[36] Each session was held at a secret location and was hosted by Brown and the "Team Breezy" team leaders in each city.[36]

On March 22, 2011, Brown appeared on Good Morning America to perform "Yeah 3x", and later appeared on 106 & Park, where he performed "Deuces", "Look at Me Now" and "Ain't Thinkin' 'Bout You".[37][38] His Good Morning America appearance sparked controversial headlines because, following his interview with Robin Roberts at the Times Square Studios, where he was repeatedly asked about the Rihanna situation and restraining order, Brown started crying and became violent in his dressing room during a commercial break before his, later cancelled, second performance ending that day's program, and broke a window overlooking Times Square punching it.[39] Following the incident, he apologized, saying that he was very tired of people bringing up the incident.[39]

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