Nivea is the debut studio album by American R&B singer Nivea. It was released by Jive on September 25, 2001. A contemporary R&B album with major influences of the pop and hip hop genres, Nivea worked with a wide range of producers and songwriters on her self-titled album which features credits by Leslie Braithwaite, Bryan-Michael Cox, Roy "Royalty" Hamilton, R. Kelly, The Neptunes, Organized Noise, Adonis Shropshire, Teedra Moses, Johnta Austin, and Ne-Yo, among others.

Nivea
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 25, 2001
Recorded2000–2001
GenreR&B[1]
Length54:49
LabelJive
Producer
Nivea chronology
Nivea
(2001)
Complicated
(2005)
Singles from Nivea
  1. "Don't Mess with the Radio"
    Released: June 12, 2001
  2. "Run Away (I Wanna Be with U)"
    Released: December 10, 2001
  3. "Don't Mess with My Man"
    Released: June 3, 2002
  4. "Laundromat"
    Released: April 28, 2003
  5. "25 Reasons"/"Ya Ya Ya"
    Released: 2003

Upon its release, Nivea debuted at number 80 on the US Billboard 200 and number 35 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The album was preceded by its first two singles "Don't Mess with the Radio", which became a top twenty hit in Australia, and "Don't Mess With My Man", a collaboration with Brandon Casey and Brian Casey from boy group Jagged Edge, which became a smash hit, reaching the top ten in France, New Zealand and on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Singles edit

"Don't Mess with the Radio" was selected as Nivea's solo debut single and was released on June 12, 2001.[2] While not a major hit in the United States or most other countries, it was a top-twenty success in Australia, reaching number 14 on the ARIA Singles Chart. In April 2002, the song was released in the United Kingdom as a double A-side with "Run Away (I Wanna Be with U)".[3] It peaked at number 48 on the UK Singles Chart. In Australia, "Run Away" was released as the album's second single on December 10, 2001.[4]

"Don't Mess with My Man" was released on June 3, 2002, as the third single from the album.[5] The song peaked at number eight on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was an international hit as well, reaching the top 10 in France and New Zealand and receiving a Gold certification in the former country. In the United Kingdom, the song reached number 41 on the UK Singles Chart upon its initial release. The recording earned the artists a nomination for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals at the 45th Grammy Awards in 2003.[6]

The fourth single, "Laundromat", was released on April 28, 2003.[7] The song peaked in the United States at number 58 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 20 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Internationally, it reached a peak number 33 on the UK Singles Chart as a double A-side with "Don't Mess with My Man".[8]

Critical reception edit

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [1]

Alex Henderson from AllMusic rated Nivea three out of five stars and called it "a perfect example of how hip-hop-drenched R&B [had] become" by 2001: "From the production to the lyrics, this CD frequently underscores hip-hop's influence on modern R&B." He found that "Nivea provides a likable blend of girlishness and grit on catchy, hip-hop-minded offerings", while also being "teen-friendly, although not in a bubblegum way; in Nivea's case, teen-friendly doesn't mean teen pop." Henderson concluded: "But if Nivea's debut is slightly uneven, it still has more ups than downs and is — thanks to the more on-the-ball producers and writers — worth the price of admission."[1]

Chart performance edit

Nivea debuted at number 109 on the US Billboard 200 in the week of December 28, 2002.[9] It eventually peaked at number 80 in February 2023.[9] By March 2003, the album had sold 134,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[10]

Track listing edit

NiveaStandard edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Still in Love"
Poli3:33
2."Ya Ya Ya" (featuring Lil Wayne)R. Kelly4:07
3."Don't Mess With My Man" (featuring Jagged Edge)Cox3:34
4."The One for Me"
  • Nivea Hamilton
  • Kelly
  • Timothy Allen
  • Larry Campbell
  • Scorpio & Mystery
  • R. Kelly[A]
3:35
5."Laundromat (feat. R. Kelly)"KellyR. Kelly4:24
6."You Don't Even Know" (featuring Nick Cannon)
Shropshire3:55
7."Run Away (I Wanna Be with U)" (featuring Pusha T)The Neptunes3:43
8."Just in Case"
Braithwaite3:59
9."No Doubt"Bishop4:06
10."Never Had a Girl Like Me"
Scorpio & Mystery3:53
11."Have Mercy"Carlos & Dada3:52
12."Don't Mess with the Radio"
3:58
13."25 Reasons"
  • N. Hamilton
  • Brathwaite
  • Cameron
Braithwaite4:07
NiveaStandard edition bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
14."Don't Mess With My Man (Remix)" (featuring Jagged Edge)
  • Brandon Casey
  • Brian Casey
  • Cox
Cox3:52
NiveaReissue[11]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
14."What You Waitin' for"
  • Hamilton
  • Ralph Kearns
  • James Maynes
  • Steven A. White
Burn-Unit3:36
15."Check Your Man" (featuring Mystikal)
Scorpio & Mystery3:48
16."Cat's Got Your Tongue"
  • Lampson
  • Forbes
  • N. Hamilton
  • R. Hamilton
  • Hoskins
Roy "Royalty" Hamilton3:15
17."Jewelry"
  • C. Jerkins
  • E. Jerkins
  • R. Hamilton
  • Rockwell
  • Royalty
  • Twin Beats[A]
3:29
18."Problems"
  • Sylvers
  • R. Hamilton
  • Hoskins
Hamilton3:41
19."Don't Mess With My Man (Remix)" (featuring Jagged Edge and Mystikal)
  • Brandon Casey
  • Brian Casey
  • Tyler
  • Cox
Cox3:52
NiveaInternational edition[12]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Check Your Man" (featuring Mystikal)
Scorpio & Mystery3:48
2."Cat's Got Your Tongue"
  • Carmen Lampson
  • Claude "Quo" Forbes
  • N. Hamilton
  • Roy Hamilton
  • Samuel "Cyph" Hoskins
Roy "Royalty" Hamilton3:15
3."Radio (Interlude)"  0:34
4."Don't Mess with the Radio"
3:58
5."Don't Mess With My Man" (featuring Jagged Edge)Cox3:34
6."Problems"
Royalty3:41
7."Jewelry"
  • C. Jerkins
  • E. Jerkins
  • R. Hamilton
  • Rockwell
  • Royalty
  • Twin Beats[A]
3:29
8."Never Had a Girl Like Me"
Scorpio & Mystery3:53
9."Just in Case"
Braithwaite3:59
10."Phone (Interlude)"  0:37
11."25 Reasons"
  • Hamilton
  • Brathwaite
  • Cameron
Braithwaite4:07
12."Argument (Interlude)"  1:06
13."Have Mercy"Carlos & Dada3:52
14."No Doubt"
Bishop4:06
15."Run Away (I Wanna Be with U)" (featuring Pusha T of the Clipse)The Neptunes3:43
16."I Love My Man (I'm Keepin' Him)"  3:13

Notes

  • ^[A] denotes co-producer

Sample credits

Personnel edit

Credits are taken from the album's liner notes.[13]

Instruments and performances

  • Donnie Lyle – guitar
  • Charles Pettaway – guitar
  • Malachy Robinson – guitar
  • Swift C – drums
  • PJ Morton – piano, keyboards
  • R. Kellyarranger

Production

  • Ted Bishop – engineering, instrumentation
  • Leslie Braithwaite – engineering, mixing
  • Tom Coynemastering
  • Ryan Freeland – engineering
  • Andy Gallas – engineering
  • Jeffrey Gamble – photography
  • Elisa Garcia – design
  • Abel Garibaldi – engineering
  • Serban Ghenea – mixing
  • Jay Goin – engineering
  • Mark Goodchild – engineering
  • Hachi – photography
  • Chaz Harper – mastering
  • R. Kelly – mixing
  • C.L. Lampkin – backing vocals
  • Ian Mereness – engineering, mixing
  • Rowie Nameri – engineering
  • Azuolas Sinkevicius – engineering
  • Brian Stanley – engineering
  • Adonis Shropshire – engineering
  • Richard Travali – mixing
  • Patrick Viala – mixing
  • Bernasky Wall – mixing
  • Arnold Wolfe – mixing

Charts edit

Weekly chart performance for Nivea
Chart (2001–03) Peak
position
Canadian R&B Albums (Nielsen SoundScan)[14] 29
French Albums (SNEP)[15] 65
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[16] 37
US Billboard 200[9] 80
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[17] 1
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[18] 35

Release history edit

Release dates and formats for Nivea
Region Date Format(s) Label Edition(s) Ref
Australia September 25, 2001
  • CD
  • digital download
Jive Records Original [19]
Germany February 18, 2002 [12]
Japan July 29, 2002 [20]
Singapore September 16, 2002 [21]
United States December 10, 2002 Re-release [22]
United Kingdom February 3, 2003 Original [23]
France March 10, 2003 [24]
Australia June 3, 2003 Re-release [25]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c Henderson, Alex. "Nivea – Nivea". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  2. ^ "Urban: Going for Adds". Radio & Records. No. 1405. June 8, 2001. p. 63.
  3. ^ "New Releases – For Week Starting 22 April 2002". Music Week. April 20, 2002. p. 35.
  4. ^ "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 10th December 2001" (PDF). ARIA. December 10, 2001. p. 25. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 20, 2002. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  5. ^ "Nivea: Don't Mess with My Man". Radio & Records. No. 1454. May 24, 2002. p. 43.
  6. ^ "Nivea". 23 November 2020.
  7. ^ "New Releases – For Week Starting 28 April 2003: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. April 26, 2003. p. 27. Retrieved September 4, 2021. Note: The source misprints "Don't Mess with My Man" as "Don't Mess with the Radio".
  8. ^ "Chart Search". Billboard Hot 100 for Nivea. Archived from the original on October 22, 2013.
  9. ^ a b c "Nivea Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  10. ^ "Following A Year Wait, 'Nivea' Reaps Rewards". Billboard. March 2, 2003. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  11. ^ "Nivea - Nivea (CD) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2012-03-03.
  12. ^ a b Amazon.de: Nivea: Nivea: Musik
  13. ^ Nivea (CD liner). Nivea. Jive Records. 2001.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. ^ "R&B : Top 50". Jam!. February 13, 2003. Archived from the original on February 16, 2003. Retrieved January 29, 2023.
  15. ^ "Lescharts.com – Nivea – Nivea". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  16. ^ "ニヴェア" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on February 12, 2023. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
  17. ^ "Nivea Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
  18. ^ "Nivea Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
  19. ^ "iTunes Store". Phobos.apple.com. Archived from the original on 2012-03-15. Retrieved 2012-03-03.
  20. ^ Amazon.co.jp: NIVEA: ニヴェア: 音楽
  21. ^ Amazon.de: Nivea: Nivea: Musik
  22. ^ "HBDirect". Retrieved April 26, 2008.[dead link]
  23. ^ Amazon.co.uk: Nivea: Nivea: Music
  24. ^ Nivea: Nivea: Musique: Amazon.fr
  25. ^ Amazon.co.jp: Nivea: Nivea: 音楽