What's the 411? is the debut album by soul singer Mary J. Blige, released July 28, 1992 (see 1992 in music). The album's then-nearly unique blend of hip hop and soul have made it a pivotal album in the development, and perhaps the very first example of, hip hop soul. The album was an unexpected crossover success at a time when soul albums were unpopular as hip hop and grunge music dominated the charts; its success was buoyed by early chart success for "You Remind Me" and "Real Love". Image File history File links Whats_the_411_(ablum_cover). ... An album is a collection of related audio tracks, released together commercially in an audio format to the public. ... Mary Jane Blige (born January 11, 1971 (disputed — see talk page)) is a three-time Grammy Award-winning American R&B/Hip-Hop Soul singer, songwriter and producer. ... July 28 is the 209th day (210th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 156 days remaining. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A music genre is a category (or genre) of pieces of music that share a certain style or basic musical language (van der Merwe 1989, p. ... Rhythm and blues (or R & B) is a musical marketing term introduced in the United States in the late 1940s by Billboard magazine. ... A record label is a brand created by companies that specialize in producing, manufacturing, distributing and promoting audio and sometimes video recordings (especially music videos), on various formats including compact discs, LPs, DVD-Audio, SACDs, and cassettes. ... MCA can stand for: Maximum credible accident MCA (rapper) - A rapper in the group, The Beastie Boys Micro Channel architecture - a type of computer bus Music Corporation of America - a music booking company and record label. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the performers, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Sean Diddy Combs Sean John Combs (born November 4, 1969) is a record producer and entertainment mogul who presides over a media empire that includes the record label Bad Boy Entertainment, the clothing lines Sean John and Sean by Sean Combs, a movie production company, and a restaurant chain. ... The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music owned by All Media Guide. ... Image File history File links Description: Rating stars. ... Mary Jane Blige (born January 11, 1971 (disputed — see talk page)) is a three-time Grammy Award-winning American R&B/Hip-Hop Soul singer, songwriter and producer. ... Soul music is a combination of rhythm and blues and gospel which began in the late 1950s in the United States. ... Mary Jane Blige (born January 11, 1971 (disputed — see talk page)) is a three-time Grammy Award-winning American R&B/Hip-Hop Soul singer, songwriter and producer. ... July 28 is the 209th day (210th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 156 days remaining. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... See also: 1991 in music, other events of 1992, 1993 in music, 1990s in music and the list of years in music // Events 1992 was a pivotal year in the development of music. ... Hip hop music (also referred to as rap or rap music) is a style of popular music. ... Hip-hop soul is a subgenre of contemporary R&B. The term generally describes a style of music that blends R&B singing and hip hop production. ... Grunge music (sometimes also referred to as the Seattle Sound) is a genre of alternative rock inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock. ...

What's the 411? peaked at #6 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, and topped the Top Hip Hop/R&B Albums chart. "You Remind Me" and What's the 411? were certified gold by the RIAA in August and September of 1992, respectively. One month later, What's the 411? was certified platinum and a month after that, "Real Love" was ceritified gold. In February of 1993, What's the 411? was certified two times platinum. Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry. ... The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a special interest group representing the U.S. recording industry, and the body responsible for certifying gold and platinum albums and singles in the USA. For more information about sales data see list of best selling albums and list of best selling... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ...

Track listing

1. "Leave a Message" (produced by Tony Dofat)
2. "Reminisce" (Greene/Hall)
3. "Real Love" (Morales/Reid)
4. "You Remind Me" (Hall/Milteer)
5. "Intro Talk" (with Busta Rhymes)
6. "Sweet Thing" (cover of Chaka Khan)
7. "Love No Limit" (Greene/Hall)
8. "I Don't Want to Do Anything" (with K-Ci of Jodeci)
9. "Slow Down" (Keeley/Morales/Reid)
10. "My Love" (Greene/Hall)
11. "Changes I've Been Going Through" (Combs/Morales/Reid)
12. "What's the 411?" (with Grand Puba)

This article or section contains information that has not been verified and thus might not be reliable. ... In pop music a cover version is a new rendition of a previously recorded song. ... Album cover of What Cha Gonna Do For Me? Chaka Khan (born March 23, 1953) is the stage name of the African-American singer Yvette Marie Stevens. ... K-Ci (born Cedric Hailey on September 2, 1969 in Charlotte, North Carolina) is an African-American R&B/soul singer and songwriter, one-half of the duo K-Ci and JoJo and one-quarter of the R&B quartet Jodeci. ... Jodeci was an American musical group, active from 1990 to 1996, whose repertoire included R&B, soul music, and new jack swing. ... Maxwell Dixon, better known as Grand Puba, is a rapper from New York. ...

Personnel

• Christopher Williams
• Little Shawn
• Grand Puba - Vocals (bckgr), Harmony Vocals, Performer
• Billy Lawrence - Vocals (bckgr)
• Mary J. Blige - Vocals, Vocals (bckgr)
• Tabitha Brace - Vocals (bckgr)
• Busta Rhymes - Vocals
• Sean "Puffy" Combs - Producer
• Tony Dofat - Producer
• Steven Ett - Engineer
• Mike Fonda - Engineer
• Andre Harrell
• David Kennedy - Engineer
• Clark Kent
• Tony Maserati - Engineer
• Mark Morales - Producer, Drum Machine
• Darryl Pearson - Multi Instruments
• Gordon Picket - Programming
• Terri Robinson - Vocals (bckgr)
• C.L. Smooth
• DeVante Swing - Keyboards, Multi Instruments, Producer
• Jamie Brown
• Andy Grassi - Engineer
• Cedric "K-Ci" Hailey - Harmony Vocals, Performer
• Kurt Juice
• Dave Hall - Drums, Keyboards, Producer

Charting singles

 1992 You Remind Me The Billboard Hot 100 No. 29 1992 Real Love The Billboard Hot 100 No. 7 1992 Reminisce The Billboard Hot 100 No. 57 1993 Love No Limit The Billboard Hot 100 No. 44 

 1992 Real Love Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks No. 1 1992 You Remind Me Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks No. 1 1993 Reminisce Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks No. 6 1993 I Don't Want to Do Anything Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks No. 86 1994 My Love Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks No. 23 

 1992 You Remind Me Rhythmic Top 40 No. 23 1993 Reminisce Rhythmic Top 40 No. 34 1993 Love No Limit Rhythmic Top 40 No. 15 

 1992 Real Love Top 40 Mainstream No. 8 

 1992 Real Love Hot Dance Music/Club Play No. 36 1992 You Remind Me Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles SalesNo. 7 1993 Love No Limit Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles SalesNo. 7 1993 Reminisce Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles SalesNo. 5