Age Ain't Nothing but a Number

Age Ain't Nothing but a Number
Studio album by Aaliyah
Released	June 13, 1994 (1994-06-13)
Recorded	September 1993 – May 1994 Chicago Recording Company (Chicago, Illinois)
Genre	R&B
Length	48:54
Label	Blackground/Jive/BMG Records 01241-41533
Producer	Barry Hankerson (exec.), R. Kelly
Aaliyah chronology
Age Ain't Nothing But a Number (1994) One in a Million (1996)
Singles from Age Ain't Nothing But a Number
"Back & Forth" Released: January 1, 1994 "At Your Best (You Are Love)" Released: August 22, 1994 "Age Ain't Nothing But a Number" Released: December 6, 1994 "Down with the Clique" Released: May 2, 1995 "No One Knows How to Love Me Quite Like You Do" Released: June 27, 1995 "The Thing I Like" Released: August 3, 1995

Age Ain't Nothing but a Number is the debut album by American recording artist Aaliyah, released under Jive and Blackground Records on June 13, 1994, in the United States. After being signed by her uncle Barry Hankerson, Aaliyah was introduced to recording artist and producer R. Kelly. He became her mentor, as well as the lead songwriter and producer of the album. The duo recorded the album at the Chicago Recording Company in Chicago, Illinois. The album featured two hit singles, including the top ten-charting "Back & Forth" and "At Your Best (You Are Love)"; both singles were certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Two additional singles followed: "Age Ain't Nothing But a Number" and "No One Knows How to Love Me Quite Like You Do".

Age Ain't Nothing But a Number received generally favorable reviews from critics. Many noted Aaliyah's vocal ability and praised the lyrical content. Aaliyah was credited for redefining R&B by blending her voice with Kelly's new jack swing. The album peaked at number 18 on the Billboard 200 and sold over three million copies in the United States, where it was certified Triple platinum by the RIAA to date.^[1] The album was certified Gold in Canada by the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA) and Silver in the United Kingdom by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) to date. The album has sold over 6 million copies worldwide.

Background and recording

After Barry Hankerson, Aaliyah's uncle, signed a distribution deal with Jive Records, he signed her to his Blackground Records label at the age of 12.^[2][3] Hankerson then introduced her to recording artist and producer R. Kelly.^[4] He became Aaliyah's mentor, as well as lead songwriter and producer of the album.^[5][6] Aaliyah and Kelly began recording the album in 1993 when she was 14.^[3] The duo recorded the first song, "Old School", at the Chicago Recording Company in Chicago, Illinois.^[7][8] While recording the album, Kelly coached her as they worked several hours in the studio. She often sang the songs multiple times in order to achieve "excellence".^[9] He claimed that Aaliyah was "one of the best young artists" he had worked with.^[8]

Musical content

Aaliyah sang her songs in a falsetto. She felt that the songs "came at you kind of tough, a bit edgy, hip-hop, but the vocals can be very soothing".^[10] She went on to say, "lyrically I want things to be different."^[10]

Marketing and promotion

A month before the release of the debut single, "Back & Forth", Aaliyah attended the Urban Network's "Power Jam" conference, where she was introduced and "received warmly".^[8] "Back & Forth" peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100 while topping the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for three weeks.^[11] The song was certified Gold by the RIAA.^[12] The second single, "At Your Best (You Are Love)", peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100 and was also certified Gold by the RIAA.^[11][12] In promotion for the album, Aaliyah embarked on a world tour that spanned from 1994 to 1995.^[13]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[14]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[15]
Rolling Stone	[16]
Slant Magazine	[17]

Age Ain't Nothing But a Number received generally favorable reviews from music critics. Some writers noted that Aaliyah's "silky vocals" and "sultry voice" blended with Kelly's new jack swing helped define R&B in the 1990s.^[15][17] Her sound was also compared to that of female quartet En Vogue.^[15][16] Christopher John Farley of Time magazine described the album as a "beautifully restrained work", noting that Aaliyah's "girlish, breathy vocals rode calmly on R.Kelly's rough beats".^[18] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic felt that the album had its "share of filler", but described the singles as "slyly seductive".^[14] He also claimed that the songs on the album were "frequently better" than that of Kelly's second studio album, 12 Play.^[14]

The album debut at number 24 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 74,000 copies in its first week.^[19][20] The album ultimately peaked at number 18 on the chart.^[21] It sold three million copies in the United States, where it was certified two times Platinum by the RIAA and worldwide sales are over 5 million as of 2001.^[12][22][23] In Canada, the album sold over 50,000 copies and was certified gold by the CRIA.^[24] It also peaked at number 44 on the Dutch Albums Chart;^[25] it peaked at number 23 on the UK Albums Chart, where it was certified silver by the BPI for sale of 60,000.^[26][27]

Track listing

All songs were written by R. Kelly, except where noted.

1. "Intro" – 1:30
2. "Throw Your Hands Up" – 3:34
3. "Back & Forth" – 3:51
4. "Age Ain't Nothing But a Number" – 4:14
5. "Down with the Clique" – 3:24
6. "At Your Best (You Are Love)" (Ernie Isley, Marvin Isley, O'Kelly Isley, Ronald Isley, Chris Jasper) – 4:52
7. "No One Knows How to Love Me Quite Like You Do" – 4:07
8. "I'm So into You" – 3:26
9. "Street Thing" – 4:58
10. "Young Nation" – 4:41
11. "Old School" – 3:17
12. "I'm Down" – 3:16
13. "The Thing I Like" (UK bonus track) – 3:23^[28]
14. "Back & Forth (Mr. Lee & R. Kelly's Remix)" (bonus track) – 3:43^[28]

Personnel

• Aaliyah – vocals
• Timmy Allen – bass
• Tom Coyne – mastering
• Barry Hankerson – executive producer
• Keith Henderson – guitar
• Stephanie Huff – background vocals
• R. Kelly – background vocals, multi-instruments, producer, mixing
• Doug McBride – mixing assistant
• Peter Mokran – programming, engineer, mixing
• Joshua Shapera – mixing assistant
• Maria Valencia – design

Charts

Notes

References

• Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian David (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide: Completely Revised and Updated 4th Edition. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. 
• Farley, John (2002). Aaliyah: More Than a Woman. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-7434-5566-5. 
• Kenyatta, Kelly (2002). An R&B Princess in Words and Pictures. Amber Books Publishing. ISBN 0-9702224-3-2. 
• Sutherland, William (2005). Aaliyah Remembered. Trafford Publishing. ISBN 1-4120-5062-6.