Maps of Music

Black Panties (2013)

Where the lyrics of Black Panties take you, and where it was really made.

The album's title came from a pair of black panties that landed on R. Kelly's wrist during a concert on the Love Letter tour.

Place unknown

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Black Panties: twelfth studio album by American R&B singer R. Kelly
Released in the United States on December 6, 2013, by RCA Records
Guest appearances: Ludacris, 2 Chainz, Young Jeezy, Migos, Kelly Rowland, Juicy J, and Future
Four singles: 'My Story', 'Genius', 'Cookie', and 'Legs Shakin''

Kelly described the album as the new 12 Play (1993), his 1993 debut album
The previous albums Love Letter (2010) and Write Me Back (2012) were throwback records
In an October 2013 Rolling Stone interview, Kelly said he wanted to change lanes and bring back the 12 Play style
The title came from a Love Letter tour show: while singing 'Seems Like You're Ready', a pair of black panties landed on his wrist
Kelly said he took this as a sign and the idea came to him right away

Collaborator Jeremih said he had not been in the studio with Kelly while 'Switch Up' was recorded
Jeremih still described the working experience as 'dope'

Born Robert Sylvester Kelly on January 8, 1967, on Chicago's South Side, Illinois.
Began performing in the subway under Chicago "L" tracks, busking at the Jackson station on the Red Line.
Joined the group MGM (Musically Gifted Men) formed in 1989, which won a $100,000 prize on the TV show Big Break in 1991 before disbanding.

Signed with Jive Records in 1991; debut Born into the 90's (1992, with Public Announcement) yielded hits including "She's Got That Vibe".
Solo album 12 Play (1993) produced the number-one hit "Bump N' Grind", which spent a record 12 weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart.
"I Believe I Can Fly" (1996) won three Grammy Awards in 1998.
Wrote and produced "You Are Not Alone" for Michael Jackson, which debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100.
Sold over 75 million records worldwide; Billboard ranked him the 9th greatest R&B artist of all time.
Convicted in 2021 and 2022 on child sex offences and sentenced to a combined 31 years; his career ended after these convictions.

Black Panties received mixed reviews from music critics on its release
Metacritic average score: 61, based on 19 reviews, indicating generally positive reviews
AllMusic (Andy Kellman): two and a half stars out of five, describing a return to sexually explicit, contemporary content after the throwback albums
Entertainment Weekly (Nick Catucci): grade B
Chicago Tribune (Greg Kot): two out of four stars, calling it a musically detailed, sonically rich soundtrack for raunchy content
HipHopDX (Omar Burgess): three and a half stars out of five, praising it as a catchy, entertaining snapshot for clubs and bedrooms
The A.V. Club (Marah Eakin): grade B−
Spin (Jason King): five out of ten, calling it a step backwards from Write Me Back and the songwriting mediocre
Pitchfork (Jordan Sargent): 6.8 out of 10, describing a pretty good modern R&B album that feels a bit fossilized
Exclaim! (Ryan B. Patrick): four out of ten

Debuted at number 4 on the Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 133,000 copies in the United States
Highest-charting R. Kelly album since Untitled (2009), which also debuted at number four
Fell to number 15 in its second week, a 55% drop in sales from the first week
Rose back to number 11 on the Billboard 200 in its fourth week
As of October 2015, sales in the United States reached 462,000 copies

The title came from a pair of black panties that landed on Kelly's wrist during a Love Letter tour show, which he took as a sign
Jeremih had not been in the studio with Kelly for 'Switch Up' but called the experience 'dope'
The third single 'Cookie' was released on November 25, 2013, and its music video followed on December 10, 2013
'Legs Shakin'' was sent to US urban contemporary radio stations on March 11, 2014, as the fourth single
The album's first week sales of 133,000 copies made it Kelly's best chart debut since Untitled (2009)