Maps of Music

Love Letter (2010)

Where the lyrics of Love Letter take you, and where it was really made.

Love Letter was the last album released under Jive Records, which was folded into RCA Records in 2011.

Key places

Recorded at The Chocolate Factory, Chicago (2010)

Recording site Chicago Recording Company — Recording information for Love Letter lists The Chocolate Factory in Chicago, Illinois. The point is placed at city-center level, so the exact building position is not confirmed. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Love Letter: tenth studio album by American R&B recording artist R. Kelly
• Released December 14, 2010 by Jive Records
• Final album released under the Jive label; Jive was folded into RCA Records in 2011
• Written and produced entirely by Kelly
• Departure from his earlier contemporary sound and sexually explicit themes
• Incorporates classic 1950s/1960s soul influences and chivalrous lyrics about love and forgiveness

Background

• Homage to the classic soul music of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s
• Kelly was heavily inspired by Marvin Gaye, Jackie Wilson, Donny Hathaway, Sam Cooke, Michael Jackson, and Stevie Wonder
• Pays tribute to Michael Jackson, who died in 2009, with his own version of "You Are Not Alone," a song Kelly had written for Jackson

Recording

• Recording information credits The Chocolate Factory in Chicago, Illinois
• The recording location is listed at city level only
• Digital download on the iTunes Store on December 10, 2010, with an iTunes LP format feature, before the physical CD release

Cover

• Photography credited to Randee St. Nicholas

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• 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.

Career

• 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.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Most mainstream critics gave positive reviews, praising its classically minded style and Kelly's singing and songwriting
• Metacritic average score of 77 based on 17 reviews
• AllMusic (Andy Kellman): called it the least sexually charged album in Kelly's discography
• Los Angeles Times (August Brown): complimented its slow-simmered emoting and Kelly's melodicism and vocal power
• The New York Times (Jon Caramanica): commended its gentle adult-contemporary R&B and the elegance of its songs
• Chicago Tribune (Greg Kot): noted its classicist sources and its departure from Kelly's earlier minimalism
• Pitchfork (Jess Harvell): called Kelly's singing a marvel throughout
• Spin (Maura Johnston): praised his exquisite phrasing and ability to belt
• Slant Magazine (Eric Henderson): mixed review, found the sentiments generic
• Rolling Stone: observed a relatively novel concept and credited Kelly's ingenuity for keeping the album from fizzling

Records

• Debuted at number 6 on the US Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 154,000 copies
• Kelly's thirteenth US top-10 album
• Number 2 on Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and number 3 on Digital Albums
• RIAA Gold certification on March 1, 2011 for 500,000 shipments in the US
• Sold 496,600 copies in the US by March 30, 2011
• UK: number 39 on the Top 40 R&B Albums chart; Netherlands: number 26
• First single "When a Woman Loves" peaked at number 16 on R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and number 93 on the Hot 100
• Second single "Love Letter" peaked at number 13 on R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
• Third single "Number One Hit" reached number 83
• Grammy nomination for Best R&B Album at the 54th Grammy Awards
• "Radio Message" nominated for Best Traditional R&B Performance; "When a Woman Loves" nominated for the same category a year later

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · pt.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Kelly wrote "You Are Not Alone" for Michael Jackson, and his own version of it on this album pays tribute to Jackson, who died in 2009.
• That version is a hidden bonus track at the end of the album.
• The album was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best R&B Album at the 54th Grammy Awards.
• The album was Kelly's thirteenth US top-10 album.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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