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Brand New
Studio album by Salt-N-Pepa
Released	October 21, 1997 (1997-10-21)
Studio	Axis (New York City) Quad (New York City) Soundtrack (New York City) The Music Palace (West Hempstead, New York) The Basement, Inc. (Dix Hills, New York) Tone X Recording (Washington, D.C.) Record Plant (Los Angeles) The Hit Factory (New York City) Chung King (New York City) AMG (New York City) Horizon (Capitol Heights, Maryland) Flyte Tyme (Edina, Minnesota)
Length	57:27
Label	London
Producer	Cheryl "Salt" James Sandra "Pepa" Denton Chad "Dr. Ceuss" Elliott Esmail Sean "The Mystro" Mather Josef Powell Al West David "D.J." Wynn
Salt-N-Pepa chronology
Very Necessary (1993) Brand New (1997) The Best of Salt-N-Pepa (1999)
Singles from Brand New
"R U Ready" Released: August 29, 1997 "Gitty Up" Released: December 7, 1997

Brand New is the fifth studio album by American hip hop group Salt-N-Pepa, released on October 21, 1997, by London Records. The group's international label at the time, Red Ant Entertainment, filed for bankruptcy before the album was officially released; aside from a brief tour and some TV and print ads, almost no promotion was available to boost the record. Brand New spawned two singles: "R U Ready" and "Gitty Up". The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on November 25, 1997, a sharp decline from the group's previous efforts.

Production

Brand New was the first Salt-N-Pepa album released after the group parted ways with longtime producer, writer, and manager Hurby "Luv Bug" Azor. Instead, Salt took the lead in co-writing and co-produced the album.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
Robert Christgau
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music
Entertainment Weekly	B−
Music Week
Rolling Stone
The Source

Natasha Stovall of Rolling Stone praised the "richer piano-, guitar- and vocal-filled sound, emphasizing gritty soul and sweet, unadulterated funk." Jon Pareles of The New York Times wrote that the group "still juxtapose catchy come-ons ... and determinedly positive messages." Connie Johnson of the Los Angeles Times wrote that "while it's commendable that they're stretching out in a more uplifting, spiritually motivated arena, the group's forte is still worldly, raunchy, of-the-flesh fare." In a review for The Source, Raquel Cepeda described the album as "elodically heavy, but lacking in the lyrical department".

Track listing

Notes

• signifies an additional producer
• signifies a co-producer

Samples

• "R U Ready" contains excerpts from "Watch Out" by Brass Construction.
• "Gitty Up" contains samples from "Give It To Me Baby" by Rick James
• "Say Ooh" contains a sample from "Turn Off the Lights" by Larry Young.
• "Brand New" contains an interpolation of "Love Is Alive" by Gary Wright.

Personnel

• Prince Charles Alexander – Mixing
• Eddie Anzueto, Jr. – Percussion
• Steven Augustine – Bass
• Kent Belden – Creative Director
• Blue Denim – Background vocals
• Mike Campbell – Guitar
• Melvin Chandler – Keyboards
• Lewis Christian – Percussion
• Day Ta Day – Background vocals
• Andre Debourg – Engineer, Mixing
• James Denton – Photography
• Sandy "Pepa" Denton – Producer
• DJ Flexx – Background vocals
• Chad "Dr. Ceuss" Elliott – Programming, Producer, Engineer, Mixing
• Glenn Ellis – Bass
• Esmail – Producer
• Alan Forney – Photo Imaging
• Kirk Franklin – Performer
• Wayne Garrick – Keyboards
• Khari Green – Guitar
• Bernard Grobman – Guitar
• Andrew Hellier – Guitar, Background vocals
• Cheryl "Salt" James – Producer
• Jon Jones – Guitar
• Gerhard Joost – Mixing
• Carol Kirkendall – Executive Producer
• LaTrece – Background vocals
• Michael Lockwood – Guitar
• Al (Taz) Machera – Mixing
• Sean "Mystro" Mather – Producer
• Gary Montoute – Synthesizer
• Michael Moore – Photography
• Rufus Moore – Background vocals, Performer
• Joseph Powell – Programming, Background vocals, Producer, Engineer, Mixing
• Wayne Rickard – Guitar
• Alicia Rushing – Background vocals
• Ken Schubert – Engineer, Mixing
• Dawne Shivers – Background vocals
• Peggy Sirota – Photography
• Sounds of Blackness – Performer
• Spinderella – Performer
• Kevin Thomas – Engineer
• Al West – Producer
• Jimmy White – Bass
• David Wynn – Producer
• George Belton - Bass

Charts

Certifications

Notes

1. Tracks 1, 4, 10 and 11
2. Track 1
3. Tracks 1, 5 and 8
4. Tracks 2, 11 and 13
5. Tracks 2, 3, 5–7 and 10–13
6. Tracks 3, 4, 6 and 7
7. Track 4
8. Track 6
9. Tracks 6 and 12
10. Track 9
11. Tracks 10 and 12
12. Track 13

References

1. Horn, Mark C. (June 18, 2015). "Salt-N-Pepa Discuss Their Career and Legacy as Hip-Hop's Matriarchs". Phoenix New Times. Archived from the original on June 23, 2015.
2. Harrington, Richard (October 29, 1997). "Salt-N-Pepa's 'Brand New': Inspirational". The Washington Post.
3. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Brand New – Salt-N-Pepa". AllMusic. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
4. Christgau, Robert. "Robert Christgau: CG: Salt-N-Pepa". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
5. Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 7. Muze. p. 232.
6. Browne, David (October 24, 1997). "Album Review: 'Brand New'". Entertainment Weekly. No. 402. p. 66. Archived from the original on November 20, 2015. Retrieved November 29, 2024.
7. "Reviews: Albums" (PDF). Music Week. November 15, 1997. p. 10. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
8. ^ Stovall, Natasha (October 30, 1997). "Bigger and Deffer". Recordings. Rolling Stone. No. 772. pp. 65–66. Archived from the original on December 24, 2001.
9. ^ Cepeda, Raquel (November 1997). "Salt-N-Pepa – Are You Ready". Record Report. The Source. No. 98. New York. p. 162.
10. Pareles, Jon (October 26, 1997). "RECORDINGS VIEW; Rapping As Good Business". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 27, 2015.
11. Johnson, Connie (October 19, 1997). "Album Review". Los Angeles Times.
12. "Salt-N-Pepa ARIA chart history, received from ARIA on June 15, 2021". Retrieved June 19, 2021 – via Imgur. Note: The "High Point" number in the "NAT" column indicates the release's peak position on the national chart.
13. "Offiziellecharts.de – Salt 'N' Pepa – Brand New" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
14. "Swisscharts.com – Salt 'N' Pepa – Brand New". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
15. "Salt-N-Pepa Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
16. "Salt-N-Pepa Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
17. "American album certifications – Salt 'N Pepa – Brand New". Recording Industry Association of America. November 25, 1997.

• 1997 albums
• Albums recorded at Chung King Studios
• London Records albums
• Salt-N-Pepa albums