Christina Aguilera is the self-titled debut album by American pop singer Christina Aguilera. It was released on August 24, 1999 (see 1999 in music) in the U.S., and included Aguilera's breakthrough hit single "Genie in a Bottle", as well as the later singles "What a Girl Wants", "I Turn to You", and "Come on over Baby (All I Want Is You)". It also featured the song she recorded a year earlier for the Mulan soundtrack, "Reflection". Her debut album helped her receive three Grammy nominations, two of which were for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance: "Genie in a Bottle" in 2000 which she lost to Sarah McLachlan's "I Will Remember You" and "What a Girl Wants" in 2001 which she lost to Macy Gray's "I Try". This album also led to a nomination for Best New Artist in 2000, which she won by beating Britney Spears, Macy Gray, Kid Rock, and Susan Tedeschi. The album has sold more than 16 million copies worldwide.

Album information

"Obvious", the final track on the album, was one of the original demo tracks that was sent to Ron Fair before Aguilera was signed with her record label, RCA.

The album surpassed industry expectations when it debuted at number one on the Billboard Top 200 Album charts thanks to the help of her single "Genie in a Bottle", which had already spent five weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 prior to the release of the album. The album sold 252,000 copies the first week of release, beating out big competition by Sean "Puffy" Combs, whose second album Forever was expected to debut at number one.

The number-one single and the number-one album made her the first new female artist since Britney Spears earlier that year to have both her debut single and debut album reach number one, and because of that, Aguilera was immediately labeled Spears' rival.

The album proved to have some longevity as it stayed in the top fifteen throughout the 1999 holiday season, even working its way back into the top five thanks to its second single "What a Girl Wants" which had topped the charts by the end of 1999. As the year closed, Aguilera's debut album had already sold four million copies, and by the end of 1999, Aguilera had already become a household name in the United States for various reasons, mostly because of her sexual yet innocent image which the media never grew tired of discussing. Aguilera's Grammy Award nominations, two back to back number-one singles, magazine gossip, and merchandise released under her name made her the "It girl" as she opened the new millennium with Carson Daly on MTV's New Years Eve Bash.

In 2000, Aguilera continued to promote her debut album. Her management had announced that she would headline her own U.S. tour after she opened up for TLC back in 1999. In February 2000, she won Best New Artist at the 2000 Grammy Awards, over her fellow nominees including Britney Spears and Macy Gray. The Grammy win, and the continuing success of her number one hit "What a Girl Wants", propelled her album back into the top five on the Billboard Top 200 Album Charts, and by the end of February 2000, Aguilera's debut album had already gone six times platinum. It is listed as one of the Rock And Roll Hall Fames 200 definitive albums.

After her winning a Grammy Award, Aguilera began to express her desire for more creative control over the recording of her next album; she wanted to go into a more R&B/hip hop direction, but her record label rejected these requests. In the spring of 2000, "I Turn to You", a ballad penned by Diane Warren, was released with the hope that it would appeal to a more mature audience. The single did not achieve the same kind of success her previous two singles did, but it did reach the top three on the Billboard Hot 100. During this time, Aguilera kept her name in the headlines thanks to her feud with Eminem. In one of Eminem's songs titled "The Real Slim Shady", he raps about how Aguilera had sexual flings with Fred Durst and Carson Daly. The rapper also claimed in the song that she had a fling with him. Aguilera was offended by his words and publicly told all media outlets his claims were false.

Aguilera quickly put the Eminem rivalry behind her and began to toy with her image. For her summer Sears & Levis U.S. Tour, Aguilera began wearing much more revealing outfits and began putting different colors into her hair. The new image showed how Aguilera had grown up over the year. The new look also coincided with the release of the album's fourth single, "Come on over Baby (All I Want Is You)", which became her third U.S. number-one and helped her album reach a certification of eight times platinum by the end of the year. The single was more risky, as Aguilera began to sing more sexual lyrics.

Track listing

In 2000, a new version of the original album was released with the radio edits of "What a Girl Wants" and "Come on Over Baby (All I Want Is You)". Those versions replaced the original album versions of the songs. When this album was re-released in 2007 as Christina Aguilera: Special Edition, the album edits of "What a Girl Wants" & "Come On Over (All I Want Is You)" were restored for the album, while the radio edits of "What a Girl Wants" and "Come On Over Baby (All I Want Is You)" were used as bonus track.

Charts and certifications

Musicians

• Christina Aguilera - vocals, background vocals
• Rick Baptiste - horn
• Ali Boudris - guitar
• Sue Ann Carwell - background vocals
• ChakDaddy - horn
• E. Dawk - horn
• Ron Fair - piano, harpsichord, keyboards
• David Frank - drums, keyboards
• John Glaser - Moog synthesizer
• John Goux - guitar
• Gary Grant - horn
• Robert Hoffman - bass, keyboards
• Heather Holley - piano
• Khris Kellow - keyboards
• Steve Kipner - drums, keyboards
• Matt Laug - tambourine
• Anthony Mazza - guitar
• Shelly Peiken - background vocals
• Joel Peskin - horn
• Tim Pierce - guitar
• Travon Potts - multiple instruments
• Paul Rein - keyboards
• Evan Rogers - background vocals
• Carl Sturken - multiple instruments
• Robin Thicke - synthesizer, drums, bass, keyboards
• Michael Thompson - guitar
• Bruce Watson - guitar
• Jerry Goldsmith - conductor

Production

• Producers: Johan Aberg, David Frank, Ron Harris, Robert Hoffman, Khris Kellow, Steve Kipner, Travon Potts, Paul Rein, Guy Roche, Evan Rogers, Carl Sturken, Robin Thicke, Diane Warren, Matthew Wilder, Aaron Zigman
• Executive producer: Ron Fair, Diane Warren
• Associate producer: Doreen Dorian
• Engineers: Johan Aberg, Paul Arnold, Ali Boudris, David Frank, Dan Garcia, Ron Harris, Mike Hatzinger, Al Hemberger, Phil Kaffel, Steve Kipner, Doc Little, Mario Lucy, Michael C. Ross, Robin Thicke, Aaron Zigman,
• Assistant engineers: Tom Bender, Joe Brown, Terri Wong
• Mixing: Rob Chiarelli, Jeff Griffin, Mick Guzauski, Tim Lauber, Peter Mokran, Dave Pensado, Robin Thicke, Tommy Vicari, Dave Way
• Mixing assistants: Tony Flores, Jeff Griffin, Michael Huff, Tim Lauber
• Digital editing: Jeff Griffin, Bill Malina
• Mastering: Eddy Schreyer
• A&R: Ron Fair, Elisa Yastic
• Creative director: Jack Rovner
• Programming: Johan Aberg, Airiq Anest, Ron Harris, Khris Kellow, Paul Rein, Guy Roche
• Drum programming: Airiq Anest, Robert Hoffman, Khris Kellow
• Synthesizer programming: Steve Porcaro
• Arrangers: Christina Aguilera, Ron Fair, Sherree Ford-Payne, David Frank, Khris Kellow, Steve Kipner, Travon Potts, Guy Roche, Brock Walsh, Matthew Wilder, Aaron Zigman
• Vocal arrangement: Christina Aguilera, David Frank, Steve Kipner, Brock Walsh
• Orchestral arrangements: Aaron Zigman
• Instrumentation: Carl Sturken

Awards

References

Template:Start box |- style="text-align: center;" |- style="text-align:center;" |width="30%" align="center" rowspan="1"|Preceded by
Millennium by Backstreet Boys |width="40%" style="text-align: center;" rowspan="1"|Billboard 200 number-one album
September 11 - September 17, 1999 |width="30%" align="center" rowspan="1"| Succeeded by
Fly by Dixie Chicks |- Template:End box