Great Music of 2001: Mahogany Soul by Angie Stone

In 2001, Angie Stone released Mahogany Soul featuring "Brotha", "Pissed Off", "Wish I Didn't Miss You" and "If I Wasn't".

Angela Stone, known to R&B and Soul music fans as Angie Stone, released her sophomore album, Mahogany Soul on October 16, 2001. Mahogany Soul was a follow-up to her debut album Black Diamond in 1999. She was once a member of the R&B group, Vertical Hold. According to her official website, in the early 1990s, "after struggling to launch a solo career in the States, Stone headed for Europe, where audiences were more receptive." It was after meeting with Clive Davis of Arista, Stone released Black Diamond which featured "No More Rain (In This Cloud)."

The Soulful Mahogany Soul

Mahogany Soul presents 18 tracks of soulful and inspiring songs including "More Than a Woman" featuring former Undacova member Calvin Richardson, "Bottles & Cans", "The Ingredients of Love" - a duet with Music Soulchild, "Life Goes On" and "Easier Said Than Done". Angie Stone not only had lyrical input in the album but she co- executive produced with Peter Edge and Breyon Prescott.

• "Brotha": "Brotha" was such a hot track that it appeared on the album twice with the latter being a remix featuring Eve and Alicia Keys. The original version is the second track on the album and this song is almost an anthem dedicated to all the hard working black men. In the chorus she sings, "Black brotha/ I love ya/ I'll never try to hurt you...there is no one above you...." "Brotha" had lyrical input from Stone, Raphael Saadiq, Harold Lilly, Glenn Standridge and Robert C. Ozuna. The music video was also special because it featured images of African American icons such as Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Bill Cosby, Bishop Desmond Tutu and many others.
• "Wish I Didn't Miss You": "Wish I Didn't Miss You" brought back that 70s vibe with the instrumental from The O'Jays' "Backstabbers." Written by Andrea Martin and Ivan Matias, this song shares the tale of a broken relationship and the lover the singer still misses. She sings "every time you say you're coming, you disappoint me honey" and in the chorus, "I can't eat, I can't sleep anymore, waiting for love to walk through the door."
• "Pissed Off": While this song is supposed to be an expression of anger as shared in the title, it is quite mellow. Stone co-wrote this song with Eran Tabib, Rufus Moore and Stephanie Bolton. This is not the typical angry song, but Stone expresses "so pissed off/ looking at life through the glass that you shattered...can't let up long enough to get over it...."
• "More Than A Woman" featuring Calvin Richardson: Sexy, sweet and soulful describe "More Than a Woman" which was featured in the 2002 movie release Deliver Us From Eva starring Gabriel Union and LL Cool J. This song is a dedication to unconditional love because of the heights of love that the artists express. "Girl you must've lost your way from heaven/ Could it be for me you came so far /nothing like the ordinary woman/ You're the very beat inside my heart" are a sample of the lyrics.
• "Makings of You": They always say that it is hard to remake a song and do it justice but there are some artists who can. Angie Stone took a big step in her two minute and one-half minute interlude "Makings of You". Giving the song her own musical flare, Stone brought this Curtis Mayfield original a new life.

Angie Stone Keeps Singing
While Angie Stone's biography shares that she has "mapped a life-long journey that encompasses rap, neo-soul, hip-hop, R&B, jazz and more", it is clear that she has star and staying power in the music industry. She has also appeared on VH1's Celebrity Fit Club in Season 4 and shares her writing talents as she co-wrote D'Angelo's "Jonz in My Bonz" from his 1995 Brown Sugar album. Since Mahogany Soul, Stone released Stone Love in 2004, The Art of Love & War in 2008, Unexpected in 2009 and the E-Single, I Ain't Hearin You in 2009.