Christina Aguilera is the self-titled debut album of 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)". "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 debut 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.
After her Grammy win, for the first time ever Aguilera began speaking out about the direction she wanted to go in after this album was finished. She wanted to go into a more R&B/hip-hop direction which her label forbad her from doing. In the spring of 2000, "I Turn to You", a ballad penned by Diane Warren, was released in hopes to give Aguilera a more mature audience. The single failed to 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 that none of the stuff Eminem was saying were true.
Aguilera quickly put the Eminem rivalry behind her and began to toy with her image. For her summer 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.
"Genie in a Bottle"— 3:36
"What a Girl Wants"— 3:33
"I Turn to You"— 4:33
"So Emotional" — 4:00
"Come on Over (All I Want Is You)"— 3:10
"Reflection"— 3:33
"Love for All Seasons"— 3:59
"Somebody's Somebody"— 5:03
"When You Put Your Hands on Me"— 3:35
"Blessed"— 3:06
"Love Will Find a Way"— 3:56
"Obvious"— 3:59
Japanese edition
"We're a Miracle"— 4:09
"Don't Make Me Love You"— 3:52
Latin edition
"Genio Atrapado" — 4:35
Special edition
"Genie in a Bottle" — 6:29
"What a Girl Wants"— 4:04
"I Turn to You" — 4:21
"Genio Atrapado"— 4:35
"Don't Make Me Love You"— 3:52
"Come on over Baby (All I Want Is You)"— 3:24 |
