Sittin' Up in My Room

"Sittin' Up in My Room" is a song by American recording artist Brandy Norwood. It was written and produced by Babyface and recorded by Norwood for the soundtrack of the 1995 film Waiting to Exhale, starring Whitney Houston and Angela Bassett. The track was one out of five singles the album spawned and reached number two on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming Norwood's most successful single on that particular chart up to that point. It is of note that the characteristic bass intro is a replica of the famous riff performed by bassist Larry Graham, of Sly and the Family Stone, on their hit "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)", and its remix featuring LL Cool J contains a sample of "Haven't You Heard" by Patrice Rushen.[1]

"Sittin' Up in My Room"
Single by Brandy
from the album Waiting to Exhale
B-side"My Love, Sweet Love" (Patti LaBelle)
ReleasedDecember 12, 1995 (1995-12-12)
GenreR&B
Length4:52
LabelArista
Songwriter(s)Babyface
Producer(s)Babyface
Brandy singles chronology
"Brokenhearted"
(1995)		 "Sittin' Up in My Room"
(1995)		 "Missing You"
(1996)
Music video
"Sittin' Up in My Room" on YouTube

"Sittin' Up in My Room" was performed on several television and award show ceremonies, such as Late Show with David Letterman, the 23rd Annual American Music Awards, the 1996 Soul Train Awards, the 39th Annual Grammy Awards, and the 2015 Soul Train Music Awards. A music video was also filmed, depicting Brandy keeping herself penned up in a retro, brightly colored room after her friend tells her that her love interest is joining the party downstairs. Actor Donald Faison appears as her love interest in the video, directed by Hype Williams. It won the award for Best Song from a Movie and was nominated for Best Video from a Film at the 1996 MTV Awards. The song has since been performed on several awards shows and Norwood's concerts and tours, including the 1998 Never Say Never World Tour and the 2016 Slayana World Tour.

Background and recording

"Sittin' Up in My Room" was written and produced by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds.[2] Edmonds also helmed the drum programming (along with the production duo Trackmasters), synthesizer, and wurlitzer sounds, while Michael Thompson played the guitar.[2] "Bassy" Bob Brockmann mixed the track; recording was overseen by Brad Gilderman.[2] The record was from a number of songs Edmonds specifically penned for the soundtrack of Forest Whitaker's 1995 romantic drama film Waiting to Exhale, starring Whitney Houston and Angela Bassett.[3] Musically, songs from fellow R&B singer Aaliyah's debut album Age Ain't Nothing but a Number (1994) served as an inspiration while starting the song idea for "Sittin' Up in My Room".[3] Edmonds finished most of the demo on his Los Angeles house, before Norwood came over for recording.[3] Commenting on the recording process, Norwood later elaborated: “I was going crazy with my vocal runs because I really wanted to impress Babyface. I knew how to pull back, but it was one of those things where I thought, ‘This is my chance!’ I always wanted to work with Babyface going back to ["Tender Lover"] [...] Actually, he was the most legendary producer that I had worked with to that point. So when I was recording ‘Sittin’ Up In My Room,’ I was thinking, ‘This is my chance to show Babyface that I could sing!’ But he was like, ‘You don’t have to do all of that. Just sing, baby. Just keep your vocals simple.’”[4]

Reception

Critical reception

Craig Lytle from AllMusic wrote that "with a Sly Stone twist, Babyface concocts a laid-back funk groove for "Sittin' up in My Room," which features the humble vocals of Brandy. Though the song does not allow her to unwind with her higher notes, it does, however, reveal her lower octaves."[5] Larry Flick from Billboard felt it "places endlessly charming ingenue Brandy at the center of a wickedly infectious pop/funk confection." He added, "The chorus is instantly memorable and a perfect match for Brandy's unaffected, soulful style."[6] In 2014, Complex magazine ranked the single 39th on its list of the 50 R&B Songs of the 1990s.[7] Cheo Hodari Coker from the Los Angeles Times praised Babyface for his production on the song, stating "Babyface's funky-but-restrained background track is the real star of this jam. Using a pleasant mixture of plunking bass and synthesizer chords, [the song] proves that he has a grabbag of styles at his disposal."[8] British magazine Music Week rated it four out of five, calling it "the one that could finally break Brandy into the big time. Funky."[9] Alan Jones added, "A soft swing shuffle with a delightful hook, it is the sort of confection that eats the opposition in the American R&B chart, and should do pretty well here, too."[10] David Sinclair from The Times viewed "Sittin' Up in My Room" as "a quietly smouldering slice of swingbeat-funk performed with a firm, sensual touch." He also remarked that "she sings in a deep, velvety voice that would have most men fumbling for their key-pads there and then."[11]

Commercial performance

Released as the second single from the soundtrack, "Sittin' Up in My Room" debuted at number forty-six and number thirteen, on the US Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart and Hot R&B Singles chart, the issue date of December 30, 1995, respectively.[12][13] The single reached the number two on the Hot R&B Singles chart, the issue of February 17, 1996, and stayed there three consecutive weeks.[14] It also peaked at number two on the Hot 100 Singles chart, staying on the chart for a total of thirty-three weeks.[15] "Sittin' Up in My Room" earned a platinum award by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on May 23, 1996, with 1,000,000 copies sold.[16][17][18]

Music video
Waiting to Exhale actor Faison appears in the video.[19]

The accompanying music video for "Sittin' Up in My Room" was directed by Hype Williams. Norwood declared filming as "fun" as she had a "great relationship" with Williams at that time, having previously worked with him on the videos for the Hip–Hop Remix of "I Wanna Be Down" and her second single "Baby".[19] Actor Donald Faison appears in the video; Faison played the son of Loretta Devine's character Gloria in Waiting to Exhale.[19] Commenting on the result, Norwood remarked: "It was a great video, dance and everything. It was dope.”[19]

Track listings

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ)[55] Gold 5,000*
United States (RIAA)[56] Platinum 1,000,000[57]

* Sales figures based on certification alone.

Release history
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States December 12, 1995 — Arista
United Kingdom January 22, 1996
  • CD
  • cassette
[58]
United States January 30, 1996 Contemporary hit radio Arista [59]
Japan February 21, 1996 Mini-CD [60]

Cover versions

In 1997, jazz fusion/contemporary jazz group Pieces of a Dream offered their take on the album Pieces.[61]

References
  1. Bass Player Magazine, January 2000. Bassplayer.com. Accessed on February 23, 2009.
  2. Waiting to Exhale (Media notes). Various Artists. Arista Records. 1995.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  3. Gentles, Gary (May 5, 2010). "Babyface: Breaking Down The Hits". Singersroom. Retrieved May 6, 2015.
  4. "Full Clip: Brandy Breaks Down Her Entire Catalogue Feat. Babyface, Monica, Timbaland, Kanye West, Diddy & More". Vibe. February 11, 2011. Retrieved May 6, 2015.
  5. Lytle, Craig. "Waiting to Exhale Soundtrack: AllMusic review". AllMusic. Retrieved August 28, 2010.
  6. Flick, Larry (January 6, 1996). "Reviews & Previews: Singles" (PDF). Billboard. p. 76. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  7. Werthman, Christine (August 30, 2010). "The 100 Best Songs of the 2000s". Complex. Rich Antoniello, CEO. Retrieved October 2, 2014.
  8. Cheo Hodari Coker (February 4, 1996). "Pop Music: Simply Singles - No Waiting for 'Exhale' Follow-Ups". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 30, 2010.
  9. "Reviews: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. January 13, 1996. p. 24. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  10. Jones, Alan (January 13, 1996). "Talking Music" (PDF). Music Week. p. 24. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  11. Sinclair, David (January 20, 1996). "Sittin' Up In My Room; Pop single". The Times.
  12. "Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart listing for the week of January 13, 1996". Billboard. January 13, 1996. Retrieved August 29, 2010.
  13. "Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart listing for the week of January 13, 1996". Billboard. January 13, 1996. Retrieved August 29, 2010.
  14. "Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart listing for the week of March 2, 1996". Billboard. March 2, 1996. Retrieved August 29, 2010.
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  18. ""Sittin' Up In My Room" single RIAA certification awards". The Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 27, 2010.
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  21. Sittin' Up in My Room (US cassette single sleeve). Brandy. Arista Records. 1996. 07822-12929-4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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