Brandy Rayana Norwood (born February 11, 1979), known professionally as
Brandy, is an American
R&B singer-songwriter,
record producer,
actress, television entertainer,
film producer and occasional
rapper.
Born into a musical family in
McComb,
Mississippi and raised in
Carson, California, Norwood first appeared in a supporting role on the short-lived
ABC sitcom Thea in 1993. Her engagement led to her own star vehicle, successful
UPN sitcom
Moesha in 1996, and resulted into roles in the 1998
horror sequel I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, and the TV films
Rodgers and Hammerstein's
Cinderella (1997) and
Double Platinum (1999), two of television's best rated special programs.
In 1993, she signed a recording contract with Atlantic, releasing her self-titled debut album a year after. Following a major success with Grammy Award-winning "The Boy Is Mine", a duet with singer Monica, and her second album Never Say Never in 1998, a series of successful records established her as one of the most successful of the new breed of urban R&B female vocalists to emerge during the mid-to late 1990s. Her latest studio album, Human (2008), was her first effort to be released on the Epic label after a label change in 2005.
