20 Years Later: The Most Influential Albums of 1994

A look back at most memorable albums from two decades ago.

 Aaliyah, Age Ain’t Nothing But a Number - With this boisterous title, a 15-year-old Aaliyah arrived in the music world with a mature, sultry sound, which was way ahead of her time — mainly due to her mentor (and then-hubby) R. Kelly. The album successfully captured Kellz' sexual prowess while maintaining the purity and innocence of the Detroit teenager. Her falsetto voice carefully wrapped with the perfect balance of rough beats and smooth melodies thrust Aaliyah into international stardom with the certified gold singles "At Your Best" and "Back & Forth" and with the title track, "Age Ain’t Nothing But a Number."
Da Brat, Funkdafied - This debut album from Da Brat was iconic because it sold more than one million copies, making her the first solo femcee to go platinum. Although Brat was raised in the Chicago area, Funkdafied, released on June 28, features strong West Coast elements, mainly borrowed from Snoop Dogg. The album was well received not only because of Jermaine Dupri's production chops, but because the Brat-tat-tat-tat fit right in with the fellas, painting herself as a hard-hitting chick who was "nothing to f—k with."The album featured the chart-topping singles "Funkdafied" and "Fa All Yall" and peaked at No.1 on the R&B charts (before there was rap chart, of course).(Photo: So So Def Records)
Outkast, Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik - Outkast’s debut, Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, was more like a grandiloquent announcement of the arrival of the South. The artistically creative album, released on April 26, was produced by Organized Noize. It featured a newly packaged sound blending thumping bass, live instruments and the imaginative storytelling of the Atlanta-based duo. André 3000 and Big Boi laid the foundation for the region's crossover respect with their uniqueness, a dose of humor, poetic plays on words and the perfect balance of energy, which showcased the duo's polar opposite personalities. Boasting two chart-topping singles, "Players Ball" and "Git Up Git Out," Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik will forever go down in history for putting ATL on the map in the midst of the East and West Coast ...
Brandy, Brandy - When a 15-year-old Brandy stepped on the scene with her debut self-titled album on September 27, she spoke for teenaged girls across the nation. The album's first single, "I Wanna Be Down," exemplified Brandy's innocence and yearning to be accepted not only by real-world peers, but by the industry as well, with an array of contemporary genres, including soul, R&B and hip hop, blended on the project.And the braids-sporting, apple jack hat-rocking singer's presence added a youthful element to the female R&B scene, which was then heavily dominated by Mary J. Blige and Janet Jackson.Brandy eventually reached multi-platinum status and international success.(Photo: Atlantic)Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Creepin on ah Come Up - The Cleveland, Ohio-bred group Bone Thugs-N-Harmony rocked the music world by setting themselves apart from traditional gangsta rappers with their melodious, fast-paced street tales on their debut album.Led by the '94 summer anthem "Thuggish Ruggish Bone," Creepin on ah Come Up put the fivesome (Layzie Bone, Flesh-n-Bone, Bizzy Bone, Wish Bone and Krayzie Bone) on the map and was ranked on The Source magazine's Top 100 Best Rap Albums list in 2008, laying the foundation for their sophomore success, E. 1999 Eternal, the following year.With a co-sign by the late great Eazy E, who literally signed the group to his Ruthless Records and appeared on the track "For tha Love of Money," Bone Thugs went on to become one of the biggest-selling rap groups of ...

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Da Brat, Funkdafied - This debut album from Da Brat was iconic because it sold more than one million copies, making her the first solo femcee to go platinum. Although Brat was raised in the Chicago area, Funkdafied, released on June 28, features strong West Coast elements, mainly borrowed from Snoop Dogg. The album was well received not only because of Jermaine Dupri's production chops, but because the Brat-tat-tat-tat fit right in with the fellas, painting herself as a hard-hitting chick who was "nothing to f—k with."The album featured the chart-topping singles "Funkdafied" and "Fa All Yall" and peaked at No.1 on the R&B charts (before there was rap chart, of course).(Photo: So So Def Records)

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