Keep the Faith (Faith Evans album)

Keep the Faith is the second album by American singer Faith Evans. It was released by Bad Boy Records on October 27, 1998, in the United States. Almost entirely written and produced by Evans, the album garnered generally mixed to positive reviews by music critics, with AllMusic noting it "without a doubt a highlight of 1990s soul-pop music." Also enjoying commercial success, it went platinum and produced the top ten singles "Love Like This" and "All Night Long," prompting Evans to start an 18-city theater tour with Dru Hill and Total the following year.

Background
Two years in the making, Evans' second solo album, Keep the Faith, was released during October 27, 1998.

Critical reception
AllMusic editor Jose F. Promis rated the album three stars out of five. He found that "Evans shines when she sings fast or mid-tempo songs, but the ballads weigh too heavily on this otherwise fine album [...] However, the classy Ms. Evans possesses a beautiful voice, is a gifted songwriter, and happily steers clear of the tacky clichés that burden so much contemporary R&B. So despite the heavy reliance on ballads, this is actually a fine album, and is without a doubt a highlight of 1990s soul-pop music." Matt Diehl from Entertainment Weekly noted that Keep the Faith "remains commercial R&B, all bedroom strings and Babyface-style acoustic accents. What sets Evans apart is that she, like her soul sista Mary J. Blige, investigates her pain in a way that contradicts the lush sonics [...] It's a far richer palette than her slicker peers offer; then again, we forget that Stevie, Marvin, and Aretha's soul was considered 'com-mercial' too. While Evans hasn't hit their heights, efforts like this give us faith that she might.

Los Angeles Times noted that "however heartfelt Evans' intentions may be in this homage to her late husband, the Notorious B.I.G., she seems more concerned with soliciting our empathy than with creating compelling R&B." Yahoo! Music critic Billy Johnson, Jr. felt that "only a few Keep the Faith songs have the potential to keep the talented vocalist at the top of the charts." Ernest Hardy from Rolling Stone felt that the album lacked song worthy of Evans' talent. He felt thath she "deserves to be known as more than the femme fatale in some bullshit hip-hop feud, and Keep the Faith is a strong reminder that she has the talent. All she lacks are the songs." Similarly, Craig Seymour remarked in his review for Village Voice: "Though there's much great singing on Keep the Faith, there are too few great or even good songs. While the mostly self-penned tunes on her debut at least had a fluid quality befitting her dewy vocals, on Keep the Faith they just seem aimless. If you're not paying attention to every twist and turn of her spiraling melismas, the album passes by like a summer breeze, pleasant but neither distinctive nor memorable."

Commercial performance
Keep the Faith debuted and peaked at number six on the US Billboard 200 in the week of November 14, 1998. Evans' first top ten album, it scored first week sales of 85,000 copies. By December 1998, the album had sold 251,000 units. On July 29, 1999, Keep the Faith was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Track listing
Samples
 * "Keep the Faith" samples "Never Alone" by Yolanda Adams
 * "Life Will Pass You By" samples "Gotta Make It Up to You" by Angela Bofill
 * "Love Like This" samples "Chic Cheer" by Chic
 * "Sunny Days" samples "I'm Back for More" by Al Johnson and Jean Carne
 * "All Night Long" samples "I Hear Music in the Streets" by Unlimited Touch

Personnel
Performers and musicians
 * Faith Evans – arranger, vocal arrangement, vocals, vocals (background)
 * Michael Thompson – guitar
 * Michael Hart Thompson – guitar
 * Babyface – drum programming, keyboards, vocals (background)
 * Damon Thomas – drum programming, keyboards
 * Mike Mason – piano, strings
 * Greg Phillinganes – piano
 * Nathan East – bass guitar
 * Ricky Lawson – drums


 * 112 – arranger, performer, vocal arrangement
 * Diddy – performer
 * Kelly Price – arranger, vocal arrangement, vocals (background)
 * Axel Niehaus – arranger, vocal arrangement
 * Carl Thomas – vocal arrangement
 * Kenya Ivey – vocals (background)
 * Tavia Ivey – vocals (background)
 * Lorne Rawls – arranger
 * DJ Rodgers – arranger
 * Mario Winans – overdubs

Technical


 * Charles "Prince Charles" Alexander – engineer, mixing
 * Tony Black – engineer, mixing
 * Axel Niehaus – engineer, mixing
 * Paul Boutin – engineer
 * Tom Cassel – engineer
 * Joe "Smilin' Joe" Perrera – engineer
 * Rob Paustian – engineer
 * Thom Russo – engineer
 * Doug Wilson – engineer
 * E'lyk – assistant engineer, mixing
 * Jon Gass – mixing
 * Tony Maserati – mixing
 * Michael Patterson – editing
 * Herb Powers – mastering
 * Gwendolyn Niles – project manager


 * Faith Evans – executive producer, producer
 * Sean "Puffy" Combs – executive producer, producer
 * Deric "D-Dot" Angelettie – associate executive producer
 * Babyface – producer
 * Mike Mason – producer
 * Ron Lawrence – producer
 * Carl Thompson – producer
 * David Foster – producer, vocal producer
 * Richard "Younglord" Frierson – producer
 * Todd Russaw – associate executive producer
 * Jesse Rivera – project coordinator
 * Albert Watson – photography
 * Gwynnis Mosby – make-up
 * Klya Wright – hair stylist