Goodies

Goodies is the debut studio album by American recording artist Ciara. It was released on September 28, 2004 via LaFace Records. After writing songs for several established acts, Ciara’s talents were noticed by Jazze Pha, and she began to work on what became Goodies. The album’s conception came through the which the title track, created as a female crunk counterpart to Usher’s “Yeah” and Petey Pablo’s “Freek-a-Leek.” Ciara worked with several writers and producers on the album, including Jazze Pha, Lil Jon, Bangladesh, R. Kelly, Johntá Austin, Sean Garrett, and Keri Hilson, among others.

With Goodies, Ciara was hailed as the “Princess or First Lady of Crunk&B.” The album uses dance music while utilizing pop, R&B, and hip-hop influences. The album delivers contradictory lyrical content, featuring female empowerment and independence-promoting lyrics in songs like the title track, while others show interest in adult activities.

Critics gave the album positive to mixed reviews, commending the “Goodies”-esque songs, while deeming others as unoriginal and noting Ciara’s limited vocal abilities. Most critics compared the work to the late singer Aaliyah, and also said it had qualities of Destiny’s Child. In the United States, the album peaked at number three on the Billboard 200, as well as charting internationally. It was later certified triple platinum by the RIAA, and as of June 2010, had sold over 2.7 million copies in the United States.