From The Vault is back this week with one of our favorite R&B starlets.
Today’s pick comes courtesy of the talented Mya with her 2003 effort ‘Fallen.’
Issued as the second single from the performer’s third album ‘Moodring’, the song sampled Hip-Hop classic ‘Runnin’’ by The Pharcyde, which itself was built around a sample of Bossa Nova jam ‘Saudade Vem Correndo’ by Luiz Bonfà.
Following the home run that was ‘Lady Marmelade’, ‘Moodring’ in many ways was designed to take Mya to the next level. The album’s first single – the Missy Elliott-produced ‘My Love Is Like Wo’ – was a Top 20 hit but for some incomprehensible reason ‘Fallen’ failed to make an impact on the Billboard Hot 100/ Indeed, it peaked right outside of the Top 50 at #51.
The video for the tune finds the songstress in besotted mode, following a guy she’s crushing over around New York City. From the newsstand in the morning to his bathtub in the evening. Directed by Darren Grant, aspects of the clip would be borrowed in Rihanna’s ‘What’s My Name?’ visual years later – a video that followed the then-red-haired beauty from sunrise to sunset around the Big Apple.
Sadly, ‘Fallen’ remains Mya’s last single to chart on the Hot 100.
Until this day, we’re perplexed at what prevented the entertainer from being one of the biggest names in music (commercially speaking). From the talent to the songs and the look, she had it all in earnest. Some say politics others ponder the product. For us, it will forever remain a mystery.
Thankfully, she has been able to experience success in different ways since then. Indeed, she embarked on an independent journey and released several successful albums for the Japanese market. She even snagged a GRAMMY nomination for her critically-acclaimed seventh LP ‘Smoove Jones’. As is increasingly becoming the case in the contemporary climate, success is relative and Mya has emerged as a textbook example of how.
She – alongside the Tinashes and Dawn Richards of the world – stands as a true testament that in the music industry there are many ways to win if you are ready to explore them.
We salute you, Ms. Harrison!