Walk of Fame Star honoring Brandy to be unveiled

A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is set to be unveiled today honoring Brandy for a more than three-decade career that has made her one of the best-selling female singers of all time.

Singer/music producer Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds and actress, writer and producer Issa Rae are set to join Brandy in speaking during the 11:30 a.m. ceremony at  6201 Hollywood Blvd., near Arygle Avenue.    

Edmonds wrote and produced “Sittin’ Up in My Room,” which brought Brandy a best female R&B vocal performance Grammy nomination in 1997.    

Rae has said she was inspired by Brandy’s 1996-2001 UPN comedy “Moesha.”    

The ceremony comes one day before the release of Brandy’s memoir “Phases.”

The star is the 2,839th since the completion of the Walk of Fame in 1961 with the initial 1,558 stars.

Born Brandy Rayana Norwood on Feb, 11, 1979, in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Carson, Brandy began singing when she was 2 years old. She released her self-titled debut album in 1994. It sold 6 million copies worldwide. Its U.S. sales of 2.1 million gave it four-time platinum status

according to the trade group, the Recording Industry Association of America.

Brandy received the first two of her 13 Grammy nominations in 1996 for best new artist, which was won by the rock band, Hootie & the Blowfish, and best female R&B vocal performance for “Baby.”

In addition to her nomination for “Sittin’ Up in My Room,” she was also nominated in 1997 for best pop collaboration with vocals for “Missing You,” when she was a late replacement for Mary J. Blige, in joining Tamia, Gladys Knight and Chaka Khan for “Missing You.”

Brandy won her lone Grammy in 1999 for best R&B performance by a duo

or group with vocal when she teamed with Monica for “The Boy is Mine.”

The nomination was one of four for Brandy that year. She was also nominated for best R&B song and record of the year for “The Boy is Mine” and best R&B album for “Never Say Never,” her second album, which included “The Boy is Mine.”   

“Never Say Never” sold 4.6 million copies in the U.S., achieving five-time platinum status.

Brandy was nominated for best female R&B vocal performance in 2000 for “Almost Doesn’t Count”; best contemporary R&B album in 2003 for “Full Moon” and in 2005 for “Afrodisiac.”

Her most recent Grammy nominations came in 2019 for best R&B performance for “Love Again” and in 2024 for best pop duo/group performance for a remix of “The Boy is Mine” with Ariana Grande and Monica.    

Brandy received a Black Music Icon Award from the Recording Academy on Jan. 29. The award recognizes Black music creators “whose artistry, innovation and service have shaped the industry and inspired generations around the world,” according to the academy.

Brandy became the first African American to play the role of Cinderella in the 1997 ABC made-for-television movie. She reprised the role in the 2024 Disney+ musical teen fantasy comedy film “Descendants: The Rise of Red” and will return to the role in “Descendants: Wicked Wonderland,” set to premiere this summer on Disney Channel.

Her other acting credits include the 1998 slasher film “I Still Know What You Did Last Summer,” the BET comedy-drama “The Game,” the 2016 BET comedy “Zoe”; the Fox musical drama “Star”; and the 2021-22 ABC musical drama “Queens.”All Walk of Fame ceremonies are streamed on walkoffame.com, and can later be seen on YouTube.com/@HwdWalkofFame.