“What About Us?” highlighted Brandy in a light audiences had never seen her before. Her attitude was much more aggressive– like a grown woman handling her business. She no longer was clueless about the game– as she stood in a space tunnel swinging a baseball bat in stiletto boots and all leather, biker attire. Just like her peers Aaliyah, Beyoncé, and Kelly Rowland she had found independence with the help of electro-hop driven production that was meant to flip the pop world upside down. “(What about all of the), the ice that you gave?” she questioned a philandering mate over cell phone-altered vocals as her newly found alter-ego, B-Rocka.

“What About Us?” became somewhat of a surprising hit during the time. Just as fast as electro-hop&B picked up in the mainstream market, was just as fast as it seemed to burn out. R&B looked as if it was transitioning out of that genre, instead looking to revitalize traditional hip hop soul and its collaborations akin to Mary J. Blige’s groove from the ‘90s. This mainly felt that way because the void of Aaliyah’s tragic death in 2001 could be felt– as the main creators of the sound, Timbaland and Missy Elliott were not only grieving but searching high and low for other muses. Still, Brandy had Darkchild to depend on. “What About Us?” peaked in the Top 10 on multiple global charts, including the Billboard Hot 100.

Make no mistake– electro-hop&B remained a key part of the overall Full Moon sound, but with Brandy’s effort it added stacks and layers. The title track, (which funnily enough) dropped on April 1, as a single, had been unlike anything ever heard in R&B up to that point. It masterfully blended the waves of synth-electro with a soulful funk. The synths sounded like a lighthearted organ, with a wobbling sound that resembled a bass speaker rattling in a Milky Way galaxy nightclub– while Brandy sang in a newly found lower register. Towards the end her voice and octaves get louder, selling the message of meeting someone for the first time at a party on a fateful night according to the moon’s 30 day cycle.

It had been the ad-libs of the titular song that elevated it above her peers. There is a reason why Brandy is nicknamed “The Vocal Bible” today. While most of her peers ad-libbed just fine, Brandy actually took risks throughout not only that song– but many others. When you least expect her to go “I ain’t ee-oon… gonna lie-ee-i-hi-i-i” on “Full Moon,” you literally have to pause and go back and rewind. It’s like a pot of gold in the ears with a rainbow leading to so many other moments. The craziest part: “Full Moon” is only track No. 2; there are still 14 more to go!

As an album, Full Moon did not receive a fully fleshed out era– during a time where music projects depended on them. This mainly happened because Brandy was pregnant with her only child– which was a moment that built up its own controversy. However, Full Moon is so powerful of a legacy album, because it stood the test of time for its deep cuts. While R&B acts depended on single, Brandy stayed in the mainstream consciousness based on the “woulda coulda shoulda’s” of the album. While it may not have been No. 1 on the charts– Full Moon for sure was No. 1 in the households of many growing up on (or growing alongside) Brandy.