Tracy Chapman

Tracy Chapman is the eponymous debut from the iconic singer-songwriter. The album’s deep history began in 1987, when Brian Koppelman, a student at Tufts University—the same school Chapman attended—was venturing to find a volunteer singer willing to attend his apartheid protest. When he was pointed in the direction of Chapman, he attended one of her live shows at the Cappuccino coffeehouse. When Chapman’s set concluded, Koppelman approached her and excitedly offered her a recording deal at SBK Records, a label where his father worked. She initially declined the offer, but after his insistence and attendance of more shows, she planned a meeting with him, refusing to record any demos. Not long after their meeting, Koppelman discovered a demo of “Talkin’ Bout a Revolution” among a handful of other songs she previously recorded. He took it to various radio stations, and after it garnered success, he took the tape to his father. His father reportedly was blown away, almost instantaneously flying to Chapman to sign her to Elektra Records and begin recording a debut.

Writing for Tracy Chapman began shortly after Chapman’s signing to Elektra, but a majority of producers declined working with her because of her acoustic style; a majority of the commercially successful music being released in 1987 was coming from synth-pop and dance-pop artists. The hassle of finding a producer was finalized when Koppelman and Chapman hired David Kershenbaum, who was eager to work with someone who was making acoustic music. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Kershenbaum stated:

I’d been looking for something acoustic to do for some time […] There was a sense in the industry of a slight boredom with everything out there and that people might be willing to listen again to lyrics and to someone who made statements.

Recording lasted for eight weeks at Powertrax studios in Hollywood, California. In an interview with The Guardian in 2002, Chapman explained that the lyrical content of the album was open to interpretation:

This record has lots of contemporary issues […] The first record is seen as being more social commentary… more political. But I think that’s just all about perspective.

She also stated in 1996 with The Guardian that, “My first record was almost not my first record.”

When the album was released in April, 1988, it was immediately met with commercial success, selling over two million copies within the first two weeks. Since its release, Tracy Chapman has sold over 20 million copies worldwide and won three GRAMMY Awards: one for the Best New Artist category, Best Pop Vocal Performance [Female], and Best Contemporary Folk Recording. The album was also met with immediate critical acclaim as well as retrospectively.