The Promise

The Promise is the fifth studio album by Canadian R&B singer Deborah Cox. It was released on November 11, 2008 worldwide and marked her debut with Image Entertainment and Deco Recording Group. While her 2007 album Destination Moon was a jazz tribute, this one marks her return to R&B music six years after The Morning After (2002). The album received a generally good critical reception. The Promise debuted at number 106 on the US Billboard 200, number 14 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and number 95 on the Canadian Albums Chart. The album was nominated for R&B/Soul Recording of the Year at the 2009 Juno Awards. It also features Cox's tenth number hit on the Dance Club Songs chart, "Beautiful U R". Critical reception People magazine critic Ivory Jeff rated The Promise three out of four stars. He found that with The Promise "Cox makes a winning return to the pop-friendly soul with which she began her career. Her powerful yet sensitive delivery is showcased on smooth grooves and ballads like the John Legend-assisted title track." Jon Pareles from The New York Times wrote that "tears lurk just behind Deborah Cox's tremulous voice, and the closer they get to the surface the better she sounds on her fourth R&B studio album [...] While echoes of Ms. Houston haven't completely disappeared, and there's a hint of Ms. Jackson in some songs, the album reveals much more of Ms. Cox's tangy, sympathetic voice [...] Whether she's aching or pulling herself together, she now sounds like her own woman." Toronto Star critic Ashante Infantry remarked that while "Cox's rich pipes are as vibrant as ever, there's not a single song taking them to their 1998 "Nobody's Supposed to Be Here" zenith."