Dangerously in Love is the debut solo studio album by American singer and songwriter Beyoncé. It was released on June 20, 2003, by Columbia Records and Music World Entertainment. The album features guest appearances by Beyoncé's then-boyfriend Jay-Z, as well as Missy Elliott, Sean Paul, Big Boi of Outkast, Sleepy Brown, and Luther Vandross, with international editions including vocals from Vanness Wu and IAM. Musically, the album is a mixture of uptempo tracks and ballads, all of which are primarily R&B songs, while also incorporating elements of soul, hip-hop, and Arabic music.
During the recording of Destiny's Child's third studio album Survivor (2001), the group announced that each member would record solo albums. Recording sessions for Dangerously in Love took place from March 2002 to March 2003 at various recording studios during the group's hiatus. As the executive producer of the album, Beyoncé took a wider role in its production, co-writing a majority of the songs, choosing which ones to produce and sharing ideas on mixing and mastering. Although she remained discreet about her interpretation of the album's songs, their underlying meanings were attributed by media outlets as allusions to her intimate relationship with rapper Jay-Z.
Upon its release, Dangerously in Love received mixed reviews from music critics but was a commercial success, with the album debuting at number one on the US Billboard 200 with sales of 317,000 copies in its first week. At the 46th Annual Grammy Awards (2004), the album and its songs won five awards, including Best Contemporary R&B Album; Beyoncé consequently tied with Lauryn Hill, Alicia Keys and Norah Jones for the record of most Grammy Awards won by a woman at a single ceremony. Dangerously in Love has been certified septuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. It remains Beyoncé's bestseller and one of the best-selling albums of the 21st century, with sales of over 11 million copies worldwide.
Dangerously in Love produced four singles. "Crazy in Love" and "Baby Boy" spent eight and nine consecutive weeks, respectively, atop the US Billboard Hot 100. "Me, Myself and I" peaked at number four in the US but reached lower peaks than its predecessors internationally. "Naughty Girl" peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and inside the top ten in several other countries. The final single was a cover of Donny Hathaway and Roberta Flack's "The Closer I Get to You", sung by Beyoncé and Luther Vandross. Beyoncé promoted the album through numerous live performances and two concert tours—Dangerously in Love Tour (2003) and Verizon Ladies First Tour (2004), the latter co-headlined with Alicia Keys and Elliott, while the former yielded the live album Live at Wembley (2004).
Background and development
Beyoncé launched her career as the lead singer in the R&B girl group Destiny's Child in the late 1990s. According to Corey Moss of MTV News, "fans [were] eager to see" how Beyoncé, after years with the group, would perform as a solo artist. While recording their third album Survivor in late 2000, Beyoncé announced the group would be put on hiatus in order for the members to record solo albums in the coming years, which they hoped would boost interest in Destiny's Child. The idea for individual releases came from the group's manager and Beyoncé's father Mathew Knowles. With different musical styles for each member to produce, the albums were not intended to compete on the charts. Destiny's Child's management strategically planned to stagger the release of each group member's album to maximize sales.
Michelle Williams was the first to release a debut solo album, titled Heart to Yours, in April 2002.
Recording and production
thumb|165px|left|Beyoncé performing the title track "[[Dangerously in Love 2"—originally recorded by Destiny's Child—during The Beyoncé Experience tour in 2007|alt=A woman sings on stage. She wears a long transparent dress while she holds her left arm open.]]
Before Beyoncé began recording for Dangerously in Love, she selected the producers with whom she would collaborate. For two days, she held meetings with prospective producers from the West Coast across the East Coast, and had interviews with them. Beyoncé went to Miami to begin sessions with producer Scott Storch, her first collaborator, and lived in a hotel for the following months. As she wanted to concentrate on the album, Beyoncé took her time to avoid pressure, a markedly different approach from the hasty productions of Destiny's Child's albums.
Survivor included a track titled "Dangerously in Love", which was considered too sophisticated compared with the album's other tracks, and Destiny's Child decided not to release it as a single. After recording several tracks for Dangerously in Love, Beyoncé decided to re-record and add the track, retitling it "Dangerously in Love 2", after realizing that it fit the album's overarching theme of her album. Although Beyoncé did not create beats, she came up with melodies and ideas she shared with the producers. Since the album's release date was postponed so Columbia Records could capitalize on the success of Kelly Rowland's feature on Nelly's "Dilemma", Beyoncé was given the chance to further enhance the record. Although she was disappointed with the decision, Beyoncé realized that "everything happens for a reason", agreeing to return to the recording studio to work with other songwriters. This allowed her to record more songs, including the album's lead single "Crazy in Love". In late 2002, Beyoncé paused working on Dangerously in Love in favor of a holiday tour with Destiny's Child. Consequently, Beyoncé planned to release a follow-up album made up of leftover tracks from Dangerously in Love, because the sessions had produced enough material for another album.