The Songstress

The Songstress is the debut solo studio album by the American R&B/soul singer Anita Baker. It was originally released in 1983 by Beverly Glen Music, and was Baker's only album for that label prior to signing with Elektra Records with whom she had a string of hit albums. The Songstress was not a commercial success upon its initial release, though the album met with moderate success on the R&B charts. It did have a 1984 compact disc release and was one of the first independently released compact Discs. Notorious drug trafficker "Freeway" Rick Ross helped provide the money for the album.

Baker became a major international success after signing with Elektra Records (a division of Warner Music Group) in 1986, and Elektra acquired the rights to The Songstress and re-released it with a new cover in 1991. Between 1992 and 2007, the album sold 307,000 copies in the US according to SoundScan figures.