Her debut album, The Soul Sessions, consists of classic soul tracks by Betty Wright, Aretha Franklin, Laura Lee and Bettye Swann and was released in late 2003. It reached the top 5 in the UK albums chart, and also made the top forty of the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart.
Joss Stone was nominated for "British Breakthrough Act", and won "British Female Solo Artist" and "British Urban Act", entering the Guinness World Records for being the youngest BRIT Award solo winner at age seventeen.
After achieving critical acclaim for The Soul Sessions, Stone recorded an album full of original songs in 2004 titled Mind, Body & Soul.
It proved to be an even bigger success than her first album, as it debuted at #1 in the UK (breaking the record for the youngest female ever to top the albums charts there, a record previously held by Avril Lavigne).
Stone began working on her third studio album, Introducing Joss Stone, at Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas, in May 2006.
It was released on 12 March 2007 in the UK on Virgin Records, involving production by Raphael Saadiq and collaborations with Lauryn Hill, Common and Joi.
Stone describes it as "truly me. That's why I'm calling it Introducing Joss Stone. These are my words, and this is who I am as an artist".
The album debuted and peaked at number twelve on the UK Albums Chart. It also debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 selling 118,000 copies in its first week, becoming the highest debut for a British solo female artist on the U.S. chart, surpassing the record previously held by Amy Winehouse with Back to Black. It has sold 60,000 copies in the UK since its release.
Joss Stone was nominated for the MOBO Award for "Best UK Female" in September 2007, but lost out to Amy Winehouse.
Tell Me 'Bout It, the album's lead single, debuted and peaked at number twenty-eight on the UK Singles Chart—where it stayed for three weeks only, and peaked at number eighty-three on the U.S Billboard Hot 100.
The second single, Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now, a collaboration with rapper Common, made the top sixty-five of the U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.
Joss Stone turned its music video to a Product Red — this means that the video is available online over iTunes Store and that the gains from these sales revert to Product Red, an organisation which helps women and children in Africa affected by HIV and/or AIDS.
Joss Stone is the first artist to do this, entering the Guinness World Records once again.
On 4 October 2007, Stone's official website confirmed Baby Baby Baby as the album's third single.
Stone's fifth album, LP1 was released on 26 July 2011. The Somehow Songfacts says that the long player was the first release through Stone's own Stone'd Records and was recorded in just a week at Blackbird Studios in Nashville. Stone fought a legal battle with her record company EMI to release her from her contract and The LP1 album title signifies the fresh start the singer felt she was making.
Trivia:
Worryingly for fans of Stone, she recently confessed that singing is not a career she plans to stick to: she told a journalist recently that she would like to give it up in a few years to become a normal housewife with a husband and children.
Singles:
* 2004 - Fell In Love With A Boy
* 2004 - Super Duper Love
* 2004 - You Had Me
* 2004 - Right To Be Wrong
* 2005 - Spoiled
* 2005 - The Right Time (Cover of Extra for the GAP-Ad)
* 2005 - Don't Cha Wanna Ride?
* 2007 - Tell Me 'Bout It
* 2007 - Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now
Snakes And Ladders
Joss Stone Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It takes all you got
Just to keep it moving up
Don't you want to reach the top
But heaven seems such a crazy dream
If your heart has room for doubt
You're neither in you're neither out
You gotta give me all of you
Not asking too much of a heart that's true
So tell me
[Chorus:]
What's the name of the game that we are playing
But whenever I think that we are winning
Then you roll the dice take a slide
Right back to the one from 99
Is it gonna go on like this forever
Are we gonna to take that last step together
Going round and round and up and down
Feels just like snakes and ladders
Baby don't it feel like a carousel
Where all the world is rushing by
But when it stops you realize
That you're right back where you started at
I need a little more than that
It time for us to face the facts
Whether to be or not to be
That is the question so it seems
We're going nowhere in between
So tell me
[Chorus]
Don't want to play this game anymore
I gotta know right now for sure
What am I giving my heart for
Baby I need a little more
Don't leave me hanging on a string
Now that I gave you everything
Not when I play to win
Snakes and ladders
[Chorus: x2]
Joss Stone's song "Snakes" is about the ups and downs of love and relationships. She compares it to a game of snakes and ladders where you're constantly going up and down and never knowing where you'll end up. The chorus asks what the name of the game is and questions whether they'll ever reach the finish line together. The verses talk about how it takes all you've got to keep love moving up, but doubt can cause you to slide back down.
Stone sings about needing more than just going around in circles and how it's time to face the facts. The song ultimately asks for transparency and clarity in the relationship. The title of the song, "Snakes," is a reference to the snakes in the game of snakes and ladders, which make the player slide back down the board. This symbolizes the setbacks and obstacles that can occur in a relationship.
The song's lyrics are relatable to anyone who has been in a relationship that has felt like a game of snakes and ladders. The song is a soulful ballad, showcasing Stone's powerful vocals. The emphasis on the chorus is heightened by background singers and a catchy melody that makes it easy to sing along.
Line by Line Meaning
In the game of love
Being in a romantic relationship is like a game.
It takes all you got
Being in a relationship requires a huge effort.
Just to keep it moving up
It takes a lot to keep a romantic relationship from falling apart.
Don't you want to reach the top
Don't you want to have a successful and fulfilling romantic relationship?
But heaven seems such a crazy dream
A perfect relationship seems impossible.
If your heart has room for doubt
If you have doubts about your relationship.
You're neither in you're neither out
You're not fully in or out of the relationship.
99 1/2 it just won't do
Half-hearted effort is not enough.
You gotta give me all of you
You need to put your all into the relationship.
Not asking too much of a heart that's true
Expecting everything from a sincere heart is not too much.
So tell me
Please tell me.
[Chorus:] What's the name of the game that we are playing
What is our relationship supposed to be?
But whenever I think that we are winning
Just when things seem to be going well.
Then you roll the dice take a slide
Then you make a big mistake that sets us back.
Right back to the one from 99
Back to a point we were at before, with little progress made.
Is it gonna go on like this forever
Will our relationship always have these ups and downs?
Are we gonna to take that last step together
Are we going to commit to each other completely?
Going round and round and up and down
Our relationship feels like a cycle of highs and lows.
Feels just like snakes and ladders
Our relationship feels like the game snakes and ladders.
Baby don't it feel like a carousel
Our relationship feels like a never-ending cycle.
Where all the world is rushing by
Where everything else is moving fast but our relationship is stagnant.
But when it stops you realize
When you finally stop and look around.
That you're right back where you started at
You're back to square one in your relationship.
I need a little more than that
I need something more fulfilling than this.
It time for us to face the facts
We need to confront the reality of our relationship.
Whether to be or not to be
The question of whether or not we should stay together.
That is the question so it seems
It seems like a difficult question to answer.
We're going nowhere in between
Our relationship is not making any progress.
Don't want to play this game anymore
I don't want to be in this relationship anymore.
I gotta know right now for sure
I need to know for sure what we're doing with our relationship.
What am I giving my heart for
I need to know what I'm investing myself in.
Baby I need a little more
I need something more fulfilling.
Don't leave me hanging on a string
Don't keep me on the hook waiting for a resolution.
Now that I gave you everything
Now that I've put my all into this relationship.
Not when I play to win
I won't settle for anything less than a winning relationship.
Snakes and ladders
This relationship is like a game of snakes and ladders.
[Chorus: x2]
Repeat the chorus twice.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: CONNOR REEVES, JONATHAN NICHOLAS SHORTEN, JOSS STONE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind