Curtis F. Gerald

"The Promise" is the 18th studio album by Earth, Wind & Fire. Released on Maurice White's label Kalimba Records, it was their first of new material in six years. The album reached #5 on the Top Independent Album Chart and #19 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Album Chart. It also featured collaborations with Angie Stone, The Emotions, Gerald Albright and Paulinho Da Costa. The album's cover art was designed by Morito Suzuki. The track "All About Love" is a different song and not a remake of their 1975 song of the same name from their album That's the Way of the World. The album cut produced and written by Tim & Bob Hold Me was nominated for a Grammy for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance.

"Aretha" is the 26th studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin. It was released on September 30, 1980, by Arista Records. This was the 2nd album with this title to be released by the artist, and her first for Arista Records after a 12-year tenure with Atlantic Records. Franklin's first Arista single release, "United Together", reached #3 on the Soul chart and crossed over to #56 on Billboard's Hot 100. The album itself peaked at #47 and spent 30 weeks on the Billboard album chart. The album's opening track, "Come to Me", appeared again on Franklin's 1989 album, "Through the Storm."