Monifah (born Monifa Carter, January 28, 1972) is an American female R&B singer-songwriter. She is best known for her hits "I Miss You (Come Back Home)," "You" and "Touch It."

Career

Monifah was raised in the Spanish Harlem section of Manhattan, she was signed to Uptown/MCA Records, under the direction of Heavy D. (who at the time was the head of Uptown, and to whom she was romantically linked). In 1996, her debut album, Moods…Moments was released. The album featured the hits: "I Miss You (Come Back Home)," "You" and "You Don't Have to Love Me," all of which received heavy rotation on BET, The album was RIAA certified gold by shipments selling 426,000 copies to date.[citation needed] In 1997, she contributed the Heavy D.-produced "I Still Love You" to the soundtrack of the film, Sprung

Monifah's second album was Mo'Hogany. Released in the last quarter of 1998, it featured "Touch It" (which included samples of Laid Back's hit "White Horse"), which peaked at #9 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. It was also a crossover hit, peaking at #1 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart, eventually selling 778,000 copies; the album was RIAA certified platinum in May 2000.

Monifah's third album Home, released in 2000, was produced by Teddy Riley and contained "I Can Tell," "Brown Eyes" and "Fairytales." The album was not as successful as Monifah's previous efforts, selling 201,100 copies. In 2003 she played a supporting role in Michael Baisden's "Men Cry In the Dark" stage play (also on available on DVD).