Pronounced Jah-Nay is the debut studio album by American R&B group Zhané. It was released on February 15, 1994, via Motown. Recording sessions took place at Enterprise Studios and at Encore Studios in Burbank, at Marion Recording Studio in Fairview, New Jersey, and at Unique Recording Studios and at Soundtrack Studios in New York City. Production was handled by Naughty by Nature and Zhané. The album peaked at number thirty-seven on the Billboard 200 and number eight on the Top R&B Albums chart. It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America on October 4, 1996.
The album produced five singles: "Hey Mr. D.J.", "Groove Thang", "Sending My Love", "Vibe" and "You're Sorry Now". Its lead single, "Hey Mr. D.J.", became the group's most successful song, reaching number six on the Billboard Hot 100 and receiving gold certification by the RIAA.
Music & Media wrote, "The concept this female duo–Renee Neufville and Jean Norris–practises is relatively new. Blending sweet soul music with hip hop rhythm tracks, the outcome is not unlike "Sons Of Soul" Tony! Toni! Tone!. Compared to their own streetwise rap records, producers Naughty By Nature were very smooth operators in the studio for this one. Apart from the two singles "Hey Mr. D.J." and "Groove Thang" the beat is rather slow. Pronounce "Ge-nius," we say sans gene."[9]