[2] Their output, the singles "You Put a Move on My Heart" and "Slow Jams", as well as "Missing You", a song Tamia recorded with Brandy, Gladys Knight, and Chaka Khan for the soundtrack of the 1996 motion picture Set It Off, each earned her nominations at the 40th Annual Grammy Awards.

[5] The company envisioned to establish her as their long-term urban signature act – similar to Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston, who enjoyed major commercial success with Virgin and Arista Records at that time.

[5] As a result, Elektra chairman/CEO Sylvia Rhone enlisted rapper-producer Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott and frequent co-producer Bink to work with Tamia on her second studio album.

[5] In his review for Billboard, Michael Paoletta called A Nu Day "a stunning new set", which cemented her appeal as "one of tomorrow's divas".

He declared the album "a nice pop-R&B record that doesn't set off to break much new ground [but] provides for a pleasurable and unchallenging listening experience.

"[6] Q magazine remarked that A Nu Day was dominated by "sass over schmaltz [...] the Missy Elliot-enhanced take on Hall & Oates' "I Can't Go for That" [...] is a high spot [with] echoes of Jill Scott in some of other jazzier tracks.

[8] Less impressed, Entertainment Weekly's Craig Seymour wrote that A Nu Day sees Tamia joining "the Toni Braxton school of hammy, self-conscious soul-singing that's more about affectation than honest emotion".

[11] Vibe editor Craig D. Frazier found that "overall, Tamia's sophomore effort is a refreshing change from the redundant styles that female singers have plastered all over the radio.

[5] Tamia visited retail, radio, press, and local video outlets in support of the album; she also performed at NetNoir's fifth anniversary celebration in New York City and at the Detroit Female Wellness Tour, sponsored by Procter & Gamble, Honey magazine, and BET Networks.