Willis continued to pursue her music career after leaving MCA. In 1996, she recorded an EP for A&M Records entitled "Fading Fast". However, her relationship with A&M was short-lived; after working with two major labels, Willis decided to record her next album on her own. Her efforts resulted in the 1999 album "What I Deserve", which Willis sold to Rykodisc after finishing the album. "What I Deserve" received quite a bit of press after the album's release. It was commonly seen as Willis's response to her history with MCA, and was uniformly praised by critics, becoming a hit for Willis.