Faces to Watch in ’96 : The Year’s in Their Hands : Well, maybe not just theirs (notice we don’t list Jim Carrey). But these artists and entertainers--some you know, some you don’t--are most likely to make some kind of splash in ’96. Ready? Everybody into the pool. : POP MUSIC : Tony Rich

Singer-songwriter Tony Rich doesn’t mind being compared to pop-R&B; marvel Babyface after writing, producing and playing most of the instruments on his own debut album, which is scheduled to be released Jan. 16--by Babyface’s LaFace Records.

“It won’t be forever,” Rich says of the comparison. “At one point, Toni Braxton was compared to Anita Baker, and now she’s not. Now she’s Toni Braxton. I know I have to go through that.”

A Detroit native who now lives in Atlanta, Rich, 23, was “discovered” by pro basketball player John Salley, who gave the young artist access to his recording and production facilities. That led to a meeting with Pebbles, who used four of Rich’s songs on her current album and introduced him to her husband, Antonio (L.A.) Reid, Babyface’s partner in LaFace. Reid and Babyface, whose roster includes TLC and Braxton, brought Rich on board as a writer and producer.

On “Words,” his debut album, Rich mixes acoustic, folk-flavored pop with soul, but the emphasis, as the title suggests, is on the lyrics.

“I’m expecting to make a connection with the people,” says Rich, who bills himself as the Tony Rich Project. “I want them to remember the songs as something that really touched their lives, as opposed to [remembering only] a nice beat they’ve already heard before.”