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Hip-Hop & R&B Music
- New Reviews
5 Discs = Classic | 4.0-4.5 Discs = Impressive | 3.0-3.5
Discs = Noteworthy
THIS MONTH WE HONOR
NATIONAL WOMEN'S HISTORY
MONTH
WITH MUSIC REVIEWS FROM THE WOMEN OF R&B! ENJOY!
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4.0 out of 5 discs |
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Janet Jackson
Discipline
Click Here To Order The
Deluxe Edition of Discipline |
There is not a lot that
can be said that hasn't already been said about Janet Jackson.
She's a mega superstar that has mastered the R&B and Pop
world, done a fair share of movies, and is the mainstay from
the illustrious Jackson family. Despite what critics and
naysayers throw at her, it never seems to break her spirit.
That is probably one of the reasons she called her latest
album Discipline because a weaker entertainer would
have surely buckled to all the ridicule she's endured.
The lead-off single "Feedback" set the tone for what listeners
could expect from her latest CD, encompassing a rhythmic flow
coupled with a heavy dose of dance music to acknowledge her
global fans who are more into that sound. "Luv" is along
the same lines, but with more rhythm and pop than "Feedback."
"Rollercoaster" has a touch of old school Janet with a
high-energy beat that is perfect workout music for the
playlist enthusiasts out there. "Rock With U" (don't
worry, it's not a remake of her brother's classic) is a good
club track with plenty of sensuality in it's delivery,
something Janet is the master at doing. She takes it up
another notch with "2nite," an intensely animated dance track
that she pulls off nicely. "Can't B Good" brings it back
down to the mellowed out Janet, and continues the mood with
the seductive "Never Letchu Go" and the taboo song "Greatest
X" where she tells about the pleasure from a previous flame.
She then switches right back to the upbeat and abstract "So
Much Betta" and the equally eccentric "The 1" featuring Missy
Elliott. "What's Ur Name" is a nice mid-tempo cut that
clocks in under 3 minutes but doesn't feel like an extended
interlude. "Discipline" embodies some of the singer's most
erotic lyrics ever, with words that go well beyond sexual
innuendo and will certainly set the mood quick fast and in a
hurry if you leave this song on during an intimate night with
that special someone. She closes the album with the
aptly-titled "Curtains," a simple ditty where Janet brings the
show to the bedroom for a private performance. Not
sticking to one set genre, Discipline is a hodgepodge
of music that just feels right together. Some 'casual'
fans may feel like there isn't enough slow, R&B cuts while
others may feel like she should have made it a dance album all
the way. One things for sure, you definitely won't go
away without being entertained, and that is something Janet
Jackson delivers on a consistent basis. |
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4 out of 5 discs |
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Erykah Badu is easily
one of the most incognito R&B artist of our day. Her
last offering was 2003's Worldwide Underground EP (it
was actually a few minutes longer than the standard 45 minute
threshold that are accustom to EP's) and before that was
2000's classic offering Mama's Gun. Now ready to
capture the attention of the masses once again, Erykah Badu
stays in left field with New Amerykah, Pt 1. This
album takes on much of the same unique qualities that set her
apart from the pack, and it's easily one of those albums you
enjoy more and more each time you listen to it. "Amerykahn
Promise" is a funked-out, Parliament Funkadelic type track
that features no real lyrics but is entertaining nonetheless.
"The Healer (Hip-Hop)," produced by the underappreciated
Madlib, is a subdued, abstract song where Erykah uses a more
prosaic delivery of her thoughts. "Me" is a more
structured, mellowed-out, soulful cut produced by Sa-Ra that
is more traditional to what Erykah Badu fans are more accustom
to. "My People" is another avant-garde performance that
is heavier on instrumentation, while "Soldier" is a reference
to the different 'soldiers' of the worlds, namely the
hustlers, the troops overseas, the ones struggling to get by,
etc. "The Cell" is another track produced by Sa-Ra that
might come off to some as unusual, but Erykah is basically
talking about drugs and the horrible lifestyle that can result
from drug use. "Twinkle" speaks to the ills of the
nation but with a more psychedelic style, "Master Teacher" is
as eccentric as it gets, and the spacey song "That Hump"
reverts right back to the subject of being hooked on drugs.
Her touching tribute to J Dilla on "Telephone" is probably her
most impassioned cut of her life. And she closes the
album with the 'bonus' cut "Honey," the lead-off single that
is probably placed last to not distract the listener from the
main flow of the album considering it is more structured than
the rest. Erykah Badu's non-conventional approach to creating
music is what makes New Amerykah, Pt. 1 a must have for
any true Badu fan. There's no cookie-cutter formula or
category that you can place this album, and that speaks
volumes to Miss Badu's creativity and uniqueness. Let's
hope we don't have to wait an eternity for the next
installment. |
Erykah Badu
New Amerykah, Pt. 1
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4 out of 5 discs |
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Jill Scott
Live In Paris
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Many believe that true soul music is
where it's at, not the trendy, borderline Pop that gets
labeled as R&B just because of the artist's skin color or
subject matter. Jill Scott has never purported to be
some high and mighty songstress that can sing anybody under
the table, but she surely can. And when you listen (and
watch) Live In Paris+, you will undoubtedly see that
she is truly like no other. Fresh off the release of her
latest studio album The Real Thing: Words And Sounds Vol. 3,
Jill blesses us with yet another live album (the first being
Disc 1 of the Experience: Jill Scott 826+ album) but
this time from Paris, France. The songs are all
familiar, but the delivery of each selection is exquisite to
say the least. Songs on the cd include The Way,
Whatever, The Fact Is (I Need You), Golden, My Petition,
Rasool, Bedda At Home, and He Loves Me (Lyzel In E
Flat). The DVD includes performances for all these
songs as well as 4 additional live performances from the House
of Blues in Los Angeles. Believe me when I say that
Live in Paris+ is worth every penny. You already
know that Jill has the chops and her band Fat Back Taffy are
stellar at all times. If you've never seen her perform
live, you might as well start with Live In Paris+.
Watch footage for yourself at
http://www.hiddenbeach.com/discover/live-in-paris and if
you like what you see, order your copy of the
Deluxe Combo package from Amazon. |
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3.5 out of 5 discs |
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The name sounds
familiar...and it should. Cheri Dennis has been featured
as both a vocalist and songwriter on previous Bad Boy
releases. She was featured on songs for Mase's Double
Up and the Forever album by Diddy (then named Puff
Daddy) back in 1999, The P. Diddy And The Bad Boy Family album
The Saga Continues... and Olivia's self-titled release
back in 2001, and later projects like Biggie's Duets
album, The Black Rob Report, and most recently the song
"Back Up" by Danity Kane on their debut album (Dennis co-wrote
the song and originally recorded it for herself but it was
later given to the supergroup to use.) Now it's her turn
at the spotlight after years of being put on the back burner
at Bad Boy with the release of In And Out Of Love.
"I Love You" featuring Jim Jones and Yung Joc is a decent
track, but nothing to write home about. "Portrait of
Love" featuring Yung Joc and Gorilla Zoe sounds a bit dated
with an over-emphasized bassline and annoying synthesized
keyboard for the background music. "Remind You" is a
great, hard-edged track that complements the raw delivery of
Cheri's lyrics for the song. "All I Wanna Do" is another
outstanding track that utilizes the beat from 2pac's "Got My
Mind Made Up" very well. "Alright" is...well...an
alright upbeat cut, while "Dropping Out of Love" is a touch
better, probably because it borrows the beat from "Sky's The
Limit" from The Notorious B.I.G. (which contained samples
itself). "Pretend" is in the same vain as an upbeat
Keyshia Cole track and you'll probably think it sounds a lot
like Keyshia too. "Spaced Out" lives up to the name,
leaving much to be desired after painfully listening to it the
one time that it'll get played in your stereo. "Act Like
You Know" is a Timbaland-laced track that also has it's
oddball tendencies, but clocking in at under three minutes
makes for a brief offering. "Showdown" is probably the
best track on the album with a mellow, seductive melody that
goex along with Cheri's brazen lyrics about getting down to
business in the bedroom. "Ooh Ooh" is a nice, subdued
track that has hints of old school soul throughout. She
closes with the moderately enjoyable cuts "Caught Up" and
"Waiting." Cheri Dennis does a respectable job on
In And Out Of Love. With a little fine tuning and some
serious backing from Bad Boy, Cheri Dennis could very well be
the R&B superstar that we so desperately need in the music
industry. |
Cheri Dennis
In And Out Of Love
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4 out of 5 discs |
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Algebra
Purpose
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Don't you
love it when you discover an artist that is refreshing and few
people are even hip to how good they are? Well, even
though few know who Algebra Blessett is, that could all change
with the release of her debut solo album Purpose.
With the direction of neo-soul mastermind Kedar Massenburg,
Algebra is well on her way to enlightening the world with her
soulful selections. She opens up the album with the
simple yet introspective song "At This Time." Emerging
as a go-to music producer, Kwame (yes, the one who had the
polka dots) delivers some stellar production for the songs
"Halfway" and "Run And Hide." "U Do It For Me"
is a nice mid-tempo cut where she describes how she caters to
her significant other because they deserve it. "Happy
After" talks about getting past the hard times to get to the
good times while "My Pride" is a track produced by Brian
Michael Cox that speaks to the reluctance to tell someone that
they messed up and want to try to work it out. "Simple
Complication" is a tale about a man stepping out and having a
child with another woman and feeling obligated to leave her to
be a real father. The song "What Happened?" questions
how things fell apart in a relationship. "No Idea" is another
track about hiding your true feelings for someone you love.
"Tug of War" describes the back-and-forth rigamarole between
lovers who basically need to either work it out or break-up.
"Can I Keep U?" is a story about being obsessed with a lover
and being too attached to them. "I Think I Love U" talks
about risking a longtime friendship with another and wanting
to take the next step. Algebra makes an impassioned plea
for forgiveness and not walking away from it all on "Come
Back." She closes the album with a simple, laidback tune
about being a singer on "Now And Then." Algebra
definitely proves to be a up-and-coming artist with enormous
potential to make it big. And with the release of
Purpose, she can only hope that everybody that hears this
album will witness her talent and thinks the same way.
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5 out of 5 discs |
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Angela Johnson is no
stranger to the music business. Being the voice of
Cooly's Hot Box and having two solo albums of her own, Angela
Johnson has one of the industry's most dynamic voices.
She's even done songwriting and worked behind the scenes on
songs for many other artists. So it only made sense for
Angela Johnson to put together her own album featuring some of
the best talent in the business. The end result is A
Woman's Touch Vol. 1, a collection that puts her
songwriting and production skills to work.
Rahsaan
Patterson leads off the album with his eloquent "Dream
Flight," followed by Take 6's Claude McKnight (yes, Brian's
brother) on the highly poised track "Here I Stand."
Monét
does a fine job on "That's Just The Way," and fellow vocalist
Lisala
follows suit with the effervescent cut "Walkin'."
Maysa
blesses the album with her undeniable voice on "More Than You
Know." Angela Johnson grabs the spotlight on the
bouncy groove "Should've Been There." Underground
favorite
Eric Roberson adds his tempered soul to the carefree song
"Let Me Know." "Play" features vocalist/keyboardist
Frank
McComb at his best, and "Not The One" features strong
vocals from singer Tricia Angus. The unadulterated
lyrics from singer/songwriter
Gordon
Chambers on "Get Away" are well done. Underground
vocalist
Julie Dexter delivers the goods with "How Sweet Life Is."
"Wait On A Maybe" features out of this world vocals from both
Marlon
Saunders (lead singer of Jazzhole) and a new
singer/songwriter named
Lenora Jaye. Tricia Angus, Lisala, and Angela Johnson
share the mic for the other album standout titled "Cryin' Over
U," a soul-stirring collaboration that calls upon the old
school soul lounge feel for its delivery. The album
closes with the eccentric global rhythms of "Amal" featuring
Angela Johnson and percussionist (and fellow Cooly's Hot Box
bandmate) Ernesto Abreu. This is honestly one of the
most complete collections of today's best unknown artists
available on the market. It's a wonder how such talent
can continue to go unrecognized, but hopefully A Woman's
Touch, Vol. 1 will enlighten more than a few to take a
chance on these artists in the future. (FYI: Each
of the featured artists are linked to their respective
websites within the review...so go discover some great
talent...and don't forget to pick this one up as well.) |
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