Rss

  • youtube

Are Brandy Fans Nodding Off?

Posted by :Peauxetic Expressions On : October 15, 2012
0

Category: Music Monday

Tags:, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

A lot has changed in the music industry since Brandy’s last CD, Human, was released over 4 years ago. Gone are the days where you can ride a successful CD for 2 years and have multiple hit singles (that is unless you’re Adele, Rihanna or Lady Gaga). But that’s exactly what Brandy was used to with her first 2 (and most successful to date) albums, Brandy and Never Say Never. After several album release date push backs and a delayed music video for the Chris Brown assisted “Put It Down”, Two-Eleven is just hours away and ready to take on the world…well, almost. The CD is already on its second single, “Wildest Dreams”, which usually means 1 of 2 things….a saturated market of hit songs (think Nicki Minaj) or fishing for a hit to hype the CD release up. In Brandy’s case, I believe it’s more of the latter. But, as we all know, sales numbers don’t always equal quality.

Brandy has ditched her nasal tone for a sexier, lower register in the latter half of her career. Ironically, I like this Brandy a lot better than the hit making machine behind “The Boy Is Mine” and “I Wanna Be Down”. She had great singles back then, but I think CD’s like Aphrodisiac and Full Moon are more cohesive and conceptually grounded. As she preps for the official release of Two Eleven tomorrow (already available on iTunes today), something tells me this may be some of her best work yet.

One thing Brandy seems to be using as her secret weapon this go round is her image. Her CD cover alone is one of the best I’ve seen lately and she looks better than….well, she ever has. No word yet on whether or not she’ll be unleashing her “Brand Nu” alter rap ego again (it was first introduced on Timbaland’s Shock Value II project), but it sounds like she’s finally found her niche between R & B, Pop and Hip Hop. With the help of Timbaland, Frank Ocean and longtime collaborator Rodney Jerkins, it will be interesting to see what sounds she comes with.

Several of the CD’s tracks have already leaked, which could prove to be either hurtful or helpful to sales . Producer Bangledesh offers an addictive track on ‘Let Me Go”. Brandy’s vocals and the music here are on point, but the lyrics are somewhat corny to me. Then there’s the Rico Love produced “No Such Thing As Too Late” and “Paint This House”. On “No Such Thing As Too Late” she tells her lover that he’ll wait before moving to the bedroom if he really cares about her (think new age “Let’s Wait Awhile”). This time the production lacks a little (but fits the song’s concept), although Brandy’s voice is flawless. But “Paint This House” is the real showstopper of Ricco Love’s 2 tracks. I’ll just say she’d be shooting herself in the foot to not make this a single. “Nodding Off”, 1 of 4 bonus tracks on the Two-Eleven deluxe version, actually leaked in 2008. But it’s just as good now as it was then (check out a snippet of it in the video above).

Will you be buying Two-Eleven when it hits the shelves tomorrow, or passing it up?

SWV: They Missed Themselves…Do We?

Posted by :Peauxetic Expressions On : April 30, 2012
2

Category: Hot Music

Tags:, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Three groups. Nine women. Each broke their own ground and placed their permanent stamp on the music industry.Ironicially, something as simple as their stage names were intertwined at some point in their careers. First there was the most successful all female rap group, Salt N Pepa. We know them as Salt N Pepa today, but what you may not know is their original name was Super Nature. A few years later, another girl group composed of 2 singers and a rapper was formed….three women called 2nd Nature. We know them today as TLC. And then, there’s SWV…one of the premier R & B female groups of the 90s whose members consist of Taj, LeeLee and Coko….yep TLC. But T-Boz, Left Eye an Chilli beat them to the punch on the name and they became known as Sisters With Voices.  After 15 years since their last hits (“Rain” and “Can We”), they’re back on the music scene, hoping to once again rule the charts. But has too much time passed for this to be possible? Or is the music just not up to par?

90s R & B. One of the greatest times in music. SWV had a string of hits that left us wanting more. Who could forget “Weak”, “Anything” and “Downtown”? After a solo project, reality TV, and mortuary school, Taj, LeeLee and Coko have regrouped to give us their new project, I Missed Us. They start off on a promising note with the first single “Co-Sign”. I wouldn’t say the song fits comfortably next to some of their biggest hits, but it was a good choice for the first single. The first few tracks on I Missed Us are uptempo, and a bit dated. The group seems to be stuck in their heyday, but with less spark that we heard on songs like, “Right Here”.  ”Do Ya” is a nice club track that samples the Rufus hit “Do You Love Me”. However, the songwriting lacks here, as it does on many of the tracks. Lines like “I’m a 10, so go run to your 3″ seem a bit juvenile for a group that has such seasoned tenure. I’m just saying…

SWV slows things down after the uptempo tracks with “The Best Years”, a song where they tell a man that they gave him the best years of his life. As cocky as it sounds, they could have really worked this concept, but unfortunately it’s a lackluster track. “I Missed Us”, the title track, is a decent slow groove that I could see going over well with an older contemporary R & B audience. Interestingly, the group takes turns leading verses on several tracks, although Coko still takes most of the leads. Two of the CD’s standout tracks, “Love Unconditionally” and “If Only You Knew” (a remake) are not until the very end of the CD. Unfortunately, many listeners may not last until this point.

To declare, directly or indirectly, that you are missed by fans after a lengthy hiatus is a bold statement. I Missed Us has some potential, but SWV’s earlier works still reign supreme. The tracks are almost solely produced and written by Cainon Lamb could be partly to blame for the lack of variety on the project. They would have done better with a more diverse set of producers, and maybe a couple big names sprinkled here and there (I could see Timbaland and Rodney Jerkins working with them).  So is SWV missed? Yes, but I think the fans were expecting….eh, dare I say, more quality music. Time will tell how the CD fares on the charts, but in a fickle music business, they may need to quickly regroup and try again. I Missed Us gives enough for us to remember SWV, but the dated sound and generic lyrics are what makes it fall short….or “Weak”….and not weak in the knees.