Album Review.
Likes: Pretty Girls Lie, Without a Woman
Overall: Same old sexapalooza, nothing new or interesting. No artistic growth.

We may be on “Chapter V” with Trey Songz, but he’s still telling the same story. An almost more obnoxious take on his previous 2 albums, Songz gives us yet another dose of poorly written sex-obsessed material. The lyrics are still annoyingly literal, simple-minded and boyish, failing to be mentally stimulating, much less sexually for an adult woman. Even more unattractive is the cocky, abrasive “playboy” edge added to the content. There’s so much arrogant bravado, you have to wonder if Songz is now trying to appeal to men instead of women. For example, I’m not sure how many women you could attract with a lyric like “I only came here for 2 reasons…the bitches and the drinks” (2 Reasons). Speaking of “2 Reasons,” it musically sounds like “Say Aah” from the “Ready” album. Several of the tracks sound like recycled versions of his previous hits, which doesn’t help his case. The last half of the album tries to be a romantic and thoughtful contrast to the brassy 1st; it appears Songz is trying to tell a story of a flawed man who wasn’t smart enough to clean up his act for the right woman, but the shallow and weak lyrics don’t provide the depth. Vocally, Songz is as whiny and yodeling as ever. Considering the singer was compelled to put 18 tracks on the album, you would think he had a lot to say, but he isn’t saying anything we haven’t heard before.

Album Review.
Likes: Love & War, Been Lying, Hello, Hi, Goodbye
Overall: Failed to meet expectations. Run of the mill pop album. Forgettable and underwhelming.

Ever since the Kosovo-born Rita Ora was signed to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation recording label in 2009, buzz and curiosity has risen about what the beauty would bring to the table. YouTube videos of pre-contract live performances revealed she at least had a voice, but her 1st single, “How We Do (Party),” received mix reviews and garnered negative comparisons to Katy Perry and another Jay-Z-affiliated artist, Rihanna (who’s managed by Roc Nation). The comparisons will surely continue as her guitar-heavy, techno-pop debut album, “Ora,” sounds like a compilation of Perry, Rihanna & Nicki Minaj reject tracks. Each song is more underwhelming than the last, with largely pointless lyrics and repetitive musical patterns in the production. The most disappointing part is that not a single track showcases Ora’s vocals; those who aren’t familiar with her background may end up disregarding her as just another minimally talented pop-singer. Below is an album sampler of the standard edition, which omits 7 tracks.

Below is a gallery of some my favorite Aaliyah photos. Share your favorite photos by either commenting on this article & including a link, OR by posting a photo on the JSaysOnline Facebook wall. Also, feel free to comment here to share your memories or list your favorite songs. My favorite album is the last self-titled one, and my favorite song-HANDS DOWN- is "I Don't Wanna" (soundtrack single). It always makes me smile and I can listen to it over and over. See last year's tribute here.

1st, let me start off by saying I am not a film student or connoisseur, nor do I have aspirations to join the film industry. I’m just a simple movie-goer who decides to occasionally write film reviews. Translation: the following is a loose opinion and critique of the Tri-Star Pictures remake of the 1976 film, “Sparkle,” starring “American Idol” alum Jordin Sparks in the title role, Derek Luke, comedian Mike Epps and the late songstress Whitney Houston. Some will try to provide an objective critique and not consider the original film, but the notable differences make it hard to not draw comparisons. However, in analyzing the comparisons lay the strengths and weaknesses of the remake standing alone.

“Sparkle” tries to be endearing and pull at your heart-strings, but it generally fails. There are a few attempts at dramatization that aren’t necessary, while opportune times to be intense aren’t taken. It’s difficult to become immersed in the story and attached to the characters so that you’ll be eager to see the outcome or leave the theater deeply affected. The most alluring performances and scenes were delivered by Carmen Ejogo (Tammy, AKA ‘Sister’), who plays Sparkle’s ambitious, but wayward sibling, and Houston as Sparkle’s protective and overbearing mother, Emma (Houston arguably gave her best on-screen performance in this film). Interactions between the pair were absolute gold. Epps’ seamless transitions from comedic to sinister as the shady Satin was also praise-worthy. It’s kind of troubling that the storylines and portrayals of supporting characters outshined the lead. For a new actress, Sparks did a decent job, but the screenplay didn’t give her much room to stand out unfortunately. The screenplay of the original definitely had its faults, but it was much easier to become enamored with or “sucked in” by the tale. The passionate sweetness of the love story between Sparkle and Styx (Luke) was significantly toned down and the edgier, action portions were almost non-existent. A nice change from the original was that Sister’s unruliness was given a little more of a rationale and background, and 3rd sister Dee (Tika Sumpter, “One Life to Live”) had more of a proactive and fiesty presence.

As far as the legendary music is concerned (the 1976 soundtrack featured music written by Curtis Mayfield and performed by Aretha Franklin; there was also a cast recording album), only 4 songs from the original were used. Whether that’s a good thing or not can be debated, but most perplexing was that the title-track “Sparkle” was omitted. It’s a rather ironic symbol of how Sparks as Sparkle didn’t really…well, sparkle. The new additional music failed to sparkle as well. It just wasn’t memorable. My last criticism was that the film visually resembled 2006’s “Dreamgirls” in its opening and closing. It struck me as a little uncreative. Don’t get me wrong, “Sparkle” wasn’t a bad film, but it isn’t the type that you’ll want to see over and over again.
Grade: C

Rock&Rant- When I need to quickly rant about music.

Many have recently asked what my thoughts are on Rihanna, the controversial pop-star most known for her catchy, sexually overt music and her former relationship with entertainer Chris Brown that ended in a well-publicized domestic altercation. Well, here it is. When Rihanna was signed to Def Jam Records mid-millennium, Reggaeton (urban music with heavy Latin and Caribbean influence) was still hot and one of the reigning queens of R&B/pop was Beyonce`. With Rihanna being a native of Barbados with a toasty complexion, I’m sure Rihanna seemed like a sure-bet cash cow to then Def Jam president Jay-Z. Not such; at least not at the time anyway. Her first 2 albums “Music of the Sun” and “A Girl Like Me” were quickly released within a year of each other and neither effort performed extremely well. Often dubbed in the media as “The Bajan Beyonce`,” music journalists often criticized the singer for bearing too much of an aesthetic resemblance to Beyonce` in her music videos and performances. As if the failed attempt at the Beyonce` blueprint wasn’t enough, Reggaeton was fading from the mainstream. 

It was time to re-evaluate, so the record label took a drastic shift: they got big name R&B/Hip-Hop producers and turned Rihanna into the Anti-Beyonce`. Pop producers/songwriters Evan Rogers and Carl Sturken (known for their work with N’Sync & Kelly Clarkson) were traded out for urban heavy-weights Timbaland, Tricky Stewart, The Dream, Ne-Yo & Stargate. All but Timbaland have continued to work on Rihanna’s projects. Delivering intensely infectious and sometimes well-written tunes, popular producers and songwriters have made Rihanna a top 40 queen with singles constantly riding the charts. Her affiliation with one of hip-hop’s biggest-selling acts, Jay-Z, hasn’t hurt either. The street cred helped her garner Grammy nods and cross over into another genre, as she was featured on massive hits with established rap artists like Eminem, Kanye West & T.I. One can only theorize why all these hits haven’t translated into higher album sales, however.

Rihanna’s heightened commercial appeal was only furthered by her image transformation into the Anti-Beyonce`. Increasingly edgy, dark (sometimes gothic), rebellious and sexually-charged, Rihanna’s persona, music and reputation is the antithesis of the mild-mannered, Obama family-friendly Beyonce`. The contrast works well as Rihanna’s antics feeds the audience’s hunger for sensationalist gossip and their desire for music that expresses their own personality variances. Basically, Rihanna is who people indulge in and listen to when they’re in the mood to feel reckless, slutty and detached from anything thought-provoking. A sassy potty-mouth who’s often been photographed in public scantily-clad, partying and smoking weed, she’s music’s resident “bad girl” and it doesn’t appear that her record label or P.R. team is going to great length to disguise or clean it up. Why aren’t they? She’s doing exactly what they want her to do. Part of Rihanna’s promotion and marketing magic is to be the “wild child.” It keeps her in the news and people watching. Rihanna reminds me of that girl in college that’s sowing her oats and trying to figure herself out. Only, I’m not sure if Rihanna will ever “figure herself out” or mature, because she doesn’t seem to have people around that will encourage her to eventually take a more productive path. That’s why I kind of feel sorry for her; it’s like the record label is gaining at the expense of her growth. Should she one day want to be a different woman, it’s going to be an uphill battle with the executives. A battle I foresee she will lose, considering she doesn’t have much creative input and doesn’t give the impression that she’s business-savvy.

This brings me back to the music and my ideas on why she doesn’t sell as many albums versus singles. Pure and simple: people don’t take her seriously. When they see her, they see a dancing sexual blow-up doll. She’s doesn’t write songs, produce, arrange or play an instrument. The extent of her singing and dancing abilities are debatable-vocally, the main thing that makes her distinctive is her accent. Whatever allure her singles have are the result of a producer or songwriter’s effort; not her own. Rihanna could have been anyone; had Jay-Z signed another girl, the story wouldn’t change much. People aren’t willing to purchase and listen to an entire album by someone with debatable aptitudes, especially in an age where it’s incredibly easy to access music online for free. She’s only as good as her last catchy song. Few people have had lengthy careers on the strength of sex and controversy alone. You have to bring something else to the table.  Rihanna herself doesn’t frustrate me as much as the concept of her does. Record labels sign people like her, exploit them, make their quick dollar, discard them and repeat with new blood. Not only is this practice disrespectful to the art-form, but it brings down the quality of available mainstream music. It also urks me that artists like Rihanna are offered deals when there are so many talented people who can’t seem to catch a break; especially signed acts who, despite their gift, aren’t properly supported or promoted by their label, but that’s another topic for another day.

Single Review.
by Sereth Wynters, Contributing Writer

Mariah Carey has finally released the long anticipated single, “Triumphant.” In a press interview today, the songstress said writing the mid-tempo track helped her cope with the loss of her dear friend and contemporary Whitney Houston and the prior hospitalization of her husband, TV personality Nick Cannon. I did not get that idea when I first heard it. I thought the song was more about the period during early 2000’s when the media counted her out and deemed her career over after down-sliding record sales and a bout with exhaustion.

“Triumphant’s” catchy chorus is the glue that holds the entire song together. Without a well written chorus, the song could have been a huge mess. Encouraging the listener to ‘reach for the stars’ and ‘be all that you are,’ the hook is very uplifting; giving you the urge to sing it out loud because it fills you with so much hope. While featured rapper Meek Mill’s verse was written very well (especially compared to a lot of his other songs), cohort Rick Ross’ verse was a little messy and irrelevant. I did not understand why he was “throwing big money as she dances on the pole.” It’s hard to connect majority of his verse to the general theme. 

As far as the vocal production, the layering was overdone (as can be heard in the chorus). You could hardly understand what Carey is trying to say. Mariah’s chest voice and whistle register are sounding very healthy, but only a live performance will tell if it’s just a studio enhancement. She surprised me adding a whistle note to this song. I personally felt like it wouldn’t fit this type of track, but it was perfect how she placed her notes to crescendo from a layered belt. It added subtlety and the right amount of climax to lend to a smooth transition down into a falsetto. Having an urban feel and a slight hint of violins, the musical production is very sleek with nicely built climaxes that compliment the vocal. I like that the vocals are not drowned out by the back beat. “Triumphant” is radio friendly and bound to inspire many. You can listen to the track here.