Flashback Friday Album Review, Bell Biv DeVoe: Hootie Mack
Bell Biv DeVoe members Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, and Ronnie DeVoe made history with their 1990 debut Poison release. The Poison album found the group as the second most successful spin-off act from the New Edition camp when their debut sold four million copies. Expectations were high for the group’s sophomore album of new material. […]
Album Review: Brian McKnight, Exodus
R&B singer-songwriter Brian McKnight returns to the scene with his latest release Exodus on The SoNo Recording Group. Serving as his sixteenth album in a twenty-eight-year career, McKnight has hinted that it will be his last album of original material. McKnight opens the album with “Unbelievable,” before transitioning into the singles from the album, which […]
Flashback Friday Album Review: Troop’s, Deepa
The year is 1992, and Troop is fresh off an opening act slot on M.C. Hammer’s “Please Hammer, Don’t Hurt ‘Em World Tour” and a cameo appearance in the nineties classic New Jack City. The Pasadena, California based R&B returned to the studio to begin the recording process for their third album, Deepa. Troop attempted […]
Album Review: Bluff City, Bc3
One of the things most R&B fans miss in the year 2020 is the lack of groups. Bluff City is here to fill the void with their debut release on BC3 ENT, Bc3. Initially gaining fans with covers of classic R&B songs on their YouTube channel, the group comprised of members Keem, “Loverboy Tre,” and […]
Throwback Tuesday Album Review: Jesse Powell, JP
Known primarily for his 1998 hit “You” from his sophomore album ‘Bout It,’ Jesse Powell is the true definition of an artist who never got his just due. Jesse debuted in 1996 with a self-titled album, which featured the singles “All I Need” and a cover of Enchantment’s Gloria. Two years later, Jesse released his […]
Flashback Friday Album Review: Ralph Tresvant, It’s Goin Down
In January 1994, the landscape of R&B had begun to shift when New Edition frontman Ralph Tresvant released his sophomore album It’s Goin Down. While Tresvant’s debut had gone platinum and he was fresh off a hit single in the form of summer 1992’s Mo ’Money soundtrack, featured “Money Can’t Buy You Love”, he was […]
Album Review: Portrait, Afro Trees
One of the most underrated R&B groups of the early nineties, Portrait returns to the scene with their new release Afro Trees. Since releasing the 2017 buzz single “In The Moment” (a grown folks bop) to a positive reception, Portrait have kept their fans waiting in anticipation for a new album. Serving as the group’s […]
Throwback Tuesday Album Review: Shai, Blackface
The music industry has a phrase known as the sophomore slump, which means the second or sophomore album of an artist fails to generate an equal or higher level of acclaim than the first album. One notable example from a hip hop standpoint includes Mase’s 1999 Double Up, which failed both creatively and commercially. However, […]
Album Review: Smoke E. Diggelera, A Juke Joint
As the world’s deals with the current pandemic, some singers are still readily releasing music. No stranger to cover albums, Dru Hill & Playa member Smoke E. Digglera drifts away from R & B to show off his vocal chops on his new album, A Juke Joint. Taking on jazz standards is a difficult undertaking for […]
Album Review: Shawn Stockman, Foreword
After appearances on numerous other artists’ albums and a great 2018 EP, Shawn Stockman, one of the members of legendary R&B group Boyz II Men, finally gives fans a solo album with the Foreword album for The SoNo Recording Group. Boyz II Men were already the most prominent R&B group in the world when Shawn […]
Album Review : Eric Roberson, Hear from Here.
One of my favorite singers, Eric Roberson, surprised fans with his album Hear from Here. The opening track “Road to Recovery” has a real hip hop jazz groove that I personally feel pays homage to the production styling of the late great J. Dilla. The infectious groove continues on the next two tracks, “Omaha” and […]
Album Review: Tank ,”While You Wait.”
R&B singer Tank returns to the scene with his latest EP, “While You Wait.” A talented piano player and songwriter in his own right, Tank has been the subject of criticism in recent years. Straying away from his signature sound to appease to a younger demographic has found the singer often criticized by older R&B […]