After the deluge of releases over the past two weeks, it’s only right that the industry takes some time to chill out. The list of major releases is pretty thin this week. Here are the highlights.
Blakroc “Blackroc”-This is one of the more interesting projects to be released this quarter, or even this year! Blues rock duo The Black Keys have joined forces with a host of hip-hop artists to make what I hear is a quite entertaining record. Scary fact: this album was co-spearheaded by one of my least favorite people in the whole world, Damon Dash. Anyway, the list of guest artists is pretty superb: Mos Def, Q-Tip, Pharoahe Monch, RZA & GZA (along with a posthumous ODB appearance) and…Jim Jones. Hey, you can’t win them all.
R. Kelly “Untitled”- This is Kells’ first album since being acquitted of child molestation charges last year, and it’s hard for me to even believe that this is in stores, considering the fact that this has been moved around the release schedule more than any other album I can think of in recent memory. Anyhow, this album has zero buzz-the single “Number One”, which featured Keri Hilson, barely scratched the Top 10 on Billboard’s R&B chart, and something tells me this album is going to be a huge flop. I haven’t been more excited to see someone’s career go down the toilet (pun intended) since 50 Cent caught a brick last week.
Allison Iraheta “Just Like You”- Truthfully? I can’t even remember this broad. I suppose she finished third behind Glambert and Kris Allen, but I seriously can’t recall one song the lady sang. Either way, she managed to score a record deal with Simon Fuller’s 19 Recordings (not a prerequisite for every 3rd place finisher). Unfortunately, she’s also releasing the album in a year when the winner generated weak sales and even the runner-up had to basically sell his ass on network TV to get noticed. Sorry, Allison.
Juvenile “Cocky & Confident”-Juvenile is still around? At this point in time, fans of New Orleans rap care about one dude and one dude only: and he is NOT Juvenile. He better make up with Baby and them and either have a Hot Boys reunion or jump on Weezy’s next album. I don’t think *anyone* cares about this album outside Louisiana.
The Bravery “Stir the Blood”- I’m gonna try this without hitting Wikipedia. I believe this is The Bravery’s third album. I’ve actually owned each of the first two, and can’t remember a single thing about them other than the fact that I no longer own either one, so that should tell you a little bit about what I think of the band. These guys are completely anonymous, although I read a good review of this album somewhere. If you’re a fan, you’ll be happy. If you’re not, there’s probably no reason to become one.
And that’s more or less it, folks. Get the complete list of new releases from our friends at Pause and Play by clicking here.
