Young Antoine is trying to improve on that C- Professor David awarded him with for his sophomore effort Ruthless. Will he make the grade? Time will only tell.

Previously Posted — Ace Hood Feat. Akon & T-Pain – “Overtime” Video | Midterm Grades: XXL Class Of 2009

A few weeks ago, TC wrote about the decline of the R&B album. He was right, vocoders, the desire to become singing rappers and overly formulaic snoozefests that somehow pass for albums have dominated the market. Jazmine Sullivan has come out of nowhere to bring us back to the golden age. Her new album, Fearless, powered by production from Missy Elliott and Salaam Remi, is an adamant declaration of a new powerhouse on the R&B scene. Read the rest of this entry »

More on shorty & the album later.

It’s always good to see a talented artist finally catch a break. While I can’t say I fully understand Missy’s role in this video, I’m glad she’s gotten behind Jazmine because it’s about time someone did.

I can remember falling for Jazmine when I heard her version of “Resentment” (go back to 2006 yo). So in the past few weeks & months, as her buzz has grown & I’ve been seeing her name popping up on other sites & in magazines, I’m not resentful (pun intended lol). It’s good.

Too often, music people like to hoard & cradle an artist’s material as if it were their child, scared that when others get ahold of it, it won’t be “new” any more or worried that a label might put their dirty hands into the mix & make the sounds impure. Honestly, I never really thought Jazmine would blow. Then again, I thought there were only so many even following her until recently. R&B artists who don’t sell sex seem to never make it to the forefront, but cultivate a loyal following that supports their work, heralds it often & to as many as possible. It would be a disservice to label JS as neo-soul because when that happens, as that seems to punch their ticket to purgatory for an R&B artist. Read the rest of this entry »