Grown and Sexy.
20/Mariah Carey/Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel
As a long time listener and avid fan of Mariah Carey’s discography, let me tell you, grown and sexy aren’t usually the first two words you toss out when describing a disc in her catalog. But this disc right here? Grown and Sexy to a T! Two albums prior, Mariah “emancipated” Mimi, her true self and skin she’s most comfortable in musically, but the true emancipation occurs here, as Mariah (with a little help from arguably one of the best songwriting/production duos in the game Terius “The Dream” Nash and C. Tricky Stewart), frees herself from some of the clumsy, rote, paint by numbers R&B music and lyrics she often found herself wallowing in, and finally nails that “urban” sound she’s been trying to perfect since the release of Butterfly back in 1997. No longer is there a disconnect between the Mariah you hear on disc, and the Mariah you see on TV, the Long Island chick who speaks with her hands, tells you to “hush chile”, and is married to Nick Cannon. On this, her most cohesive collection of tunes to date, Mariah is loose, sassy, seductive, and best of all, witty and funny as all hell. (Seriously, I’m talkin’ damn near R.Kelly like non-sequiturs/throwaway lines) And the production? Lush, smooth, and layered, going toe to toe with that voice, whether she’s cooing, diving into the deep, or letting it rise to the heavens above. So, “cheers, toast, bravo to you” MC. You finally got that which you have been seeking for the past 10-12 years, a solid and cohesive, start to finish, grown, sexy, and mature R&B album. That’s what’s up!
KEY TRACKS: Candy Bling/Impossible/Angels Cry
1 comment:
me and mariah! that's my girl...memoirs is a damn good cd. but as a big fan of mariah, every cd she's produced has heat for me.
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