Chrisette Michele Gets 'Better' On New Album

R&B singer Chrisette Michele released her fourth record Better this week and it's a great album. On her first two albums Michele had moments of greatness surrounded by filler tracks that all sounded similar. Then on her third record, 2010's Let Freedom Reign, her energy picked up and it was by far her best album.
Better picks up where she left off three years ago. From faster songs like "Be in Love" and "Let Me Win" to ballads like "You Mean That Much To Me," Michele is at her best here.
Stand out tracks include the second single "A Couple of Forevers" which is a gorgeous and downright adorable love song. Another song that stands out among the crowd is "Rich Hipster" which features rapper Wale. The song is all about hipster culture. This topic is explored more on "Can the Cool Be Loved?" which features Bilal and Dunson.
The title track is a great song about love making a person 'better.' Other highlights include the hopeful "Love Won't Leave Me Out" and the Priscilla Renea-penned "Snow." The latter having a hip hop sound to it.
While there are no bad songs on the record the interludes could just be gotten rid of. Also 2 Chainz all but ruins the first single "Charades."
Other than that the album is a great release and shows Michele's growth. Better solidifies Chrisette Michele as one of R&B 's best artists out now.

Eve Returns With First Album In 11 Years

Rapper Eve hasn't released a new album since 2002's Eve-Olution. After being pushed back several times Lip Lock has finally surfaced. The album blows both male and female rappers out of the water. Eve has brought in the big guns in terms of collaborators on this album. Gabe Saporta of Cobra Starship, Missy Elliott, Dawn Richard of Danity Kane fame, Snoop Dogg, Chrisette Michele and Pusha T all feature on the album as well as new or unknown artists such as Propain, Nacho, Miss Kitty and Juicy J get their moment to shine.
There are no bad songs from the uplifting first single "Make it Out this Town" which features Gabe Saporta to the future club anthem "All Night" which features Claude Kelly and Propain. Eve also shines on her solo songs where she can really brag. Promotional single "She Bad Bad," "Grind or Die" and "Forgive Me" are straight up bragging tracks. Eve gets clever with her raps. "My buzz stay strong/ Your buzz never started/ My albums are the shit/ Your career never farted," Eve raps on "Grind or Die." On the Missy Elliott and Nacho assisted track "Wanna Be" the three show haters who's boss. It's good to hear Elliott back on tracks, hopefully this means her album is going to be released soon. Newcomer Nacho holds her own next to two of raps best females.
The album's best two songs are the second single "Eve" which features Miss Kitty. The song is a dubstep-filled hip hop reggae song with just hints of Middle Eastern influences. The song is a reminder of the greatness that Eve is. The other highlight is "Keep Me From You" which features Dawn Richard. The hip-house track is a love song that could easily be on pop radio.
While the album closes with "Never Gone" which despite a great appearance from Chrisette Michele, seems out of place on the album. And the remix of "She Bad Bad" which features Pusha T and Juicy J just seems redundant and could have been another new song.
Despite these few flaws, Lip Lock is a great album and was definitely worth the 11 year wait. After hearing this album people will be saying "Nicki Minaj who?"

Chrisette Michele Wins On New Single

Soul songstress Chrisette Michele has pushed back her fourth studio album Better for a June release and she also released a new single off of it. Following "Better," "A Couple of Forevers" and "Charades" with 2 Chainz her fourth single "Let Me Win" is by far the best.
The single is all about playing the game of love. Michele has covered this also on "Goodbye Game" from her third album. The song is classic Michele and has no faults. It's a well played move in the game of love.
"This game is like a gamble/ Here's my heart to handle/ Need you to be gentle/ You should let me win," Michele sings during the chorus.
Michele shows vulnerability in this song. She is telling her lover that she needs help and most of all that she needs him.
The only issue with this single is that it sounds just like most of her previous material. Michele hasn't really grown any on this single. Artists can only make the same music over and over again before fans get tired. Hopefully the rest of Better won't sound the same. Better is out June 11. There are no videos for "Let Me Win" so here is "A Couple of Forevers."

Chrisette Michele releases two new singles

Chrisette Michele released her first single and title track off of her fourth album, Better. The song was very similar to the soulful sound of her first three albums. This week Michele released her single "A Couple of Forevers," which serves as the third single.
The song is a beautiful, soulful lovers anthem. Michele shows her vulnerable side, asking to be with her lover forever. It's a cliché love song, like most R&B music and yet it works. works. The song is sure to keep fans happy until Better comes out on April 30. Hopefully her album isn't simply lovey dovey songs about being happy. Michele shines on breakup jams like "Be OK," "Epiphany (I'm Leaving), and "I'm a Star." While this song is great, it's not going to make Michele the next Beyoncé, but that isn't what she wants. Michele has always stayed true to herself and she does that on this song.
Michele's second single released last week is the grown and sexy "Charades" which features a weird guest appearance by 2 Chainz. The song is a sexy song in which Michele is talking about how she can see that her new lover is playing games. 2 Chainz surprisingly doesn't mess up the song like he usually does.
If these songs are any inclination of what Better will sound like, we're in for a treat folks.