British superstar Jessie J is back with her latest studio album Sweet Talker which was released yesterday (October 13). The album has already birthed the global hit “Bang Bang” featuring Nicki Minaj and budding superstar Ariana Grande and let’s not forget, the future hit “Burning up” featuring 2 Chainz.
“Bang Bang”:
After the lukewarm response she received from her last project Alive, Jessie J really needed to prove to the world why she was here and with that thought placed in her mind, she went back to the drawing board and created a masterpiece. This project shows her growth as an artist and her progression away from the generic dance music that was heavily featured on her 2012 LP, to a more mature sound which seems to have been inspired by her recent move to California, Jessie and her team have craftily created this studio album for the American market which could be due to the fact that Jessie feels the British don’t appreciate her voice.
Sweet Talker is an intelligent body of work and it showcases not only Jessie’s incredible vocals but also her musical versatility. She belts through a mixture of pop, dance, R&B and groove tracks and does it well. Jessie has also taken a back seat unlike her previous projects and allowed other song writers and artist to contribute to the project and has commissioned a vast amount of superstar producers to help such as Pharell, The Dream, Tricky Stewart and Diplo to name a few. However the “Price Tag” singer has not completely transformed her sound, and for those fans who fell in love with her debut album Who You Are, the ballads on the latest album are reminiscent and will definitely not disappoint for example, “Personal“.
“Fire”:
There are three standout tracks on this album not including the obvious summer anthem and smash “Bang Bang”. The first track I would recommend is “Fire“, it is arguably one of the best and most interesting songs on the album, it sounds as if it has been highly inspired by Adele. The mid-tempo song is by far one of the best pop songs I have heard in 2014, it was co-written by British pop star John Newman and produced by Booker. Jessie J belts about a painful love that she does not want to lose and more than likely couldn’t even if she wanted to, the highlight of the song is the simplicity of the lyrics yet still being meaningful and this is no accident it has been written this way to allow the song to be interpreted in many ways to different audiences.
Not many albums can boast that their album title track is worthy to be the album title but for “Sweet Talker”, it most definitely defies that rule. Jessie J gets help from the amazing Diplo to produce the track and for those who are unaware of his genius, he created the beat for Beyoncé’s “Run The World”. “Sweet talker” is the great mix of Pop and R&B and is radio friendly, it is the type of song that will have you embarrassingly nodding your head on the tube; I would not be surprised if this song is released in the near future. Have a listen below:
“Sweet Talker”:
Finally, for those who miss the 2012 ‘Alive’ Jessie, weep no longer, she has also catered for your needs and she brings the pop/dance elements of “Its My Party” to her latest song “Said Too Much“. The future club banger was written by the multi-talented Dream and produced by the legendary Tricky Strewart, it is the kind of dance music that we expect from a star like Jessie – it doesn’t take dance to the point of cheese but is done in a classic way and with the catchy chorus, it’s sure to be a hit in the European market. Overall this is a great piece of work and Jessie J deserves critical acclaim for this album, the only negative I have to say is that Jessie should focus less on the ‘American’ market and just make great music and have fun as this is when her star shines brightest, but this a must have album. Well done JESSIE J!
Purchase: Jessie J – Sweet Talker (iTunes)
Words by Rico Green // Edited by Ayo Adepoju
