REVIEWS
Reviews of her albums and singles
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| REVIEWS Reviews of her albums and singles
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MISS KELLY REVIEWS
“Ms.
Kelly” 3 stars
When Kelly Rowland released her solo debut five years ago, former
Destiny’s Child bandmate Beyonce Knowles hadn’t yet
become this era’s biggest single-name superstar. After
Beyonce’s mammoth success, a modest adult-pop album such as
Rowland’s “Simply Deep” simply wouldn’t be an
option. That probably explains why an early version of this disc
was scrapped and the sassier-titled, sassier-sounding “Ms.
Kelly” has taken its place.It’s a mixed blessing, as
one of Rowland’s strengths has always been understatement.There
are moments — particularly “Work,” a rump-shaking
retread that’s essentially “Dangerously in Love”
2007 — when Rowland follows a little too closely in Beyonces’
spike-heeled footsteps. Among the other club offerings, only the
synth-and-percussion-charged “Like This” avoids crunk-inspired
cliches.But those tunes sound like what they likely are: window
dressing tacked onto the body of this disc as a sales-motivated
afterthought. The ballads that apparently deal with Rowland’s
ex-fiance, Roy Williams, are the broken heart of the album.
Dan LeRoy, special to the Hartford Courant
Unlike Beyoncé, who came out with the sonically radical, bass-pumped "B'day" CD last year, her former Destiny's Child group mate Kelly Rowland plays it relatively safe with her second solo album (her first since the trio's demise). "Like This," the dance-floor-friendly lead track on "Ms. Kelly," sounds a lot like Fergie's "London Bridge," which, in turn, was highly derivative of Kelis' "Milkshake," though it's tamer lyrically and less musically interesting than either of those songs. On "Ghetto," a duet with Snoop Dogg, Rowland explores the increasingly common theme of a good girl falling for a bad boy. Her cotton-candy mezzo tones are easy to digest throughout the disc's 12 songs, which took nine sets of producers to create. None of the productions rises above the predictable, with the notable exception of Scott Storch's "Work," a marvel of adrenaline-charged syncopation. -- Lee Hildebrand
BILLBOARD KELLY ROWLAND ALBUM: MS. KELLY (Columbia Records/Sony Urban)
Former Destiny's Child songstress Kelly Rowland may never upstage her superstar groupmate Beyonce, but she certainly has the vocal chops and charm to stand on her own stiletto-clad feet. Consider the aptly titled "Ms. Kelly" her proper mission statement. Compared with her gospel-fueled 2002 solo debut, "Simply Deep," Rowland appears confident and dominant on foot-stompers like "Come Back" and the Eve-assisted single "Like This." These whiplash-inducing tunes fit like jigsaw pieces beside relationship-driven ballads ("Better Without You") and midtempo cuts ("Ghetto" featuring Snoop Dogg) that showcase her come-hither pipes. In true Destiny's Child fashion, Rowland teeters between coy and naughty, often in the same whispery breath. Though still short of career-defining, "Ms. Kelly" finds its author opening up more while welcoming the possibility that destiny may just find another star.