Jeannie Ortega - No Place Like Bklyn - Amazon.com Music
When I first heard lead single "Crowded", I was hella excited (or at least somewhate excited) about Jeannie Ortega's debut NO PLACE LIKE BKLYN. Unfortunately, upon the opportunity to hear the album before purchasing it, I can't help but to say not only was I extremely disappointed, I also have to say this is one of the worst albums I have heard so far this year. I don't like to trash any artist unfairly, but this debut should've been so much better and it falls into the cliche where the lead single is not only the best track on the entire album but also the only truly competent performance.
Usually, even an album that has bad tracks can stand on its own to an extent where production is concerned. That again is not the case on NO PLACE LIKE BRKLYN. Sure, "Crowded" is a production standout as well as the standout track and even the overproduced "Pay It" has an irresistable synth line, but otherwise, everything seems to fall into the "overproduced" territory. Also the genre that this album seeks to attack is unclear. You get the feeling that Hollywood Records (the wrong label for R&B, period) is trying to aim Ortega as a crossover artist. Unfortunately, that never comes off with NO PLACE LIKE BKLYN. Sure, there is a mesh of R&B, "reggaeton", pop, adult alt. pop/rock (via. "So Done"), but it never as a whole gels. The worst tracks have to be the "reggaeton" ones which not only sound the same but are the most overproduced of any tracks here.
What else flaws this album is that Ortega for the most part doesn't have an impressive voice. After the exceptional opening track and lead single "Crowded" (which Ortega sounds very good on, harking on great), along with the overproduction Ortega's coarse vocals fall off as well. She manages on the somewhat fun "Pay It" and even carries herself on track "So Done", but otherwise Ortega never achieves vocal perfection. Many times, you feel that Ortega is going to give more and she falls short; in other words, there is a "remnant" of a memorable, well rounded R&B performance. Also, for R&B to be Ortega's overall genre for the album, she doesn't emote the raw emotion or essence of R&B music. Even pop (which has an urban aspect as well) calls for certain vocal aerobics and nuances that color the performance. Ortega stretches out a bit at times, but not enough to impress.
I mention "Crowded" often because "Crowded" is the blueprint for what all of NO PLACE LIKE BKLYN should've been. Papoose proves that he could be a devastating artist in the rap world with his killer verse. Ortega sounds on "Crowded" the best that she will sound on the entire album, which is very unfortunate and disappointing. "Pay It" isn't a bad, bad track, but it is overproduced with too many synthesizer loops and overall uninspired songwriting. The chorus is catchy of course, and Ortega sounds OK here. "Green I'z" is one of the first uninspired attempts at reggae/reggaeton. It fails miserably and leaves you the listener with a feeling of "so what?" "Can U", track 4 brings the third rap collaboration of the album, too many only 4 tracks into the album. Also, with the exception of the standout performance of Papoose on "Crowded", the rap cameos just don't enhance already bland performances. "Can U" does tend to be average compared to more mediocre tracks with very cool brass falls contained within the production. Within the first half of the album, "So Done" is the last track that has at least some potential to be a great track. While it is average, it is also out of place because you don't expect an adult-alt pop/rock song on an R&B based album or even a pop based album. It probably is in the long run the second or third strongest track on BKLYN.
The second half of the album sinks the already sunken ship. There is truly nothing that stands out. Production continues to sink with reggae/reggaeton disasters "Let It Go" and the extremely long (5 minutes) and painfully repetitive "It's R Time". "It's R Time" is clearly the worst track on the album. "What I Need", "Bling", and "Hear Me" are also floptastic, though not nearly as bad as "It's R Time". The last track, "Don't Stop" isn't good, but it is better than everything else in the second half of the album and Ortega even sounds a bit better here.
Overall, there are a ton of things wrong with not only NO PLACE LIKE BKLYN and Ortega herself. First of all, Hollywood is not the choice record company for R&B influence/pop albums; Hollywood is best for marketing adult-alt pop, teen-pop like standouts Jesse McCartney and Hilary Duff. In other words, Ortega may have been better served at another label. Next, Ortega herself needs to work vocally to mature as an artist; she isn't quite ready to be a recording artist as NO PLACE LIKE BKLYN evidences. Third, next time around if there is a next time, Ortega needs better more competent producers because the production work here seems very generic and below par. Therefore, I cannot give this album a satisfactory rating. Better luck next time Jeannie. 1.5 stars.