Chapter 2: The Voice - Johnson, Syleena (CD 2002)

"Your playing, while technically proficient, lacks passion."

That was an admonition given to Homer (yes, that Homer), and it applies to Syleena Johnson's sophomore effort Chapter 2: The Voice. While her singing and lyrics are very passionate, her music on about half of the songs here is very bland. Even though there is nothing wrong, per se, with any of the tracks on the CD, many of them are missing some intangible that would have made them good.

If you're not from the Chicagoland area, there is a chance that you might not have heard of Syleena Johnson. She does receive MTV and BET rotation, but it's very minimal and usually late at night. But because female R&B singers are marketed moreso by their looks than their ability (there aren't many ugly *ss singers on T.V.) and Syleena Johnson doesn't look like Aaliyah, Janet, or Ashanti, she hasn't received the mainstream love that a slew of less talented singers have (but don't get it twisted; I just saw her perform and she's fine; just not as petite as MTV would like). But, if things go according to plan, radio won't be able to ignore her for much longer.

The crowning achievement of the album is the lead single, Guess What, a male-bashing...er female empowerment song produced by Uncle Ches...er R. Kelly. This is the most cohesive song on the CD, and it sounds like it was probably the only time Syleena was in the studio with her producer as opposed to singing over a tape she was given. Here, Syleena berates and gives an ultimatum to her man with lyrics that don't hold back:

I don't see no rings on these fingers
So I'm not gonna deal with your drama
Long as you're wit me, you better show respect
Get out and get a job and bring home a check
See I will love you 'til the day I die
But never love you enough to live a lie
Now three snaps up, three snaps down
Wanted to be treated like a king, you better wear the crown
Wanna play the boss? {Guess what}
You gotta pay the cost {Sho nuff}
Wanna wear the pants? {Guess what}
You've gotta be a man {Sho nuff}
Hangin out wit your friends {Guess what}
Then watch what time you come in {Sho nuff}
Don't wanna pay the bills {Guess what}
I know somebody who will {Sho nuff}


Now, I have an issue with a ton of the lyrics here (when did women decide that it's my responsibility to pay your bills?), but that's a whole other essay. This song, if it catches on, has the potential to be the ladies' anthem for at least a few months. And the funky, but smoothed out bassline makes this tight, musically, so the fellas might be able to forgive the lyrics.

Tonight I'm Gonna Let Go is the second single and probably has the most radio potential, because it takes the beat from Busta's Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See. The remix, which features the Flipmode Squad sans Rah Digga, also appears here after the outro.

Other notable tracks are I'm Gon Cry, If You Play Your Cards Right, No Words, and the intro. The first two are typical tales of cheating boyfriends and propositions respectively, but they are both done well. The latter seems to subtly sample Busta's Break Ya Neck, but no credit is listed. No Words is a song in which none of the lines are finished, because there are "no words" to describe how good Syleena feels. It's a nice concept and she pulls it off nicely. "Just the mere thought of you/Makes me...ooh wee/And I I I yi yi/Ooh ooh ooh ooh".

In retrospect, I'll say now that the intro is the album's best song (I don't feel like going back and changing that earlier paragraph). The beat (produced by Hi-Tek) has a very simple, almost African drum pattern, and has a very high head-nod factor. The impressive backdrop provides the perfect forum for Syleena to give us the CD's best lyrics as she touches on various topics involving her and the industry:

One day I was feeling low down
{Was having} bad thoughts like I won't be around
{Was thinking} maybe I should get out of this gaame
{I thought that} nobody wants to hear me sing
{I thought that} nobody even knew my anme
{I thought that} maybe 'cause it was I didn't lose weight
{I thought that} I had failed and I felt so ashamed
{And not just} at my music but at everything,
{But then my} Mama said 'Don't you dare think that way'
{And my} sisters told me not to lose my faith

The introspection combined wit Hi-Tek's understated track make this the album's best song (I mean it this time). But that's about where the good ends.

The rest of the songs feature strong, straightforward lyricism covering all the bases of love gone right and wrong, but they ultimately fail, because the music can't match up to the poetry. Syleena's voice, while not having a very wide range, has a melodic raspiness to it that easily conveys the emotion she's feeling, even though she rarely "cuts loose."

The good songs are of high enough quality for me to give Chapter 2 three stars, but I can't recommend it, because it is very spotty. Hopefully, next time Jive will give Syleena a big enough budget to bring in some big name producers. Or maybe she should just collab with R. Kelly for the whole album (if that's possible), because he seems to fit her style better than any of the other producers she works with (he also produced her debut single Your Woman). Syleena still hasn't made the CD that she can make, but as talent tends to resurface, it probably won't take her long to.

On a side note, check out my review of Fat Joe's "Loyalty" here:

http://www.epinions.com/content_80872115844

which was posted on November 14th, then check out the review on hiphopdx at

http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/reviews/id.239

which was posted on December 6th.

I guess I should be flattered.