Miss E...So Addictive [PA] - Elliott, Missy (Cassette 2001)

Missy Elliot has been a force in music for many years now. Up until the past five or six years, Missy worked behind the scenes, writing songs and producing albums for other artists and singers. That all changed with the release of her first album "Supa Dupa Fly" in 1997 which featured Missy singing her own songs on an album for the first time. This album, her third, features Missy at the top of her game. With several guests spots by artists like Ludacris and Ginuwine, Missy makes an overall enjoyable album to listen to and a well-composed album musically.

Songs like "One Minute Man", "Lick Shots", and " For My People" showcase what Elliot is best at; unique and innovate rap and hip-hop music with a great blend of sounds. "One Minute Man" has a great use of bass and Elliot's breathy vocals that makes this a fun song about what a girl wants. "Lick Shots" is very similar to the single "Get Ur Freak On" in that both songs showcase Elliot's ability to rhyme just as well as any male rapper, all the while using great and innovate bass lines that make the songs great to dance to. "For My People" sounds like a circus gone mad. Thumping bass a frenzied rhyming style by Elliot and company, along with a unique, almost xylophone like bass sound in the background, make this song one of the standout tracks on the CD

"Scream" also offers some variety in its presentation. The marracas are a nice touch in the background of this rap track that shows us just how clever Elliot can be when discussing how men approach her. The use of a male chorus in the background is a nice added irony to the track.

Elliot is not as effective however on the slower songs and ballads that she sings on this album. While she does have a good singing voice, the mix of slower tracks, although there are only about two or three on the CD such as "Take Away", don't really fit with the overall mood of the atmosphere. The upbeat, energetic feel of the CD that is carried throughout the CD comes to an abrupt halt when the slower songs come on. They are good songs in and of themselves, but they seem out of place on a CD like this that seems primarily devoted to dancing and partying.

Overall the album is clearly a triumph lyrically and musically. The energy in the music is great and the quality of Elliot's talent is at its fullest here. A great CD and certainly just the next phase of the continuing evolution of a great and gifted artist. An addiction in the best possible way.