JoJo – The High Road

I always knew there was something special about JoJo.

When I heard “Leave (Get Out)” from JoJo’s self-titled debut album, I recall thinking to myself, ‘Now this girl can really sing.’ But, not one to ever get my hopes up, I also wondered if the then thirteen year old singer would ever get the chance to record the kind of music that was anything more than derivative of the contemporary music landscape. Well, thankfully, two years later the young singer has gotten that chance and her sophomore album, The High Road, is glowing testimony to that fact.

With her new album, JoJo proves that she is neither a singer to be trifled with nor one to be counted out. In fact, I haven’t heard an album command this kind of bravado since the debut of Mariah Carey’s Vision of Love or Christina Aguilera’s brash initial assault on the record charts. And if you remember those moments, no matter what you may think of either singer now, then you know that means JoJo must be one fierce, ‘go slap somebody’ kind of diva-in-training.

My shoulders were pumping and my hands were already up in the air at my first listen to The High Road’s opening track “This Time”, a funky, R&B flavored track with the kind of groove that should have caught the attention of more established divas like Janet Jackson and Beyoncé (if you know what I’m sayin’). Ditto for the second track, “The Way You Do Me”, which not only benefits from JoJo’s Christina Aguilera-inspired riffs and wails, but would have made a nice addition to Miss Aguilera’s catalog as well.

By the time I reached the album’s lead single “Too Little Too Late”, which I must say I was afraid to admit I was in love with initially, I knew that The High Road was so much more than a teeny-bopper album. This is an album that heralds the debut of a mature singer who is destined to make a mark on the music industry and thank the heavens for that because we have been at a little bit of a loss in the diva department as of late.

From beginning to end on the The High Road, JoJo continues to ratchet up expectations even when you think she couldn’t soar any higher. For instance she follows up the slow grinding, old-school title track with the hot pop/rock soon-to-be-hit “Anything” which features a sample of the Toto hit “Africa” and only serves to make listeners anticipate the next tracks all the more. Even tracks like “Coming For You” which seems more in the vein of a Kelly Clarkson, seem perfectly in sync with the rest of this disc.

The trio of ballads that close The High Road cement the notion that this album heralds the arrival of music’s next great diva. Yes this album is a bit schizophrenic at points, but at no point do you ever feel the need to stop listening or skip to the next track because JoJo is a singer so very competent at every turn (Something that I can’t say about new releases from other artists like Janet Jackson and Beyoncé). All I can say is… Bow down boys and girls, pop has a new princess. Show her your allegiance.

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Jonny McGovern Presents:  This is NYC, Bitch

He is the self-proclaimed ‘Gay Pimp” and Jonny McGovern’s This is NYC, Bitch provides nothing, if not, the perfect soundtrack for his reign. A high-energy bombast that kicks off with the in your face “This Is New York City (Bitch!)” featuring La’Mady and Kevin Aviance, “This Is Bitch” serves up tunes befitting the fiercest prance-a-thons since the ones last seen in the groundbreaking documentary Paris Is Burning.

One of the most camp dance albums that I’ve heard in years, there is something fresh and decidedly fun about This is NYC, Bitch that not only inspired me to move, but also to listen. In a music world where so many gays are trying to ‘fit in’ it is refreshing to hear a dance album that actually revels in its absolute ‘gayness’. When you hear “The Bad Bump” a song about getting back at a trick who gives a tranny a bad bump of blow after realizing that he does not have female genitalia, you will both relate and laugh at the song’s cheekiness. Likewise, the track “Showgirl” by Erickatoure Aviance with its samples of Paula Abdul’s “Cold-Hearted Snake” and Pebbles’ “Girlfriend” tells a gay-spiced story with danceable grooves that will remind you of the good ol’ days.

Which brings me to perhaps the most intriguing thing about Jonny McGovern’s This is NYC, Bitch. This is an album that courts contemporary music styles in Eminem fashion and then gives them a gay twist which pays homage to and makes the songs more relevant to our community. For my money, not only is Jonny McGovern’s album ‘bitch”, it gives a big finger to all those folks in the red states who want to deny that we gay folks exist and that alone in my book is reason enough to buy it.

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Basement Jaxx – Crazy Itch Radio

Do you have a wacky old aunt you just adore? You know…the kind who spouts ‘special’ wisdom from time to time in her own unique way? That’s sort of what came to mind as I listened to the new Basement Jaxx disc.

Basement Jaxx’s “Crazy Itch Radio” is one crazy album and that is the very essence of its charm.

Hop-scotching from genre to genre, sound to sound and personality to personality, the latest from the Basement Jaxx secures their position as one of the most innovative bands on the music scene. Part Billie Holiday and a touch Nina Simone with a whiff of Fatboy Slim and Daft Punk, Basement Jaxx teaches listeners to think bigger with each successive track.

Whatever your musical fancy, you are likely to find something that suits you on Crazy Itch Radio, a kaleidoscope of an album that defies expectation (and to some degree reason) at every opportunity. In fact you have to release your sense of expectation and just enjoy every track on this new album individually just as parents would enjoy the personality ticks of their own brood of offspring.

Highlights include the upbeat “Hey You” and the smoky “Lights Go Down” which effectively illustrate the multiple personality disorder that is Crazy Itch Radio. An ideal party album, Basement Jaxx not only set the mood on their newest musical outing, but offer a spark for conversation, which is sure to make Crazy Itch Radio an invaluable asset at any cocktail party for years to come.

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Until next time!