MUSIC REVIEWS
Teairra Mari - Roc A Fella Records Presents Teairra Mari
David Allun Jones
Seventeen year old Detroit native Teaiira Mari follows a long line of sole female R&B darlings attached to a hip hop label, basically guaranteeing her the obligatory "Princess of..." tag but you'd expect a lot more originality coming from someone so closely affiliated with the reigning King of Rap ("retired" or not) Jay Z. Her lazy debut casts her as the hood friendly version of Beyonce combining a pretty voice with "don't fuck with me" ghetto swagger and neck snapping attitude over hard hitting hip hop beats. But beneath all the marketing efforts to distinguish her from the rest, there's nothing there that makes you want to root for her team.
Teairra's main claim to fame is this summer's R&B no-brainer "Make Her Feel Good", a Rakim-sampling banger in which she's fed up with the men that's been spitting at her as of late ("Cant a chick from the hood find a homie/ That wanna do more than spend money on me"). The "My Melody" beat, sassy spunk and free usage of the "n" word grabbed more than a few heads as the urban anthem of the season. It's great for a single but doesn't necessarily carry the weight to justify a whole album's formula, something she foolishly attempts.
Home girl should of studied Keyshia Cole a little or Beyonce a little deeper and she would've found a better balance of inner city know how and nu-soul sophistication. Given that, and some better producers, she could've avoided the empty feeling her album creates. Songs fly by without leaving much of a presence thanks to listless beats that lack groove and a flat personality that was no doubt pre-fabricated by the bevy of songwriters and producers trying to turn her into urban music's hot new thing. Maybe with a little padding from some of her label mates (Kanye? Young Gunz? Hell, even Memphis Bleek!!) things would've been differently, but she unfortunately feels that the no guest appearances route could help her out better. It's sad only because some of these songs are screaming for somebody, anybody, to grace them with a verse.
A few cuts do stand inches above the rest, though. "La La", "Get Up On Ya Gangsta" and "No Daddy" follow the lead single's format the best with the last one being a smart second single choice thanks to it's contagious hook, a "Hollaback Girl"-like chant in which she proclaims that a lack of a father figure and love of tight jeans doesn't mean she wont throw down if need be. But that's what makes illegal downloading so great because such few only okay tracks aren't enough to justify buying the five buck street bootleg, never mind the twenty dollars that Sam Goodys asks for.
