Mariah Carey = Bad act?
Hey! Maybe for you. Each has its own.
I love her and it pains me to see "snobby" reviewers like you who intellectualize everything and say she's bad at what she does. Don't you think you should reconsider your conclusions when you see her sales figures? How come many people buy her music when its bad? You mean, common people who buy her music can't appeciate good music? That's an elitist point of view. Very "racist" I'd say, for lack of word to describe what you are.

Mr. immortalcritic .. You are the absolutely the worst critic ever .. Your point of view of comparing Erykah to Alicia to Mary to Mariah shows that you don't appreciate how DIFFERENT these women are .. or celebrate their individuality .. I heard a racist say all black people look alike .. And that is what this review sounds like .. Full of HATE .. JEALOUSY .. and BITTER UGLINESS.. God help you !!!

I like how you've looked at it from a Hip-Hop point of view. For that reason, and to those comments above, does not favour Alicia Keys or Mary-J-Blige. Aaliyah's One In A Million was a milestone in Hip-Hop in it's production (Timbaland) and blend with soul music. Baduizm was a soul album released by a rap artist(her first demo tape). Erykah Badu has really peeled the onion. I dont think she's changing, I think she's discovering, and expressing at the same time.

On the other hand, I think her album was very political. It was reminiscent of the Nation Of Islam, Farrakhan & Malcom X. "My People" is a love song to me, even though I am from Africa, where people are living in poverty. In each song, there are phrases that are political, beside 'Honey'. Dare she say "Hip Hop is bigger than religion" reminding of the Beatles & John Lennon's controversial writing.

"Alicia Keys keeps on hiding her true self both on and off record."

Thanks for telling the truth. This woman is talented but soooooo overrated that it's ridiculous. I wish that she had the guts to really speak her mind like Erykah.

I would take Mary and Alicia's recent album over Erykah's any day....Erykah's great I was'nt feeling the album too much


Alicia is nowhere near overrated and I thinks it's unfair to say she isn't true when you knoe the least about her

I don't have to know her to say that she's overrated. She is. I just don't see the "greatness" that everyone talks about. She's average. And she's FORCE-FED to the public.

this is an excellent article.

thank you for finally saying what is so true - R&B has been hanging by a thread.

really solid writing.

"she croons on the breezy "Honey" in obvious reference to Dre (from Outkast)"

Erykah and dre ended a long time ago. she has since been handful of hip hops most conscience men. even having a baby with D.O.C., a very musical relationship with common, and a very private relationship with her new man, the brilliant underground internet rap star Jay Electronica.

This article shocked me at some points. you mentioned so many other artists, with out even mentioning her Mamas gun, or her EP Worldwide Underground, Which were both brilliant.

I do Agree with you on your thoughts on mary, alicia, and lauryn. it's really a shame whats going on with lauryn. Erykah badu is in a completely different league from alicia and mary, i really hope lauryn gets it together and stops screaming.

New Amerykah plays like a brilliant hip hop mix tape of hip hops most brilliant underground producers. She dims down the singing, but the messages she bringing this time around is exactly what hip hop needs. i cant wait for part two. apparently theres a live album coming out too, which im most excitted for.

for everyone who doesnt understand erykah badus greatness, has not taken a moment to see what she's doing live these days on youtube. check out what shes done in dc, north sea jazz festival, and with stones throw.

mind blowing. shes definately "the healer" hip hop AND r&b needs. Shes one of the most under-rated artists who has to say some thing real and making lovely real music.

so much love for erykah

NEW AMERYKAH PART ONE IS OFF THE HOOK!!!

Yeah, I agree that Alicia Keys is overrated. Her singing and songwriting seem to get worse and worse with each cd release. Loved "Falling" on the first album, and "If I ain't got you" on the second album, but hard to find anything else really lovable that she's put out...

Definitely not feeling this album.

Anyone who fails to take note of Mama's Gun or the song "I Want You" from Worldwide Underground should not discuss Badu. Shut Up! You are obvuiously not a black woman.

Thanks for the feedback guys, it really is an exceptional album by Badu and it is an album of the year contender and I've been gettin a lot of flak since my Mariah Carey review and it always puzzles me how her fans feel she is above criticism yet, trust me, when critics do their year end polls of the best albums of the year, this work--not Mariah's--will be close in thought.

I don't think most fans care about year end polls from critics, actually.

To Neil Morgan:

Mariah does what she needs to do to stay relevant so she serves up dishes of bubblegummy pop tarts that oftentimes, leave me sour (and this is coming from an Emancipation of Mimi fan!) I haven't heard the new record, but her stans, i mean fans, need to be spoonfed, like the general population. They won't necessarily get the beauty of an album like "New Amerykah." So sad but true.

Jasmine, I think there's room in this world (and in my CD collection) for a bit of everything. That doesn't mean I'm "spoonfed" or that the general population is. This elitism is just downright annoying.

Jordan, are you serious?? Elitism?? Just because the critic didn't like he cd, he's an elitist because of his view? FOH! He's a critic and so am I because I'm a consumer. But he CRITIQUES albums for a living. You guys put Mariah on a pedestal and think that everything she puts out is perfect. Be real. Not everyone's going to like what she puts out and you shouldn't get mad at them. Please respect their opinion. Btw, I love Mariah but not this one. She's stooping very low to sell records. There, I said it! Now what??

First of all, settle down.

Second, the comment about elitism was directed at you, not the author of this piece.

Third, you claimed that her "stans" or "fans" need to be "spoonfed." I'm not sure what the inference is supposed to be here entirely, but it does smack of elitism when you suggest that some people who enjoy certain types or styles or artists or whatever are "spoonfed" because they "need to be." This suggests that the "rest of us," for instance those of us who enjoy Erykah Badu, are decidedly "not being spoonfed" and are thus making our own music choices.

Fourth, I don't know if you've looked around the site, but I'm also a critic. Got quite a few music reviews up so far, actually. I would never suggest that a critic, by his or her very nature of being a critic, was being elitist at all.

Fifth, who is "you guys?" I'm not particularly a Mariah fan, although I will be reviewing a copy when the album arrives here from her label (there were no advances and I refused to listen to the leak). I'm not mad at anyone for not liking any particular piece of music. I do take issue with the notion that people that do enjoy something are being "spoonfed." The notion that I don't respect the opinion of the author of the post is laughable considering your "spoonfed" comments.

Sixth (and final point, I promise), I haven't heard the new Mariah as mentioned. I will be reviewing it for this site and I may, in fact, not like it very much. I'm not sure, I'm not a fan. But what I will not do is echo your sentiments and suggest that people that do will swallow anything.

So I'm an elitist because I said Mariah and her music spoonfeeds? I meant that there's nothing about Mariah's music that challenges, or provokes thought. She follows a formula, and it works for her. Her album's easy to get into, not far-left like Erykah's latest. Mariah's straight up bubble gummy TRL pop, and that's OK, if you like Mariah. You can't even compare her to Erykah, that wouldn't be a fair assessment. And as a music critic, you should know that. Calm down Jordan. It's really not that serious. I'm not hating on Mariah, I'm just calling it the way I see it. I, like everyoneelse, am allowed to have my opinion. Not everyone's going to run around waving a Mariah banner. I respect yours and I hope you respect mine. That's all I'm asking for. Let's agree to disagree for right now.

"I meant that there's nothing about Mariah's music that challenges, or provokes thought."

Correction: there's nothing about her music that challenges you or provokes thought with you. For many, her songs are relatable and engaging. See, this is the elitism I'm referring to. Your attitude is akin to "oh, well this musician is thought-provoking but this other musician here isn't and is simply spoonfeeding her fans." Surely you see how presumptuous that is.

"You can't even compare her to Erykah, that wouldn't be a fair assessment. And as a music critic, you should know that."

Comparisons are always dangerous, that's why I rarely make them. For the record, I didn't compare Mariah Carey to Erykah Badu, so I'm not quite sure what your point is.

"I'm not hating on Mariah, I'm just calling it the way I see it. I, like everyoneelse, am allowed to have my opinion. Not everyone's going to run around waving a Mariah banner. I respect yours and I hope you respect mine."

Had you read the entirety of my response to you in the first place, you would have realized that this isn't really about Mariah and liking her or not liking her (as I said before, I'm pretty indifferent to her).

"I respect yours and I hope you respect mine. That's all I'm asking for. Let's agree to disagree for right now."

Ah ha, but that's just it. You don't respect my musical opinion if you claim that I'm being "spoonfed" my music by the mindless Mariah and her formulaic drivel. To me that claims an assumption about how I enjoy my music, about what I look for in my music, and about what I get out of my music. No art, no matter how bland and formulaic it may look on the surface, follows such rules. It is different with each person who experiences it and it is presumptuous to suggest otherwise.

"oh, well this musician is thought-provoking but this other musician here isn't and is simply spoonfeeding her fans."

I never said this so please don't put words in my mouth. I said in my previous response that I respected your opinion. You clearly don't respect mine, that's why I agreed to disagree, especially since music is subjective. Enjoy your new Mariah CD sweetheart:) Toodles!



I hope you enjoy Mariah's new cd Jordan:)

Hey! I am enjoying Mariah's new CD and I have a feeling that I will be in a very long time. It's great. It's not "thought-provoking" but it is what it is . . . enjoyable music. That's all that matters. Lighten up people!

I love Mariah's voice and I'm a huge fan of Emancipation. It was a well-produced, beautifully sung album. But seriously, her subject matter is extremely limited, hasn't progressed since Vision Of Love - it is NOT challenging.

Erykah may not sell as many records - she doesn't feel the need to dress up in a postage stamp mini skirt and writhe on a bed in a video - and her music is always a reflection on what is happening in her interior and exterior world, whether love, politics, religion. She is a lyrically and vocally gifted artist, always looking to expand boundaries of sound and thought.