Bittersweet

The fuss made over Blu Cantrell’s past as an adult model may be the expected tabloid tittle tattle when a new face emerges on the block, but it does raise another point. So blandly interchangeable have all these R&B diva albums become, that the private lives of Beyoncé, Kelly, Mary J, Ashanti and the rest are often far more interesting. Sadly, the same holds true for Blu. Both ‘Hit ‘Em Up Style’ and this year’s ‘Breathe’ are justifiable chart chrunchers and, although the former’s appearance for the second album running gives off a whiff of desperation, their arrival together a third of the way through takes the record to a dizzying high. Sadly, nothing that either precedes or follows can come anywhere close. She’s a fine singer but she needs better material than this to showcase her ability