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The First Review!

Filed under: Janet Jackson > Mariah Carey

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Exciting news diva lovers!

DefJam had a listening session in London on Wednesday, where they played most of Mariah and Janet's new albums.

CLICK HERE to get a detailed review of each record!

[Image via Celebrity Babylon.]

Review by Discopop:

Janet and Mariah - First listen!

So, Def Jam were showing off the two female jewels in their crown today with playbacks of the new Janet Jackson and Mariah Carey albums.

Label Boss Antonio "LA" Reid seemed very excited about both of them, although that is his job, and mentioned plans for six singles from Mariah's That Chick, which hits the stores in April.

First up, though, was Janet's Discipline. If you've heard the single, Feedback, you'll have a pretty good idea of what to expect from the album. It's crisp, danceable R&B lavished with Janet's trademark velvet harmonies.

The stand-out track was probably Tonight, a bubbling club track which can only be Jackson's response to Rihanna's Don't Stop The Music. Reid mentioned that some of the tracks weren't finished - and this one sounded like it was missing a sample somewhere in the mix. Once that's added, this could be Janet's biggest dance success since Together Again.

Love, Love, Love and This Can't Be Good saw the lyrical return of the sweet singer who first raised her head on Let's Wait Awhile - all coy and bashful while falling head over heels in love.

But the sleazy siren of 20 YO is also present. Title track Discipline is a gruseome plea for fetishistic S&M sex - with Janet referring to her lover as "Daddy" while asking to be tied up and disciplined. Given that her father is a well-documented control freak who used to beat his kids, this is more than a little uncomfortable.

Speaking of family connections, there's long been a rumour that Janet and Michael will team up again (as they did on 1996's Scream) this year. Well, nothing I heard today confirms that rumour - but there is a track called Rock With You that appears to sample the single of the same name from Off The Wall. Could the finished version feature guest vocals by the former King of Pop? I genuinely hope not.

The remaining two tracks, Rollercoaster and Greatest Ex Ever, didn't really set my world alight - but you never know what'll happen on repeated listens.

The main thing seems to be that Janet is back on form, vocally and lyrically. The record is very safe and commercial, although I'm not sure where they'll go for the third single (Tonight surely has to be the second). But as a first step towards career rehabilitation Def Jam have made a strong play for their newest diva.

Their old diva (in terms of contract, not age, of course) is Mariah, who is riding high after the 7xPlatinum-selling Emancipation Of Mimi.

We got to hear 10 tracks from the follow-up, That Chick, which I have to say sounded more polished and commercial than Janet's effort.

One track in particular is set to make big bucks, and that's Bye Bye - a torch song for people "who lost they grandmothers". I guarantee that Simon Cowell will be sick of hearing badly-realised auditions of it by the end of the year.

Lyrics were never Carey's strong point, mind you, so her paean to loss is summed up with not-very-insightful Hallmark platitudes like "I'd give the world to see your face" and "Life goes on". Profound, eh?

Still, at least it's better than when she desperately attempts to prove how bang up to date she is. In Touch My Body, she purrs to her lover: "If there's a camera up in here then I best not catch this flick on youtube (youtube)". Not exactly the sexiest boudoir come-on you've ever heard, is it?

But there are plenty of good tunes to counter the awesomely bad lyrics. Migrate, about a night out with Mariah while she wears jeans ("yeah, they fit", she informs us) is sure to be a candidate for heavy MTV rotation, although I hope to god they excise T-Pain's hopelessly strained vocals. Lovin' You Long Time, meanwhile, is a strutting uptempo number very much in the style of It's Like That.

So, what have we learnt from this listening "event"? Well, I wasn't overwhelmed by the music - despite (or perhaps because of) the fact it was played so ear-splittingly loud that it felt like I was being punched repeatedly in the ears by a cyberman. Both artists have turned in a tuneful, competent set of R&B songs, but I'm not sure that any of them have the charisma or vitality to compete with the Rihannas and Beyonces of this world.

Both albums: 6/10 (scores may go up or down after further listens at levels tolerable to the human ear).

158 comments to “The First Review!”

More comments: [1] 2 »

  1. amaranta says – reply to this


    1

    1!

  2. timothya says – reply to this


    2

    first muther fuckers

  3. sdlfkQFDS;LDFKLG says – reply to this


    3

    firs

  4. Shabang-bang says – reply to this


    4

    Can't stand Mariah. Janet's okay, but honestly I think a little over-rated.

  5. KATHLEEN says – reply to this


    5

    FIRST GO OBAMA

  6. Rebecca says – reply to this


    6

    First

  7. sdfsd says – reply to this


    7

    first

  8. ryan says – reply to this


    8

    boobies!

  9. costamesaboy says – reply to this


    9

    does she have any kids???????? seriously

  10. OPRAH says – reply to this


    10

    OBAMA 08
    OBAMA ROCKSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

  11. cheese says – reply to this


    11

    1ST?

  12. lc says – reply to this


    12

    bitch

  13. meme says – reply to this


    13

    love both of them good luck

  14. mcfan says – reply to this


    14

    first?

  15. hstew says – reply to this


    15

    first

  16. Tiffani says – reply to this


    16

    divas make me happy!!

  17. t_baby918 says – reply to this


    17

    first

  18. joh says – reply to this


    18

    go mariah!!!

  19. Tiffani says – reply to this


    19

    divas are exciting!

  20. Tin says – reply to this


    20

    first?

  21. GOD says – reply to this


    21

    first?

  22. first says – reply to this


    22

    first

  23. SAI'S GOLDEN AGE ANGEL says – reply to this


    23

    I CAME TO HAVE A PARTY :)
    So what's it gonna be???

    Om Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu

  24. me says – reply to this


    24

    first

  25. adv says – reply to this


    25

    first

  26. RC says – reply to this


    26

    Can't wait 4 new Mariah!!!

  27. Slut says – reply to this


    27

    hahahahahahahahahaha first review and it's bad!!!!! What did you expect???

  28. Jill says – reply to this


    28

    Love her! She is such a talented singer and has such class.

  29. dyaln says – reply to this


    29

    1st!, yea i luv mariah

  30. mizar says – reply to this


    30

    first

  31. sara elizabeth says – reply to this


    31

    I wont be buying either… or obtaining them illegally.

  32. cock says – reply to this


    32

    SnM yay

  33. kyle says – reply to this


    33

    these are lame reviews. says barely anything about either album.

  34. Ross says – reply to this


    34

    I'm so excited for Mariah's new album!!!

  35. yu says – reply to this


    35

    first!!

  36. j says – reply to this


    36

    can't wait for mariah's album

  37. Frances says – reply to this


    37

    first ? =S

  38. abby says – reply to this


    38

    talk to me on aim! ahbeeex3

  39. Dan says – reply to this


    39

    1st

  40. abby says – reply to this


    40

    talk to me on aim! ahbeeex3

  41. abby says – reply to this


    41

    talk to me on aim! ahbeeex3

  42. abby says – reply to this


    42

    talk to me on aim! ahbeeex3

  43. soulja boyy says – reply to this


    43

    FIRSTT wat now?

  44. abby ! says – reply to this


    44

    talk to me on aim ! ahbeeex3 !

  45. Cody Alaniz says – reply to this


    45

    I love Mariah!

  46. BeyonceLover says – reply to this


    46

    1st!!!!!!

  47. mina says – reply to this


    47

    they will suck

  48. DRB says – reply to this


    48

    This seems very un-Mariah. I'm calling b.s. All that they reported could be gathered from existing rumors and old material. & listening parties are usually big news, while I only saw this in a small report once the other day.
    Probaly not true

  49. gean says – reply to this


    49

    how am i first

  50. gean says – reply to this


    50

    how am i first

  51. M says – reply to this


    51

    ha.

  52. cdub says – reply to this


    52

    first?

  53. dan says – reply to this


    53

    god… i dont like neither

  54. jillian says – reply to this


    54

    hope mariah dies! first!

  55. yoyoyo says – reply to this


    55

    first

  56. aymami says – reply to this


    56

    good for janet… i hope the album gets some finishing touches and gets some positive reviews, because she never really went away.

    As for that fat cow, I'm sure she'll have plenty of collaborations, remixes and featured rappers and whatnot, plus her people doing payola to guarantee her a couple of #1 singles, so I'm not worried.

  57. Marina says – reply to this


    57

    56th

  58. motorola says – reply to this


    58

    Mariah will probably reign supreme again and well….janet will suck as usual…..just my prediction;) s ince Rihanna amd Beyonce hit the scene, janet is more like recycled overkill.

  59. Marc says – reply to this


    59

    Mariah looks so weird in that picture..must be the cheekimplants. I wish she would do something drastically different with her music..it's always they same songs.

  60. bitch says – reply to this


    60

    I hope whoever wishes someone death, like you did to Mariah, will whither up and dry in hell.

    How dare you fucking insult someone like that you don't know.

    You obviously don't have God in your heart, you're pathetic and lonely you fucking scum bag.

    Mariah is the best, she obviously doesn't need the haters sales because what…she's the biggest female seller any how bitches. Did you buy her last album??? NO! and it still was the BIGGEST ALBUM OF 2005!!!!!!!!!!!! AND HAD A 14 WEEK NO. 1 SINGLE AND A FOLLOW UP TO MAKE IT HER 17TH NUMBER ONE.

    SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH AND BOW DOWN TO REAL ARTISTS YOU FUCKING WHORE AND I HOPE YOU FUCKING DIE IN HELL.

  61. Mirked says – reply to this


    61

    FAKE……….FAKE>>>>>>FAKE

  62. W says – reply to this


    62

    SO EXCITED FOR JANET'S RECORD. NOT SO MUCH FOR MARIAH'S I BOUGHT MIMI AND I ONLY LIKED LIKE 2 SONGS (I WAS PISSED)

    JANET WILL OWN 2008!!!!!!!!!!

  63. sarah says – reply to this


    63

    Mariah is hot shizzzzz!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    :)

  64. enlightened white girl says – reply to this


    64

    mariah sucks. go janet!!!!

  65. DRB says – reply to this


    65

    This story is FAKE.
    They reviewed nothing, just told of stuff people are speculating from rumors. The only song we know of is Migrate, which she played on New Years. Bye Bye is a ringtone she did for Pepsi in 2006. If you listen to all her music, you see she is a very strong writer and none of that sounds like something she would put down.

  66. bitch you so STOOOOPid says – reply to this


    66

    Re: bitch – okay….read the first and last sentences of your post. DUMBASS hypocrite! lmao

  67. FREE SPEACH says – reply to this


    67

    Love Both

  68. Chantelle says – reply to this


    68

    yay love mariah

  69. JohnPete says – reply to this


    69

    Mimi gonna drop YET ANOTHER disc about what life is like when you're born a mixed-race girl. 'Bye-Bye' is dedicated to her black grandmother.

    OK OK Mariah, we get it already. You're mixed race, not black and not white- and how painful it must be (pain of having millions of dollars, many large beautiful homes, diamonds, etc etc)

  70. Miss Jackson returns...no says – reply to this


    70

    The best years are far behind her. Janet is going to flop. I don't care what anyone says. Her fans will buy it, and it will last about a week…maybe two. After that, she will fade quickly. She's just too lame.

  71. keri says – reply to this


    71

    L.A. Reid is full of shit. rihanna is over-rated. anyone can compete with her. not to hate but if she wasnt pretty she wouldnt be as big as she is..she's a prime example of how you dont have to be talented to be famous these days.

  72. MariahslambMary says – reply to this


    72

    I am soooo excited for MC's new album. I know it's gonna be off the hiz-ook.

  73. Katherine says – reply to this


    73

    Mariah looks like a hooker with those huge implants. Whose are worse, hers or Posh?

  74. ken says – reply to this


    74

    mariah is going to rule 2008!!! DIE: janet, madonna, celine, beyonce, and mary!!!! LAMBS rule!!!!

  75. me people says – reply to this


    75

    we need more voices out there in the industry like mariah carey and christina aguilera and alicia keys cause those gals can sing nothingover rated about any of them so many artists today are just so manufactured and not at all really good voices

  76. me people says – reply to this


    76

    we need more voices out there in the industry like mariah carey and christina aguilera and alicia keys cause those gals can sing nothingover rated about any of them so many artists today are just so manufactured and not at all really good voices

  77. *Anonymous* says – reply to this


    77

    Huh? Why did you write "Hi Lambs!"???

  78. true dat. rihanna sucks (jay z's dick) says – reply to this


    78

    Re: keri – so true. rihanna is very pretty, but girl cannot sing for shit. sounds like a dying sheep waiting to be put out of its misery!

  79. Austin#1 Fan!! says – reply to this


    79

    When listening to Mariah you kinda forget about all other female singers! I guess thats why shes the best female artist of all time! Almost better than Elvis and The Beatles. So if you cant compete with them ( Beyonce and Rianna) then it really dosent matter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  80. Austin#1 Fan!! says – reply to this


    80

    And the guy that wrote this must be a black gay guy or a lesbo!

  81. daisk says – reply to this


    81

    For the love of God, Mariah cover dem titties girl! Those silicon sacks are way too big. Mariah you look like an old porno whore who gets bigger tits each time a new birthday rolls around.

  82. piazzasbuttplug says – reply to this


    82

    Wet dream (nightmare)

    Me in the middle of that sandwich, while I fuck Mariah doggy, after Janet inserted me into Mariah's dripping wet canal de luv, Janet is underneath licking my balls, while Mariah licks Janet.

    But oh no, here cums Rosie O, and she pulls down her trous and takes a big heaping dump on all of us, while screaming how sorry she is that she is annoying.

  83. sue says – reply to this


    83

    she always wears half a dress

  84. canadian says – reply to this


    84

    you wanna know who is annoying?
    Mariah

    Lambs….oh please
    I would not go a see anything to do with her
    me makes ma wanna puke

  85. Jill says – reply to this


    85

    Re: sara elizabeth
    Who buys cds anymore? stoneage.

  86. ange says – reply to this


    86

    Hey! Listen to this: Simla Taak is a thief.

  87. Tobby says – reply to this


    87

    This Mariah album is gonna be so Hot!!
    Mariah is a great song writer.

    Janet will do great, cause she's an ICON.

  88. Simla Taak is a thief says – reply to this


    88

    Hey: if you want me to steal your money put your house on my books and I won't pay your rent!

  89. bullshit says – reply to this


    89

    Excuse me, but Mariah is a lyrical genius and she certainly does write bad lyrics. Who could come up with something like, "Images of rapture creep into me slowly, as they go into my head?" She knows lyrics as well as music.

  90. RockOfLove says – reply to this


    90

  91. NiceTry says – reply to this


    91

    only dumb down AMERICANS/=80% of the Lambase give 1/8 of a SHIT about Mimi and her vapid, souless voice, sell out/formulatic music, whorin it out "only" to score them last 3-4#1s to beat the Beatles LOL.

  92. warm xplosion says – reply to this


    92

    i didnt get the line that said not sure if janet or mariah have the charisma 2 compete with b or rhianna did j and mimi just fall off a pickle truck damn when did music become so like a battle,can i get a witness amen! i liked songs by all of them.this is my last comment on this site because if u really read these comments from the haters which is so few to the many janet,mariah etc. fans they read like they came from relatives from the movie WRONG TURN just think about it, when u go to respected sites it may be some dislikes which is normal dont get me wrong but its done in class just watch WRONG TURN the movie, read the comments and u will c what im sayin keep bringin the funk j,b, mimi and the rest of them i luv 2 b entertained!!!!! in more ways than 1 lol feedback on that haters

  93. DRB says – reply to this


    93

    Re: bullshit – or
    "And then you casually walked in the room
    And I was twisted
    In the web of my desire for you
    My apprehension blew away
    I only wanted you
    To taste my sadness
    As you kissed me in the dark"

    "Slipping into dreams
    I feel my love surround you
    My subconscious seems
    To weave itself around you
    Do you care for me
    Beyond idolization
    Tell me how you feel
    But don't keep me at bay
    'Cause I won't be waiting long"

    "So starry eyed
    On the flowery hillside
    Breathless and fervid
    Amid the dandelions
    As it swept over me
    Like the wind through the trees
    I felt you sigh
    With a sweet intensity"

    "Baby can you feel me
    Imagining I'm looking in your eyes
    I can see you clearly
    Vividly emblazoned in my mind
    And yet you're so far
    Like a distant star
    I'm wishing on tonight"

  94. Georgie says – reply to this


    94

    Janet is 40 and needs to stop doing that sex kitten shit.

  95. DRB says – reply to this


    95

    "When you love someone so deeply
    They become your life
    It's easy to succumb
    To overwhelming fears inside
    Blindly I imagined
    I could keep you under glass
    Now I understand to hold you
    I must open up my hands
    And watch you rise"

    "I have learned that beauty
    Has to flourish in the light
    Wild horses run unbridled
    Or their spirit dies"

    "It's hard to explain
    Inherently, it's just always been strange
    Neither here nor there
    Always somewhat out of place everywhere
    Ambiguous
    Without a sense of belonging to touch
    Somewhere halfway
    Feeling there's no-one completely the same"

  96. DRB says – reply to this


    96

    I was a wayward child
    With the weight of the world
    That I held deep inside
    Life was a winding road
    And I learned many things
    Little ones shouldn't know

    But I closed my eyes
    Steadied my feet on the ground
    Raised my head to the sky
    And though time's rolled by
    Still I feel like that child
    As I look at the moon
    Maybe I grew up
    A little too soon

    Funny how one can learn
    To grow numb to the madness
    And block it away
    I left the worst unsaid
    Let it all dissipate
    And I try to forget

    As I closed my eyes
    Steadied my feet on the ground
    Raised my head to the sky
    And the time rolled by
    Still I feel like a child
    As I look at the moon
    Maybe I grew up
    A little too soon

    Nearing the edge
    Oblivious
    I almost fell right over
    A part of me
    Will never be quite able
    To feel stable
    That woman-child falling inside
    Was on the verge of fading
    Thankfully, I woke up in time

    Guardian angel
    I sail away on an ocean
    With you by my side
    Orange clouds roll by
    They burn into your image
    And you're still alive

    As I closed my eyes
    Steady my feet on the ground
    Raise my head to the sky
    And though time rolls by
    Still I feel like a child
    As I look at the moon
    Maybe I grew up
    A little too soon

  97. Kyle says – reply to this


    97

    I can't wait to hear them for myself to see. Janet should make it to the top again since people seem to be over the Superbowl & she has a new record label that cares about her music! Mariah already stablized things last go round. I know people love to HATE but I love them both!

  98. Luc says – reply to this


    98

    Mariah will beat Janet. No doubt about that.

  99. Morbidly Obese Gummi says – reply to this


    99

    MUST she ALWAYS have her fake tits popping out of her shirt? She is just fug.

  100. DJ says – reply to this


    100

    JJ ANYDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

More comments: [1] 2 »