Album Review & Commentary.
Overall: Slinky R&B rhythms work to cover up questionable messaging and poor content quality.
 
Ariana Grande’s last two albums, Sweetener and Thank U, Next, came on the heels of personal hardships for the singer. Apple Music noted this in a summary for the newest Positions (Deluxe) stating that the release is “lighthearted and playful” in comparison. Evidently, the assigned reviewer wasn’t paying close attention. Underneath an attractive sound is an LP that is bleak artistically and in its messaging.
 
Historically, the lyrical offerings on Grande’s projects aren’t very adroit. They are generally passable at best. However, if there’s been any improvement, Positions is grossly regressive. The content has little to no intellectual or emotional worth; it doesn’t come off like it’s been crafted by highly paid songwriters who are in touch with their feelings. Scribing alongside Grande is Tommy Brown, Victoria Monet, Tayla Parx, and others. The vocabulary is narrow, and apparently, it’s a requirement to have an onslaught of unnecessary expletives. Metaphors and analogies are facile, with no attempt to be particularly clever, funny, insightful, and/or poetic. Sometimes the material is convoluted, mashing different topics together without transitions or connectors. Themes of passion, desire, and romantic trepidation are expressed in an insufferably juvenile way. The voicing is like that of an 18-year-old who thinks they’re so wise and cultivated because they’ve been dating someone for a year and are sexually active. “Six Thirty” plays like the aftermath of a teen pairing’s squabble. “What you gonna do when I’m bored and wanna play video games at 2AM?” is a measuring inquiry. “My Hair” is literally about toying with her tresses. It’s used as a manifestation of intimacy. Lunacy.
 
While Positions isn’t totally without a story direction, it’s so-called ‘happy ending’ and resolve is contradictory and questionable. Listeners are taken through the process of leaving a relationship hurt, and then falling for someone new. There are claims of having self awareness and clarity (ex. “Magic,” “Motive,” “Love Language”), but immature and unhealthy approaches are enacted and/or continued. Despite Grande (or the record’s protagonist) admitting that she hasn’t healed from previous experiences, she presses on with her amorous endeavors (ex. “Off the Table”). The headiness of infatuation and satisfying sex feed immediate thoughts of ‘ever after.’ It’s love at first sight and screw (ex. “Nasty,” “Obvious”).

Ideal love is defined by being the instant remedy to all of each other’s problems and wounds. In the least, provide a long-term ‘feel good’ distraction. Basically, avoiding the responsibility of inner work and giving your prospective partner a job only therapists can perform. The insecurity and codependency that comes with this type of cycle is patent. There’s an abundance of lines where Grande’s ‘auditioning,’ as I call it. She’s eager to demonstrate that she can conform to and meet the needs of her lover, and is the model mate (ex. “Positions,” “West Side”). All of the aforementioned matters culminate in “POV,” which is the closer on the standard edition of the album. Grande sings about having such a lack of self trust and esteem, that she has to rely on the worshipping regard of her significant other to feel valuable. The track is supposed to be sweet and point to a positive conclusion, but really, it’s kind of dismal and sad. To quote RuPaul, “If you can’t love yourself, how in the hell are you going to love somebody else; can I get an ‘Amen’?”

Album Review.
Likes: Dangerous Woman, Be Alright, Leave Me Lonely
Dislikes: Everyday, Bad Decisions
Overall: Especially generic music, silly lyrics and a childish basis ruin any possible bright spots
 
Record labels don't do their acts any favors by having them release albums annually, as they could suffer from fatigue (promotional/touring periods are physically and vocally grueling), overexposure, and not having any room to grow creatively. The young and green are hurt the most by this practice, and it's even more damaging with artist development being a thing of the past. Like a seed that's never watered (or even planted), they're left to be impotently stagnant, with only a suggestion of what they could be. As many of her contemporaries, Ariana Grande is a prime example of this. She had vocal dexterity and all the right influences and favorite artists (including Mariah Carey and Brandy), but she was prematurely placed center stage without the tools to cultivate her own identity, brand and trajectory above the minimum pop-starlet requirements (charting and sufficiently likable). It shows when you're thrown in a pool and asked to swim like Michael Phelps. She sold out Madison Square Garden before she learned to sing with zeal and conviction, have stage presence and assuredness, really nail an 8-count and formulate a cohesive "sound" (she waddles between throwback R&B and dance queen).To boot, her imaging was erratic and extreme, going from toddler-teen to sexed-up teen in the blink of an eye (not sure why "genteel young-adult" wasn't an option).
 
Grande sings with confidence and has more writing credits on her 3rd studio LP, Dangerous Woman, but her overreaching problems are just as appreciable. The patterned and non-proprietary way in which the material is drafted denotes it's all about meeting requisites; none of it seems to come from the heart. Many tracks have an effect-heavy, flat-line, characterless and repetitive production design (ex. "Touch It" and "Side to Side" with Nicki Minaj) that goes nowhere. Even when I was making a conscious effort to pay attention, I couldn't. I kept having to replay songs to remember how they sounded (has Max Martin lost his hand of Midas?). The vocal arrangements are predictable; you know what she's going to do before she does it. The lyrics? Lawd, have mercy....there is definitely a theme, but it's disappointingly jejune and callow. Ariana's definition of a "dangerous woman" is a woman who's lustful and chases after bad-boys *rolls eyes.* In March, she told Billboard the record's title was changed from Moonlight to Dangerous Woman because it was "a lot stronger" choice: "I want to be empowering my fans...To me, a dangerous woman is someone who’s not afraid to take a stand, be herself and to be honest." When the new name was first announced, she quoted feminist author Nawal El Saadawi on Instagram: "They said, 'You are a savage and dangerous woman.' I am speaking the truth, and the truth is savage and dangerous." Too bad the lyrics aren't about any of that. What stand is being taken? What savage truth are we tackling? That you're horny? Aren't we all sometimes? It's not like she discussed sex within the context of gender-politics. Using what's actually there, to spring-board from the title-track, Dangerous Woman could've been Crazy Beautiful or "Love the Way You Lie" in album form. Applying it more literally, a self-sabotage or femme-fatale concept would've been efficient. Since no one thought to drive down any of these honeymoon avenues, I'm left to assume the swap had to do more to do with a change in direction than anything else. Seeing as how the song "Moonlight" (also super bland, but pretty) doesn't match the others and "Focus" was dropped altogether, I'm thinking I'm right (plus, she all but confirmed it on Jimmy Kimmel's show).

Live at the Houston Rodeo: NRG Stadium 
Show Date: March 17, 2015
Opening Act: N/A

There was a lot going against fairly new starlet Ariana Grande going into her 2015 Honeymoon Tour, particularly on its stop at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo (HLSR) in Texas. On her end, she had some major sprucing to do with her stage presence, choreography and vocal delivery (i.e. diction, emotionality, unique styling). In the television performances I've seen, she frequently appeared to look petrified and/or apathetic, and very "I'm more of a natural singer than a dancer" uncomfortable. This was patently noticeable anytime she did hit single "Bang Bang" live with Jessie J, whose presence and vocals are nothing short of ferocious and supersede hers. On the end of the HLSR, the turning stage is small in circumference and is in the middle of a dirt base in a round stadium. Acts are often driven out to the scaffold. This means no convenience for costume changes or room for elaborate sets. There's a video backdrop, but it doesn't help much because the way things are set up, no matter where you sit (unless it's directly in the middle section), your eyes will rely on the jumbo screens above for decent viewing. The final kicker is that the contracted time allotted is usually an hour, which is pretty aggravating when the cattle show beforehand runs 2 hours, starting at 6:45pm. I know, I know, it's a rodeo and animals/cowboys would naturally would be a focus, but I'd bet my right hand that most of those who purchase tickets have music primarily in mind. All of this into account, I didn't expect much but to enjoy hearing live versions of my favorite songs from Grande's 2 albums, Yours Truly & My Everything. However, the 21-year-old pleasantly surprised me.

Album Review.
Likes: Best Mistake, Be My Baby, Break Your Heart Right Back
Dislikes: Break Free, Love Me Harder
Overall: Ariana doesn’t sound enthused, therefore it’s hard for the listener to be

Considering “My Everything” comes just 1 year (5 days short to be exact) after Ariana Grande’s debut, “Yours Truly,” I shouldn’t be surprised or annoyed that it has a lot of the same issues (with a few more added to the list), but alas, I am. It’s aggravating as hell that Grande doesn’t know what to do with her gorgeous chops. I’ve never heard someone sing with such a bewildering dearth of enthusiasm and personality. Her lethargy highlights the generics and weaknesses in the material, making the deciding difference from liking or loving the songs. It also keeps her from being distinct beyond mimicking Mariah Carey. Her marketing and creative direction teams clearly haven’t figured out who she is either, going from 0-100 with sexuality and slapping flavorless EDM (electronic dance music) on the record. Following “Yours Truly,” a frequent criticism was that Grande relied too heavily on throwback R&B samples for hits and was postured juvenilely, both musically and in image (ponytails and sweet 16 party dresses). So the answer was to turn to opposite extremes? Why avert from the 1 thing that could be Grande’s designation instead of tweaking the sound from throwback R&B-sampled to throwback R&B-inspired? Why go from fairly innocent to something like Kelly Rowland’s “Motivation” (“Love Me Harder”), when she can remain accessible to multiple age groups with a well-written, moderately-sensual love song (ex. Mariah Carey’s “Honey”)? The album’s tracklist is just as bi-polar. The intro is floating and dreamy, hinting at a romantic journey….then “Problem,” a song about getting the courage to dump a guy, comes on. It flip-flops in subject from there. With a little rearrangement, “My Everything” just might tell a story. Consistency was applied in an area that didn’t need it--stylistically, there’s an EDM trio (Grande’s voice is most bland on “Break Free”), trailed by an R&B trio, then ballads sandwiched between 1 of each genre. The deluxe edition has 3 extra tracks that help the album seem more complete. Curiously, the charting single “Bang Bang” with Jessie J and Nicki Minaj, is 1 of them. The premise of “You Don’t Know Me,” 1 of 2 songs co-penned by Grande, is amusing with lyrics like “If you want a perfect picture to believe in, then you can't be looking for me then… I know you don't like it…you don't know where I've been, it's my life…the girl you see in photographs is only a part of the one I am, don't judge me…,” as if she’s been around long enough and reached the megastar status to resent role-model expectations and fighting brutal scrutiny under the spotlight. Yes, she was on the Nickelodeon series Victorious for 3 years, but she wasn’t the main character or even the main character’s best friend. She was a lead on the spinoff “Sam & Cat,” but that lasted for only 1 season. Basically, she isn’t anywhere near having the Britney Spears experience right now. It’s not quite time for “Kill the Lights.” The title track isn’t worthy of being so; it’s kind of skip-able and weirdly the shortest cut besides the intro.

This record isn’t garbage, but my ears are bored and restless sitting in this environment of indifference in mainstream pop. It’s especially frustrating when all it takes is a few nips and tucks to push an album or song from, as I said earlier, “like” to “love.” This is a small detail, but even the cover artwork for both of Grande’s LP’s are similar! We’re not even putting effort into the artwork?! I understand that Republic Records wants to get it while it’s hot, but the plate’s going to cool off if you run around with it. If they’re going to make Grande release albums at a rapid pace, they need to at least make a few changes. Go from sampled to inspired, mature her gradually and help her improve her stage and studio presence. Give her Powerade, a Snickers or something. Since she’s one of the few newer artists with actual vocal ability, I’ll still hang on. 

Album Review.
Likes: Honeymoon Avenue, Almost is Never Enough
Dislikes: Popular Song, Better Left Unsaid
Overall:  Cute throwback pop/R&B; the lyrics and vocal are unimpressive, however

Nickelodeon star Ariana Grande gained what felt like overnight attention with YouTube videos showcasing her Mariah Carey-inspired chops just in time for Republic Records to push her debut album “Yours Truly.” Grande’s 1st single, “The Way,” fed off the catchiness of its sample, “Still Not a Player” by the late Big Pun (which is a sample itself), and combined with the viral attention, was a 1-2 punch of hype. Well, did she live up to it? Sort of.  What I enjoyed about the record was that it took me back to the late 1990’s-early 2000’s pop/R&B that I miss so much and Grande’s voice is actually something I can take seriously. However, a few of the songs sound too much alike because they’re similar in build and I got annoyed with the sampling (“Yours Truly” includes throwback tracks from Lil Kim & Mary J. Blige, among others). Granted, your average hip-hop album is baptized in such, but the excerpts are usually manipulated in a distinct way that makes for a unique rendition and other elements, like lyricism, help the song standout on its own. On Grande’s album, the samples are only slightly tweaked and the lyrics are generally very simple and unaffecting. Therefore, I was left to wonder if I only liked songs such as “Lovin’ It” because of its reused music. 

In terms of the vocals, I felt let down because there were more impressive moments on Grande’s Carey covers than on the album! What Grande offers is all very honeyed and sweet, but I was waiting for a stellar, breathtaking flash and it never came. One issue the 20-year-old has overall is that her conveyance is emotionless. She fails to sing with any feeling or grit, which may be because she’s still at a stage as a new act where she’s focused on reaching the vocal standard of her idols (in this case, Mariah Carey). “Almost is Never Enough,” featuring Nathan Sykes, packs the most lyrical and emotional punch. By and large, I think Ariana Grande is working with something, and once she concentrates on finding her own voice and forming an identifiable sound, she’ll be good to go. Image-wise, it’s agitating that she’s being marketed as a teenager (as if the public can’t internet search her age) when she’s almost old enough to be graduating from college. Her signature ponytail in soft-curls and sweet-16 party dresses were topped off with some of the juvenile content of the album. The most high-school friendly was “Popular” featuring Mika. Who does Republic think they’re fooling?