ShowingOut.com was given an advance preview of Keke Wyatt’s comeback/return, or whatever you want to call it new album Who Knew? Check out the review below.
It’s been over a decade since R&B singer Keke Wyatt belted her way onto the music scene, playing leading lady on the epic Avant track “My First Love” in 2000 and dropping her gold-certified debut Soul Sista in 2001. With Avant returning the favor on her hit “Nothing in This World,” Keke was poised to take over the R&B game – that is, until her deal with MCA Records fell apart and she moved over to Cash Money Records in 2004. Soon, Keke was ready to reclaim her former glory with her sophomore album Emotional Rollercoaster, a video for which the violin-soaked “Put Your Hands on Me” surfaced but, for reasons unknown, was shelved indefinitely.
Picking up the pieces of her broken deal, Keke headed over to TVT Records to release her newly titled sophomore album Ghetto Roses, but like with her previous attempt at a second full-length, Keke was put on the backburner against her will. Filing for bankruptcy, TVT closed up shop and Keke’s project was once again stalled.
One would think that two botched attempts at a second album release would kill anyone’s spirit, but Keke, who has previously proved to be a fighter (her much publicized domestic dispute with her husband where she brandished a knife is proof enough), didn’t let label politricks silence her. Keke’s sophomore album Who Knew? is finally seeing the light of day after she decided to go the independent route, with her official follow-up to Soul Sista hitting shelves on February 23rd care of Shanachie Entertainment. Showing Out got an advance listen to the album before it gets liberated next month, so hit the jump to get a track-by-track preview of the joint ahead of its release.
Who Knew?
Vaguely reminiscent of Mario’s “Let Me Love You,” Keke’s title track and first single is one of the smoothest cuts of the bunch. Over glistening synthesizers, bloopy keyboard lines and silky chimes, she coos about falling into a relationship with her husband who unexpectedly stole her heart, entertaining hypotheticals like what life would be like if her man never became her baby daddy. Velvety smooth, “Who Knew?” is a casually blissful lead single.
I’ll Never Do It Again (listen to the non-album version here)
Sounding much more polished and crisp than the previously released version, “I’ll Never Do It Again” flips the switch from hopefully romantic to apologetic, with Keke begging her man to forgive her for her faults. The track follows a cookie cutter template as far as mid-tempo R&B ballads go, and she doesn’t actually shred the track apart like she does at the end of “Who Knew?,” but it’s satiating enough to satisfy anyone craving a lite tune.
Without You
This track sounds like it somehow managed to escape the mid-’90s, playing more like Faith Evans album filler than the first two slick confections. With moonlit keys and a syrupy snare, the song sees Keke atoning for spazzing on her man, singing, “I was a fool for taking it out on you / There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to make it up to you / One conversation, baby that’s all I ask / We can work this thing out.” Beyond Keke’s awe-inspiring vocal runs and two – yes, two – audacious key modulations, this track is one of the weakest of the bunch.
Daydreaming
Soft buzzes and feathery keys introduce this sensual jam, where Keke indulges in her fantasies to keep herself from cheating on her man. She sings of getting down and dirty between the sheets with her dream man, reminding herself on the chorus, “I know it ain’t right for me to be thinkin’ ’bout loving you / I can’t tell my heart how to be / Isn’t cheating, ’cause I’m daydreaming.” Though there isn’t the typical climax of a Keke song, “Daydreaming” is spry and buttery enough to satisfy any need for savory background music.
So Confused
The hazy synthesizers and hollow click of a wooden pipe play background to Keke’s slithering vocals on “So Confused,” a mid-tempo joint where Keke howls about being torn between allowing herself to be with a man that she loves or to end up with the guy that loves her. Though she’s not on her poetic game on this one (she actually sings, “I’m caught in a catch-22 / Don’t know what I’m gonna do / Whichever way I turn I lose” – really? Catch-22 rhymed with gonna do?), her immaculate vocal trills at the end of the song are chill-inducing – that’s enough to win us over.
Weakest
This slow ballad unfortunately lives up to its title, playing as one of the most vanilla, forgettable tracks on the album. Clocking in at well over four minutes, the song trudges along at a laborious pace, sauntering on the strength of overused drum samples and banal melodies. Of course, Keke’s vocal control is so precise and effortless that the song is bearable, but her voice is used to its potential on better-written tracks on Who Knew?.
Got Me One (Good Man)
Live acoustic drums drive “Got Me One (Good Man),” yet another track where Keke sings about how lucky she is to have found a good man. Far from the flatness of “Weakest,” this has the feel of a contemporary gospel feel, with a co-ed chorale of singers backing her bellows about loving her man. “Got Me One” isn’t groundbreaking or anything, but it’s bold enough to keep it from the throwaway pile.
Peace on Earth
Keke gets socially conscious on this heart ballad where she duets with a spindly acoustic guitar. On the track, Keke preaches about bringing an end to universal violence and healing the wounds of the world, asking listeners where the God and love is in their lives. She sings, “Where does this peace on earth begin / If not in the home.” This one is for the vocal purists that crave to hear Keke’s voice stripped down, without any of the studio accoutrements.
Gettin’ It (Re-mix)
The album takes a complete detour here, with Keke abandoning the rest of the album’s reservations and taking it to the South. A chopped-n-screwed voice introduces this gutter independent woman joint where Keke faux raps, “I got the money / The latest swag / Check out the shoes / To match my Gucci bag / I am the honey / We switchin’ cars / Got different houses / See I’m a star.” This jam is meant for the club, with Keke encouraging ladies to put their drinks in the air if they “know they a dime” and flipping between rapping and singing. A surprising track on such a subdued, calm album, but it shows that there’s a little more bite to this bad bitch’s bark.
Never Give Up
Keke slows the pace down for the last number on the disc, slipping into mid-tempo territory as the percussion knocks and Keke sings to her man about never giving up on their relationship. The track, which samples the guitar lick from Faith Evans’ “I Love You,” is celebratory and an emblematic end to the album, showing Keke at her most jubilant and conveying just how comfortable she is with both herself and her career. A laudatory finisher, “Never Give Up” doesn’t beat the R&B curve, but it’s play-worthy.
via ShowingOut
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