Rating: NNNN
Since Erykah Badu’s gone militant and Lauryn Hill’s totally lost her marbles, a number of us were hoping Hieroglyphics neo-soul affiliate Goapele would fill the void with this, her debut album. But her style is far too understated, her haiku-simple lyrics too subtle, her production too minimal and her voice too unaffected to recreate the multi-million-dollar R&B paradigm shift that messed up Badu and Hill. That’s probably a blessing in disguise for this sensitive, positive and as-yet-uncorrupted young poet with serious singing chops. Featuring some hot rhyme cameos courtesy Pep Love, Zion I and Casual.