The James Logan Courier

By Carmen Shiu, Courier Entertainment Editor

It has been three years since Lloyd released his debut album, Southside. His very first single, Southside, (featuring Ashanti) was merely a one-hit-wonder. However, his latest single, You, is scoring higher positions on the charts with the help of Lil Wayne on the track. Lloyd s sophomore album releases next week on Tuesday, March 13, 2007, entitled Street Love. The sound of this 13-track album (excluding the introduction) is not surprising, but yet still holds a few potential good singles.



Youis hitting the airwaves and is Lloyd s first top 10 single on the
Billboard Hot 100. Around here in the Bay Area, it is nearly impossible to miss this song on the radio because it is certainly on the top songs favorite
local hip-hop and R&B radio stations play. On Street Love, it also has the remix to this song that features Andre 3000 and Nas.

Lloyd's next single is scheduled to be Get It Shawty, 'produced by
James "JLack" Lackey. Unfortunately, this song feels like the wrong choice as the follow-up single to the monstrous You. The way the song sounds during the bridge just does not seem to cut it. Perhaps it just needs some time to grow on you. Towards the end of the song, Lloyd breaks into a rap and does a great job with it . It's probably the highlight of this song.

The chorus of Hazel sounds a rather bit odd because of the music, but after
a listen or two, you easily find yourself singing it. He sings about not being able to live without a woman and how perfect their relationship is.

Lyric-wise, Player's Prayer is one of the best songs on this album. Lloyd decides to sing about admitting being a player, but he wants to finally
settle down with one woman. He hopes for another chance.

The last track on the album, One for Me, samples the never-gets-old music of the Art of Noise's Moments in Love. Many of you may wonder who the Art of Noise is, but all you have to do is go on YouTube and look for the video. After the first few seconds, it s practically a guarantee that you will know the music. Moments in Love is a wonderful song, but it simply does not belong in Lloyd's One for Me. It just does not mesh well and would be far better without the sample.

The rest of the album contains pretty decent tracks ( Killing Me is not favorable though). The sound is not surprising because most of the tracks
sound similar to Southside and You. This fact becomes a bit of a disappointment for anyone who enjoys a bit of variety. The contents of the songs also do not come in a big mix either. All of the songs are either about love, girls, and money. Overall, Lloyd's Street Love will definitely not be the album of the year, but it is worth a listen.