Calling All Hearts

Good news in Keyshia Cole’s life

Keyshia Cole has gone a long and hard way from a girl from a poor town to the real R&B diva, earning the hip-hop soul Princess title at the age of twenty-six. One can learn the story of singer’s personal life just listening to her songs which often have an autobiographical character. Thus, the first albums mostly dealt with cheating, suffering from break-ups and heartache, and the critics unanimously stated that Cole was best expressing those strong emotions. On her third album, the 2008’s A Different Me 2008 the singer turned into a self-confident young woman who believes in real love. Though she still remained vulnerable and was afraid to make a mistake she realized that it was better to try than be alone forever. Only in a year after the release Keyshia announced her engagement, and early this March gave birth to her son. So, the two year pause between the albums has proved quite eventful and has definitely inspired her to write new songs which are included on the fourth record Calling All Hearts. There is room for personal feelings on it as well as for having fun but clearly it is love that Keyshia is willing to sing about most of all.

The intensity of feelings on Calling All Hearts is at the same level

The happy mother Keyshia Cole still realizes what the audience is expecting from her, and the intensity of feelings on the new album has remained at the same level though it does not offer the previous album’s boldness with a few exceptions. The lead-single I Aint Thru can be probably considered as the first of them, it is Keyshia and Nicki Minaj’s collaboration, a classic girl power and the best way to have fun number. From the point of view of vocals this track does not have much to offer but it is memorable at first listen and pleases with a great production. Another song of the kind is Last Hangover featuring Timbaland, with a volume beat but one can also hear Coul’s powerful voice here. Yet it is only you hear the second single Long Way Down that you understand that Cole’s comeback has really occurred. A very stylish tune is the same vein as the hits Love and You’ve Changed, strong vocals, deeply thought lyrics – it is exactly what the fans have been waiting for and finally got. The duets on Calling All Hearts can be put on the best collaborations in R&B list at once. Keyshia and Tank’s voices on Tired Of Doing Me unite into a flow of emotions that does credit to both the vocalists and can be compared only to two female voices on the beautiful composition If I Fall In Love Again (featuring Faith Evans) built on faultless basses. As for the content these songs refer to the sad experience of the past whereas such numbers as Take Me Away and You Do To Me as well as the album closer Better Me express the love that is residing in Keyshia’s heart today. Besides the singer has decided to share her sacred gratitude to her step-mother Yvonne with the listeners on the song simple titled Thank You on which we can hear the voice of the woman who has raised the star, and this moment is one of the most emotional and touching on the entire album.

The eleven compositions are listened to at one breath

Keyshia Cole’s true vocation is singing, there is no arguing about that a long time now. Her music is always soulful, sincere and emotional. All the artist’s songs have one particularity in common, their themes are taken from the real life and usually she addresses the one she loves, expresses her thoughts of life and love, her doubts and fears – that is everything characteristic of any woman, which is why Keyshia never fails to find her listener. As for her fourth work, the singer is sticking to the same formula here. The eleven compositions of Calling All Hearts last a bit longer that forty minutes and are listened to at one breath. Collaborations add variety and underline Keyshia’s powerful vocals which can sound seductively hoarse or sonorous rendering different shades of feelings. As one could expect, the singer has once again co-written most of the album’s tracks collaborating with such talents as Carlos Santana, Bert Bacharach and Diana Warren. For that matter Keyshia Cole has all grounds to be proud of the mellow and soulful album Calling All Hearts.