Golden diva!
Leona Lewis
Spirit
(Sony BMG)
By Lennat Mak
In Summary : The next R&B diva? You don't say!
Leona Lewis is a lucky girl. The infamous judge Simon Cowell has branded her "one of the best singers (he has) seen in (Britain) for a long, long time" and record mogul Clive Davis has echoed that statement by saying Leona "is an artist who will be a true star for many years to come." From the get-go, it's evident that Leona has all the backing she needs for world domination. Conquering her home ground was a piece of cake -- her debut album, Spirit, charted at No. 1 effortlessly and took home the honor of being Britain's fastest-selling debut of all time. Breaking America? It's only a matter of time.
Marketing campaign and goddess tresses aside, Leona has everything in her to be the next R&B diva. You want vocal acrobatics? Leona belts it out with gusto and scales the notes like nobody's business. The girl simply has the voice in her. Materials wise, her label has spared no fire power on choosing the best creative team behind Spirit. Lead single, "Bleeding Love," is penned by none other than OneRepublic's frontman Ryan Tedder and teen heartthrob Jesse McCartney, and the rest of the creative list reads like a "Who's who" all-star roll call -- Akon, Ne-Yo, Josh Alexander and Billy Steinberg (Madonna, Whitney Houston), Dallas Austin (Madonna, Gwen Stefani), Stargate (Rihanna, Beyoncé), J.R. Rotem (Britney Spears), and Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald (Kelly Clarkson, Avril Lavigne).
It's an exhaustive list and a very telling one at that. Unmistakably, Spirit is a very Americanized record, both sound and production-wise. Apart from a couple of up-tempo tracks such as "Bleeding Love" and "Whatever It Takes," the rest of the album delves into the realm of typical balladry with sweeping strings and keys. And it's clear. Mr. Cowell has long set his sights for Leona to be the next Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston.
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