Will Amerie's Def Jam Debut Be The 'Thing' Fans Have Been Waiting For?


We love Amerie. No, really, we LOVE her. But we're approaching this new Def Jam situation with extreme caution, as the label's track record with female R&B/Pop singers is shaky at best. (Let's see... Rihanna is known as a "singles artist" that can't push an entire album; they approved that last Mariah CD off the strength of the previous one which was twenty times better, and don't get us started with Discipline.) The good news is that she's been in the studio. The bad news is, well, let's look at the list of potential producers/writers that could make the cut and let you be the judge of how this could turn out.

(Disclaimer: I have an unhealthy predisposition towards current "R&B"/Hip-Hop/Pop producers so forgive me if some of this is a little mean.)

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[1] Salaam Remi: I can get down with this. Amy Winehouse, Nas and The Fugees all benefited from this cat. He can be soulful and grimy at the same time, which may tip an Amerie track in the favor of a die-hard Hip Hop head.
[2] Sean Garret: Hooked up The Pussycat Dolls, Usher, Mary J., Janet, and Beyoncé among many others. Seemingly this guy can do no wrong, but with a discography as packed as his, there are bound to be stinkers
[3] Bangledesh: I still don't know the difference between him and Polow Da Don, in that they both mostly irritate me with everything they do.
[4] Los Da Mystro: Produced "In Bed" for J. Holiday. I hate "In Bed" by J. Holiday. But he didn't write it, The-Dream did. The-Dream is the one to blame for those irritating lyrics. And sometimes I like The-Dream. But I don't want Amerie sounding like The-Dream.
[5] Dallas Austin: I'm not sure what to make of this. In the '90s, Dallas was one of those cats to beat with his Monica, Boyz II Men and TLC stuff (even his contributions to Madonna's Bedtime Stories were dope). Then we look at the Rock tunes he did for Pink's Missundaztood, which were also tremendous. But his work on later TLC albums was lacking, not to mention how ill-timed Janet's "Just A Little While" was (it just didn't mesh with the rest of that album). In short, I can definitely see Dallas and Amerie working something out, but I'm putting him on notice.
[6] Tricky Stewart: Again, I don't want Amerie sounding like The-Dream! The joints he did for Mary are great, but that's because they're Mary. But he did Janet and Mariah dirty. For that, I will never forgive him.
Who she SHOULD work with:
[1] Ryan Leslie: He's capable of composing solid R&B jams that have a slight late '90s feel, a sound that suited Amerie fine on All I Have.
[2] 88 Keys: Why? Because not enough people are working with him that should be. 
[3] Chucky Thompson: This has been a no-brainer since Amerie first came out, especially taking into account the DC/Rich Harrison connection. And if the words My Life aren't enough to convince you, then we really can't continue this conversation.
[4] Rich Harrison: Earlier rumored but not part of the recent news leaks. It is without question that you do you not take Brandy away from Darkchild, you do not take Missy away from Timbaland and you do not take Amerie away from Rich Harrison. This is science!
So what say you, SoulBouncers? Are you excited about the new Amerie album? What sounds would you like to see her explore this time around?

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