British sensation Leona Lewis has become the fourth best-selling artist worldwide in 2008, thanks to the extraordinary success of her debut album, the R.I.A.A. platinum-certified Spirit, which has sold more than four and a... more » half million copies worldwide. In addition, Spirit has sold more than 1.17 million copies in the U.S according to Nielsen SoundScan, making 23-year-old Lewis the seventh bestselling artist in the country so far in 2008.
Beyond the incredible record breaking sales and radio stories, Leona has been embraced by the the media: Oprah Winfrey exclaimed: Wow, Talk about a Star Is Born! You re the real deal, girl! Blender s cover story stated Mariah, Leona Lewis is Pops Next Megastar and Vibe describes her as a balladeer with grace, vivacity, and dignity...with a strong lithe tone that could peel paint!
However, very few lucky people know that prior to winning X-Factor and releasing Spirit, Lewis was working on her debut album. Now, we are proud to present
you with her Best Kept Secret . A 10-song R&B Masterpiece that showcases her incredible ability as singer and songwriter. In fact, many predict Leona would have achieved superstardom with this album.
This is the album her fans have read all about, but had no way of getting their
hands on it! Many online bloggers have called this album an undscovered gem that will make Leona an even bigger star!« less
British sensation Leona Lewis has become the fourth best-selling artist worldwide in 2008, thanks to the extraordinary success of her debut album, the R.I.A.A. platinum-certified Spirit, which has sold more than four and a half million copies worldwide. In addition, Spirit has sold more than 1.17 million copies in the U.S according to Nielsen SoundScan, making 23-year-old Lewis the seventh bestselling artist in the country so far in 2008.
Beyond the incredible record breaking sales and radio stories, Leona has been embraced by the the media: Oprah Winfrey exclaimed: Wow, Talk about a Star Is Born! You re the real deal, girl! Blender s cover story stated Mariah, Leona Lewis is Pops Next Megastar and Vibe describes her as a balladeer with grace, vivacity, and dignity...with a strong lithe tone that could peel paint!
However, very few lucky people know that prior to winning X-Factor and releasing Spirit, Lewis was working on her debut album. Now, we are proud to present
you with her Best Kept Secret . A 10-song R&B Masterpiece that showcases her incredible ability as singer and songwriter. In fact, many predict Leona would have achieved superstardom with this album.
This is the album her fans have read all about, but had no way of getting their
hands on it! Many online bloggers have called this album an undscovered gem that will make Leona an even bigger star!
"On the last page of the cd booklet there is a picture of Leona with the following quote: "I want people to hear the real Leona Lewis, and 'The Best Kept Secret' album embodies the true Leona Lewis".
This album has a totally different style. On this CD, Leona performs R&B. The songs are just "ok"- very ordinary. The melodies have a very narrow range and do not allow Leona to sing up in her high voice.
If you're a Leona fan and decide to buy this CD, you will be dissappointed if you compare it to her "Spirit" album. Just realize that this album is going to sound completely different than "Spirit". The songs (in my opinion) sound very typical and really don't do anything for me.
There is one slow jazzy song toward the end of the album ("I Wanna Be That Girl") that has some nice chord changes. Also the song "Silly Girl" has a nice contemporary feel to it with an interesting beat. However- the singing (even in these songs) is just ordinary.
Simon Cowell is right when he says a performer needs the right songs that compliment their voice. In this case we have ordinary songs that make Leona sound like an ordinary singer."
NOT A NEW ALBUM!!!!
Pandaman | 01/31/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"JUST to let everyone know...this is not a new album by Leona...this is a collection of Pre-X-Factor recordings and shortly afterward..."
Very disappointed - like bad 90s R&B
C. Clough | 01/27/2009
(1 out of 5 stars)
"I love her debut album and listen to it all the time, so I was really excited that she had released a new CD. I am very disappointed; she hardly sounds like the same artist. The songs are bland and remind me of the 90s R&B that no one listens to any more (i.e. not classic Mariah Carey). Make sure you listen to the previews of all the tracks before purchasing this CD."
This CD will provoke LOTS of discussions !!
Nils Valentin | Tokyo, Japan | 09/08/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I am not sure if Leona Lewis purpose of this "new" - previously unreleased - CD is trying to shock her current fans or winning over new fans. I feel the decision to release this CD is very brave.
One thing is for sure this CD will provoke lots of discussions !!
Most of her current fans will feel shocked to hear this mixture of pop, soul, hip hop and R&B music which dont show case her beautiful voice as much as the other prductions did. I assume because of the grovy melodies that mostly younger fans will enjoy this CD more.
I actually like both CD's, but for very different reasons.
I think because they are so different they show what she is capable of.
The songs I like most from this CD are "Bad Boy", "I'm so into you", "Ready to get down" and "I wanna be that girl".
Because of the diversity of her CD's (The Smooth Jazz broadcasting station even produced a Jazz style CD for her.) you can make an educated guess that Leona Lewis might surprise us again with a completely different style with her next CD.
This time the base of the songs is somewhere along a mixture of a Janet Jackson and Madonna style melodys together with some Maria Carey like elements.
It might not be everybodys taste, but you have to value the braveness of trying something VERY different.
From the booklets names I can also tell that the CD was created with some considerable help from Japanese friends and that influence seems to pay off.
When did a star you remember try THAT last time ?
This artist gets my vote again !! Leona you rock !!"
I want my money back
C. Chen | Peoria, IL USA | 03/06/2009
(1 out of 5 stars)
"Very bad album. Bought it at Walmart thinking this was a new album. However, it is a combination of beat tracks, backup singers, and god awful rapping. Very disappointing. Leona should be ashamed of this album."