By Odeisel

Keri Hilson is a gorgeous, talented writer that generally makes good records. But something is missing. That “It” factor that makes someone a star. After a few years as a performer, she’s still searching for that mass appeal. On No Boys Allowed she attempts to take her brand new places.

“Buyou Music” is awash in a festive New Orleans rhythm with big brass that puts the hammer down on mooching men. When you met, he was taking you out, now on the rope- a-dope, you’re the chauffer; now you’re buying all the groceries.  J.Cole is on the prowl ready to pounce on her upwardly mobile ass after she drops her broke beau.

The innocence of “Pretty Girl Rock” with its light pianos and hard drums is a song of self-confidence and girl power at its most refreshing. Hilson is sharp lyrically and the vocal arrangements work seamlessly with the bridge and mood changes The much-maligned “The Way You Love Me” stands as a sharp contrast. The song is delusionally arrogant, with Hilson dickmotized into thinking that her loving can keep a man off the streets. Rick Ross doesn’t need play boy lines, he just shows off the ice and the birds fly south, however lines like “she not fighting cancer, pink Lamborghini” are snowball slick.

Elements of reggae infuse “Bahm Bahm.” She should leave the island riddim to Rihanna because while the beat and the lyrics are cool, her raga delivery is stiff and corny. The sultry, quirky rhythm of “One Night Stand” is a slow, simmering update of late 90s R&B with Jodeci-like harmony on the background vocals. Chris Brown does a Joe interpretation; not only telling you what your man should be doing, but also in his cadence.

The rhythm of Browze’s “Pop Champagne” (minus the autotune madness) forms the base of “Lose Control.(Let Me Down)” There is big synthin and slight distortion, backed by Nelly’s trademarked ad-libs. Hilson is on the higher end of her range on the break but softer on the bridge. Nelly is so caught up, he loses control of his wallet; willing to pay whatever it costs to woo her. The song changes abruptly when the honeymoon is over and the rose colored lenses get crystal clear. The rollercoaster ride is over and her disappointment is evident.

Marching band music melds with atmospherics to wind up “Toy Soldiers.” She thought he was the one for her, but he ended up being on opposite sides in the war of the roses. He wasn’t who he said he was and now she’s giving him his marching orders. “Breaking Point” is Hilson’s rallying cry for all fed-up femmes, placing herself back in the box of singers who pander to angry single women with kids. “Beautiful Mistake” is Hilson’s reflection on taking a friend relationship too far and regretting it, minus the hard feelings that usually accompany losing those “benefits” to the friendship.

Keri offers her body as the main treat for the tricks out there on “Gimme What I Want;” a clubby ode to sex that is heavy on beat and light on substance. “All The Boys” concerns itself with all of the false starts and times that you think comprise real love, that eventually end up looking silly once you find out what real love is. The song’s soft sentiment and poppy feel lacks the soul necessary to nail what this song could have meant. The “Pretty Girl Rock” remix with Kanye adds laser sharp swagger and serious oomph to the original.

In the end, No Boys Allowed reflects Hilson’s persona. It sounds good and it has all the elements, but it just does not move you. It panders to the same ideals that it is supposedly trying to escape with the “no boys allowed” (only grown men) steeze. It’s not a bad album by any means but it doesn’t do enough to allow the pretty girl to rock her way past her contemporaries.

3.25 out of 5

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