Lyfe Change - Lyfe Jennings

When I heard the name Lyfe Jennings for the first time in recent weeks it immediately gave me the impression of a black soul artist, along the lines of what John Legend would be if he went undiscovered. To say Jennings, real name Chester, has gone undiscovered would be a slight insult to him though -- this is because the man already has two studio albums under his belt before finally coming under my radar with his third effort released in April 2008, ...
...fill you in on why Lyfe Jennings is only beginning to get exposure now he's hitting the middle of his life. Jennings spent ten years of his life behind bars when he was jailed for arson at the tender age of 14 in Ohio. What he must have burnt down to get that sort of time for a crime you do not usually associate with such long prison stints is beyond me. During his time convicted Lyfe rekindled his faith in God, just as many others do and we have ... more

When I heard the name Lyfe Jennings for the first time in recent weeks it immediately gave me the impression of a black soul artist, along the lines of what John Legend would be if he went undiscovered. To say Jennings, real name Chester, has gone undiscovered would be a slight insult to him though -- this is because the man already has two studio albums under his belt before finally coming under my radar with his third effort released in April 2008, 'Lyfe Change'. Sure, with a stage name like Lyfe his album titles were always going to be somewhat corny, I did have a hard time finding this album however as I was searching around for 'Lyfe Changes'. Clearly four years on from his original album, '268-192', Jennings must believe the change has already taken place. 2006's follow-up album, 'The Phoenix', became his most successful effort to date as it peaked at second place on the US Billboard.

At almost thirty years-old they say you have to know the story behind a guy to be able to understand him, and that is why it is only fair to fill you in on why Lyfe Jennings is only beginning to get exposure now he's hitting the middle of his life. Jennings spent ten years of his life behind bars when he was jailed for arson at the tender age of 14 in Ohio. What he must have burnt down to get that sort of time for a crime you do not usually associate with such long prison stints is beyond me. During his time convicted Lyfe rekindled his faith in God, just as many others do and we have heard the likes of Kanye West express their religious beliefs through music. I will also assume that being jailed is what gave Jennings such an appreciation for life, and that would be where the twist to his name came from. No time was to be wasted, as Jennings began recording upon his second day of freedom.

• 01, Change the Game (Intro) (1.33), 1*
• 02, Keep On Dreaming (3.40), 2*

Ironically I have very recently reviewed music by Katie Melua, who is also a soulful song however from a more jazz perespective than R&B. Therefore, Lyfe Jennings should be the Melua for the younger audiance, and an artist I should immediately fall in love with. Having never heard any of Lyfe's music before this date, the 'gangsta' introduction was a bit strange and seemed to not exactly have anything really to do with the style of music you are going to get for fourteen further tracks. 'Keep On Dreaming' is truly what to expect from the rest of the album, however you will be forgiven for being disappointed as it just sounds like a poor ballad version of what a grown up Chris Brown or Bow Wow may sound like. And by grown-up I mean forty.
"Look outside your window, tell me what you see."

• 03, Warriors (3.10), 1*
• 04, Never Never Land (3.58), 3*
• 05, Brand New ft. T.I. (3.10), 3*

"It feels like somethings moving inside of me, my heart is doing backflips in spite of me."
Everything T.I. lends himself to I seem to end up enjoying, and whilst this is such a lower league compared to T.I.'s appearances with stars the size of Justin Timberlake, it's still an enjoyable moment if you are a Lyfe Jennings fan. T.I. being a rapper who has also had his recent run-ins with the law combined with this souful artist make them a fairly accurate match. 'Never Never Land' is Lyfe's most recent single release from the album that has charted at #33, and at this point you feel that things may finally be on the up after the initial disappointment.

• 06, It's Real (3.10), 1*
• 07, Cops Up (3.33), 2*

'Cops Up' is the only other track to have been released as a single thus far off the album, and is an example of what is wrong with Jennings as an artist. The track doesn't really make much sense, and asks for people to call 911 to save him from.. something. On the other hand we should be calling the police to save ourselves from tracks such as 'I'm Real' that sound like a case of production gone wrong. Timbaland shall be rolling in his grave.

• 08, You Think You've Got It Bad ft. Wyclef Jean (4.18), 2*
• 09, Wild, Wild, Wild (3.23), 2*
• 10, Midnight Train (3.18), 1*
• 11, Hmmm (3.41), 3*

Wyclef Jean is a relatively large featured artists to have on the album, although considering he hasn't done anything that much successful on his own lately it isn't that surprising to see him working on a smaller artists album. Unfortunately this appearance just further drives the track into the ground. 'Wild' is the culmination of nine tracks that have already been incredibly medicore on lyrics, with the odd spark of interest that seems to have been copied off someone else, and 'Wild' is a prime example of this as the beat sounds ripped straight from the 90's. 'Hmmm' adds some welcome relief just as the concept of the song is slightly different.
"Then my phone rings, should I pick it up and go back to reality?"

• 12, Old School ft. Snoop Dogg (4.13), 2*
• 13, Us (Interlude) (1.17), 1*
• 14, Will I Ever (4.51), 4*
• 15, Baby I'm a Star (4.19), 2*

Snoop Dogg completes the list of three featured artists, and you either love him or hate him.. and you can just imagine that his work with Lyfe Jennings isn't going to be the performance that turns you. 'Us' is a prime example of how not to do interludes, and is worse than the introduction track, if that is possible. 'Will I Ever' is the first time on the album you hear Jennings playing the guitar, and although it is a rocky beat to an R&B soul track it actually ends up being the highlight of the entire album. I guess it shows that although Jennings is a talented muscian being able to play guitar, bass and piano those talents don't automatically translate to being the next American Idol. 'Baby I'm a Star' is not the way to end the album in style, and after this bland piece of work Jennings should be thinking of another change to his lyfe before working on a fourth album. 

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