"Princess P" Does Not Take the Crown

As you guys may remember, I was a Paris Bennett fan last season and I gave her part of the Idol tour a glowing review…

I wish I could do the same for her debut CD…

“Princess P” is definitely an R&B CD. If you didn’t already know that, the obnoxious intro proclaiming “All hail the princess” will sure remind you. Paris annoyingly telling us that she’s “waited a long time to sit on her throne” sounds more like the beginning of a male rapper’s CD than one by an 18-year-old Idol finalist…

The first track, “Ordinary Love” is actually kind of catchy, but it suffers from the same thing that hurts every track on the CD—Paris’ voice is just too strong, with too much vibrato. I’m not a fan of studio processing, but this CD could seriously use some. I’m not sure what the album’s producer was listening to…

But in Paris’ defense, she comes by it quite naturally as we learn from “Best Friends,” the track featuring Paris’ mother, Jamecia, and her grandmother Ann Nesby…

The CD also suffers from silly lyrics and a desire to put Paris through some kind of rapid aging machine. When she talks during the “I’m So Hot” interlude, it’s hard not to be embarrassed. And when she shouts “Call 911, somebody get me some water!” during the song “I’m So Hot,” it’s almost painful…

But the worst moment of the CD has to be “Let Me Rap,” the track featuring Kevin Covais. As a rapper, Kevin’s not too bad, but his constant references to “his chicks” and his diss of Kevin Federline just make it silly. And the attempt to recreate “Promiscuous” with these kids is almost sickening. Thankfully, it’s not a full-length track…

It’s a shame that Paris didn’t get to work with some more experienced producers that could have really fleshed out her sound. Maybe then she could have earned that crown she keeps shouting about…

"Princess P" hits stores tomorrow (May 8th)...

Update: You can now listen for yourself at http://music.aol.com/songs/new_releases_full_cds...