As you must already know by now, Joy Enriquez is not our Jocelyn. And although we did wish she were Filipino, she is in truth, American of Latin ancestry. The petite Joy comes to us with very strong credentials. She had been performing since her kindergarten days and was champion of the famous Star Search for 11 weeks. I do not know if she was even defeated and who did or if she retired a champ. But that successful stint in the talent show certainly opened a lot of doors for her in the music industry.
One of those doors led to the office of the renowned producer, songwriter and performer Babyface. La Face does not only create great music. He also has an uncanny feel for what the public wants. Anybody who signs up with his label is sure to get the music biz abuzz. It is like getting an imprimatur from the Pope. A talent will be sure not only of getting herself heard but also of getting her hands on the right materials.
In Joy’s case, the song was How Can I Not Love You, the achingly, beautiful love theme from the soundtrack of the motion picture Anna and the King that starred Jodie Foster and Chow Yun Fat. The song, which was co-written by Babyface himself was a debut to-die-for for any newcomer. It is now a bonus track in Joy’s very own album, Joy Enriquez, where she shows that aside from touching love ballads, her powerful vocals is also capable of other types of tunes.
The first single release is Tell Me How You Feel, a sassy, energetic number that credits Joy as co-writer. The same bouncy mood characterizes most of the other cuts showing that although she has already proven herself very proficient with moving love songs, Babyface, LA Reid and LUV Former, who produced the album, see her as an emerging dance diva.
The other dance cuts in the album are I Can’t Believe, Situation, Shake Up the Party, I Don’t Want You, Someday, Just When I Needed You and Between You and Me. Now those who loved her How Can I Not Love You will also surely fall for her sweet rendition of Without You, Losing the Love and With this Love, which winds down the beat until the album ends with the Anna and the King theme song.
Having famous mentors is also the reason why we are now listening to the music of 21-year-old newcomer from Yorkshire, England, Ellie Campbell. Behind this British pop artist is Jive Records, the home of the Backstreet Boys, Britney, N’Sync and others. Now, as though this wasn’t enough, Ellie is also getting a great boost from Pete Waterman, one of those producers who kick-started the successful careers of Kylie Minogue, Rick Astley and the European group Steps.
It is no wonder then that Ellie’s debut album simply titled Ellie definitely sounds like a pop album from Jive laced with Waterman’s own kind of ’80s spiced dance music. The contents sit well with her blond, blue-eyed, long-legged kind of look. It is radio-friendly pop, lovely ballads and sexy R&B hooks. This college dropout who wanted to mode but ended up a singer definitely has the making of a stiff competition for Britney but with a major difference. This British version can really sing up a storm.
Ellie’s first try for the charts is the whirl around the dance floor girl-power tune Don’t Want You Back which opens and closes the album with two different mixes. The others included are You’re No Good, So Many Ways, Sweet Lies, Say What You Mean, Never Gonna Give Up on Love, I Love How I Feel, Suspicion, Forgive Me, Jackie, a sweet ballad about friendship that has the makings of a hit, My Heart Will Find No Home, The Things You Do, where J of the group Five raps Ellie Campbell’s too hot to handle sexily, and Just Another Rainy Day.