Every once in a while an artist comes along who has that ''something'' that just makes you stand up & take notice. That ''something'' that sets them apart from their peers. Chrisette Michele has that something.
I Am is the debut album from the Long Island native. Prior to this release she has appeared on Jay-Z's ''Lost Ones'' & Nas' ''Can't Forget About You''. She has also opened for artists like India.Arie, Kem, Lionel Richie & Angie Stone.

Chrisette is young in body but her voice & vocal stylings are those of a person much older. The reason for this is that not only did she listen to music of the day but Michele also studied the Masters like Billie Holiday & Ella Fitzgerald. This gives her album a blend of contemporary production and lyrics with classic Jazz vocal stylings.


Production on the album is handled by the likes of Babyface, Salaam Remi, John Legend & Will.I.Am. All the tracks seem both modern and Old School at the same time and are a perfect complement to Michele's voice. Live instrumentation is widely used with track genres including, Jazz, R&B, Folk & Hip Hop.

Vocally Michele's voice is strong, her inflections and tone shifts help make the songs better than they may have sound if she just sung them straight up. All the songs are also well written and all written by Michele herself. Most of the tracks center around love wether it be infatuation, devotion or love lost. The album includes a decent mix of ballads & uptempo tracks and is paced perfectly.

Overall this album is as perfect an album as I have ever heard. A masterpiece. A classic. Whatever you want to call it. If you even remotely consider yourself a music lover, then you need to go pick this one up. It may not get any better than this for a while.

SonicAmp Rating: 10/10