Jordan Pruitt

Unlike fellow teen-pop upstarts Ashley Tisdale and Vanessa Hudgens, Jordan Pruitt didn't star in High School Musical. But the 15-year-old Georgia native does have a Disney Channel connection of her own—her first hit single, "Jump to the Rhythm," came from the soundtrack to the Musical follow-up Jump In! Not only does Pruitt have a built-in audience, but she also has hitmaking executive producers Keith Thomas ("Baby Baby") and Jon Lind ("Crazy for You") in her corner. So it's no surprise that "Jump" (which reappears here) is a breezy, lite-funk anthem with a buoyant chorus that's tailor-made for recess.

No Ordinary Girl is a hard title to live up to, and as a singer, Pruitt is hardly a budding Christina Aguilera. But she does manage to set herself apart from the pack on the album's second hit, the heartfelt ballad "Outside Looking In." On that and most of the other tracks here, including the good-natured standouts "Miss Popularity" and "Teenager," the youngster even racks up a handful of co-writing credits. Kids' stuff or not, this is a promising debut.

- Sean Richardon
02.26.07