Sean Kingston

Sean Kingston sounds wise beyond his 17 years on his lovelorn, yet wonderfully upbeat, hit single "Beautiful Girls." Now the babyfaced Jamaican sensation follows his summer jam with a self-titled debut album. The pop-leaning reggae record devours top 40 songs past: "Me Love" jacks the chorus of Led Zeppelin's "D'Yer Mak'er," while "I Can Feel It" serves up a baffling yet strangely charming rework of Phil Collins' "Something in the Air." As Kingston (or, more likely, his svengali JR) harvests these hit nuggets wholesale and remakes them in a reggae image, we get a sense of the slick, pop-friendly production recently demonstrated on records like Mark Ronson's Version.

Kingston is clearly an accomplished vocalist and MC—he can conjure a croon to suit the radiant bounce of the Cab Calloway-inspired "Got No Shorty" or the more rugged patois necessary to share the mic with Vybz Kartel on the straight-ahead reggae track "Colors." Nevertheless, the album sags under the weight of too many sappy ballads with predictable narratives. Sean Kingston proves the youngster has much to offer beyond his juggernaut of a single, but his reliance on tried and true formulas for a number of the tracks keeps the album from truly blossoming. What makes "Beautiful Girls" brilliant, of course, is its unnerving and unforgettable chorus of "suicidal." It's going to take ballsy, clever hooks like that to keep Kingston's pop-reggae fusion fresh and on the charts.

—Toby Warner
08.06.07

When the 16-year-old singer Sean Kingston came on the scene it was with the single "Colors 2007," a nightmare walkin'/psychopath talkin' type track with dramatic bells, hardcore swagger, and a couple shoutouts to his Jamaican homeland and homeboys. Then came "Beautiful Girls," a pop-rap tune that took a bit of Ben E. King's "Stand by Me" and twisted into a pouty "she left me" lament that used the word "suicidal" as if it meant "kinda sad." If you thought "Beautiful Girls" was the greatest sin against urban music since "Fergalicious" then Kingston's self-titled debut is not for you. The album claims "Colors 2007" as a bonus track and then loads up on enough gimmicks, high-profile samples, hooks, and ridiculous lyrics that it's the textbook definition of love it or hate it and shouldn't be approached by anyone who considers themselves "hardcore." Good news is that a slick swagger suits Kingston much better than the hardcore baller stance, and that he's more at ease comes through loud and clear. The unexpected side effect of this move towards pop and polish is that the Jamaican roots pay off splendidly as he takes more of a dancehall attitude towards his vocals, and trades reverent for playful, and serious for exciting. "Me Love" reclaims Led Zeppelin's "D'yer Mak'er" for the island of Jamaica with finger-snaps and glitter. "Got No Shorty" bounces on the "I Ain't Got Nobody" melody and offers "I'm lookin for love/Not askin' for much/Just a fine little shorty/With a big ol butt" without any shame. Paula DeAnda does an excellent Mariah Carey impression on the sunshine-bright "There's Nothin" while "I Can Feel It" McGyvers a great puppy-love song out of everyday lyrics, a Phil Collins sample, and an air horn. Breezy, feel-good guilty pleasures abound on this lightweight pool-party of an album. ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide