New music from JoJo is SO close I can taste it! If you haven’t heard JoJo‘s new single, “The Other Chick” yet then now’s your chance. Check it out HERE. Produced by Oak (Alesha Dixon, Ashley Tisdale, Jennifer Hudson), “The Other Chick” really shows how much JoJo has matured in the six years since she exploded onto the music scene with her angsty pop hit “Leave (Get Out).” The song is a grown up R&B pop masterpiece that showcases JoJo‘s range and personality. Destined to be a hit, “The Other Chick” sparkles with slick production and silky-smooth vocals. What a way to make a comeback. JoJo is about to hit it hard! “The Other Chick” will be available for digital download on June 7th and look for the video, which was shot last month by director Kai Regan.
It’s hard to believe that when JoJo released her first single, she was only 13 years old. So much power in that voice! So much emotion in that song! How can this girl only be 13? Sure, at that age JoJo wasn’t writing her own music, but still! JoJo went on to release two additional singles from her self-titled debut (including my personal favorite, “Baby It’s You“) before moving on to her sophomore album, The High Round, which she released two years later in 2006 through her label Blackground/Universal. The album’s first single, “Too Little, Too Late,” was a beautiful pop ballad co-written by Billy Steinberg, Josh Alexander and Ruth-Anne Cunningham. The song was a sexier, more mature version of “Leave (Get Out)” and unfortunately for me, the highlight of the album. While I DID love the WAWA remixes for third single “Anything,” the rest of the album was a major disappointment.
Now, here we are in 2011 and a twenty-year old JoJo is about ready to release her new single, “The Other Chick,” followed by her fourth studio album, Jumping Trains, due out later this year via Blackground/Interscope Records. I can’t believe it’s been five years since The High Road came out. Now, I know that the delay frustrated the hell out of JoJo, but I’m hoping for a silver lining here. I’m hoping that this extra time went into making this the BEST album of JoJo‘s career…to date.
In September, JoJo released a mixtape to tide fans over with new music. The mixtape featured a promotional single, the INCREDIBLY sexy “In The Dark,” which was produced by written by Jordan Gatsby. JoJo even served as co-writer on the track, which got the full single treatment, complete with a hot video directed by Nicole Ehrlich and Clarence Fuller. The video marked a sort of transformation for JoJo. Gone was the innocent teenage girl vibe that came through in her first two albums. Musically, JoJo had changed too, going darker and a little bit electro. I LOVED it.
Back when news started hitting the web about JoJo‘s new album, a whole lot of names were thrown out there as possible collaboration partners – names like J. Gatsby, Tank, DJ Toomp, J. Moss, Toby Gad, The Underdogs, Danja, J.R. Rotem, Bill Steinberg, Bryan-Michael Cox, Marsha Ambrosius, Madd Scientist, Tony Dixon, Eric Dawkins to name a few. Not sure who (if any) out of these guys JoJo wound up working with on Jumping Trains, but that was only the beginning. In later interviews, JoJo mentioned going into the studio with the likes of Timbaland, Jim Beanz, Pharrell and Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins. Right now, the tracklisting and final collaborations remain unknown, but all will be revealed in due time. Right now, I have all the confirmation that I need. New album – Jumping Trains. New single – “The Other Chick.” Discussing the album title with Rap-Up, JoJo had this to say:
“My third album will be called Jumping Trains and it’s very symbolic for a variety of reasons… Moving from Boston to L.A., transitioning from being a girl to being a young woman, living on my own, taking a different direction sonically, and just really finding myself and just jumping into a new chapter of life.” {SOURCE}
While I’m beyond thrilled for JoJo that her new album is FINALLY ready to see the light of day…I’m even MORE excited for myself! Listen to her new single, “The Other Chick,” HERE and download it on Tuesday, June 7th. In the meantime, check out the fabulous “In The Dark” video below.