After providing vocals for the Pop Rox album The Warriors with Duke Mushroom and the Freshmaka, the duo responsible for remixes like Sisqo's "Thong Song" and DMX's Party up in Here," Tarsha Vega released her debut album, a mature, eclectic collection of rap, pop, and R&B. Sounding like a poppier Neneh Cherry and a rawer TLC, the Bronx-born former model and commercial actress took control of her album by co-writing each of the songs. This enabled her to take a higher road than many of her peers whose rapping is in your face and about nothing more than jewelry, sex, and drugs. Instead, Vega takes on real-life topics as varied as self-esteem and child molestation with smooth vocals and killer hooks. An A-list name-dropper (River Phoenix, Vonda Shepard, Neneh Cherry herself), she also enlists an A-list talent to help out on the final cut. Music icon Carole King provides aid on the songwriting as well as backup vocals on "Rooftops," one of the catchiest tracks on the album. Other standouts in a compilation with no weak tracks are "Goodbye Girl," "Be Ya Self," and the Spanish flavored "Shine On." ~ Bryan Buss|

Rovi