ARTIST: Mashonda TITLE: January Joy LABEL: Sony BMG GENRE: R&B BITRATE: 189kbps avg PLAYTIME: 0h 58min total RELEASE DATE: 2005-11-09 RIP DATE: 2005-11-08 Track List ---------- 01. Step Into My World (Intro) 1:17 02. The World Is Ours 3:38 03. Blackout (Feat. Snoop Dogg) 3:19 04. Used To 3:52 05. Back Of Da Club 3:33 06. It's Ok 3:32 07. Hold Me (Feat. Kanye West) 4:03 08. Leave The Block Alone (Feat. 4:16 Jadakiss) 09. Lonely 3:44 10. Girlfriend 4:20 11. Touch Me 4:31 12. Why I Love You 4:17 13. Ask Of You (Feat. Raphael 4:22 Saadiq) 14. No One Else 4:48 15. Thank You (Outro) 1:37 16. Blackout (Feat. Nas) (Bonus 3:19 Track) Release Notes: Mashonda marries her sexuality to Swizz's beats. When an aspiring R&B diva can't perform octave-hopping trills, she must project confidence and sexiness. With Mashonda, the confidence is well earned: She's written and sung with Eve, Jay-Z, and Cassidy, and here, she collaborates with hubby Swizz Beatz. Sexiness also pervades her debut, from standout production to her near-orgasmic delivery. Naturally, there's a series of hammering, Swizz-made beats, starting with "Back Of Da Club," where deafening whistles provide the backdrop to her bump-and-grind narrative. "Blackout," built over a stuttering tom-tom loop, would be hot enough with Snoop Dogg's smoldering cameo, but Mashonda makes the track blaze as she sings - with a certain breathiness - about wanting sex several times a day, preferably the kind that makes her pass out. The album has its delicate moments, too. "Hold Me" features swirling disco strings you'd expect to hear in a Barry White jam. Featuring a verse from Kanye West, the vibe is old school but not overly retro. And while Mashonda may not shatter any glasses, she sings like a woman who's comfortable in her skin.