Fantasy Ride

By now you've probably heard Ciara's hit single, "Love Sex Magic" featuring Justin Timberlake, on the radio or elsewhere. Don't you think it's about time you listen to some other stuff of hers?

Fantasy Ride is the R&B artist's latest album and not only does it feature LSM but it also includes "Never Ever" and "Tell Me What Your Name Is;" two other big singles. So she has a few hits, who doesn't. It's the rest of the album that I'm interested in.

Like many artists these days, having guest appearances always boosts those mediocre songs up a level. For Fantasy Ride, we have the likes of Ludacris, Young Jeezy, Missy Elliott, Chris Brown, and The-Dream in addition to Mr. Love Sex Magic. After listening to the songs for a while, I thought that she might have relied on them too much and her solo songs were left behind. Thankfully the tracks towards the end put that fear to rest.

The album is actually rather decent; better than most of what's on the radio. I'd give her a try if you enjoy hip-hop but aren't much a fan of the hardcore rap. Ciara is a nice mix in between.