This Is Not a Test!

by

Missy Elliott

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While THIS IS NOT A TEST! is definitely not the highlight of Missy Elliott's discography, it is by no means a bad album. This is still signature Missy with her R&B balladry and alternative rap "freshness". The production is flawless and the arrangements are as unpredictable as ever. Missy spits rhymes and croons sultry ballads. Yet, THIS IS NOT A TEST! does have its high points as well as low points.

As per the other Missy Elliott's albums, the album begins with an intro which in this instance features Mary J. Blige. Then when proceed into "Pass That Dutch", one of the albums better tracks, but it isn't stellar by any means. It lacks the hit quality that songs like "Get Ur Freak On" (MissE...So Addictive) or "Work It" (Under Construction) had. It is still fun nonetheless.

The next song is "Wake Up" which features Jay-Z. While the background arrangment and drum programming are cool, the song has flaws. Missy's rhyme is fine, but Jay-Z surprisingly delivers a rather average if not mediocre performance, a surprise for the great Hov. Either way, the hook to this selection is surprisingly catchy, which saves it.

Skipping "fillers" such as "Keep It Moving" feat. Elephant Man and "Is This Our Last Time" feat. Fabolous, the next mega moment of THIS IS NOT A TEST! is "I'm Really Hot". This is by far the highlight of the album. Not only is it signature Missy, its hook is really catchy making it easily comparable to "Get Ur Freak On" and "Work It". This makes the album worth it. Following it is a not too shabby, fun duet with R. Kelly called "Dats What I'm Talkin'About" in which Missy goes into R&B diva mode with the great Pied Piper of R&B himself. Sure, it can't compare to the classicism of say "Take Away" which feature Missy & Ginuwine (MissE...So Addictive), but it is again, a better track.

"Don't Be Cruel" is okay, yet it doesn't hold its own against tracks such as "I'm Really Hot". "Toyz" is fine as well, but you begin to see diminishing quality, which makes THIS IS NOT A TEST! slightly weaker than Missy's previous titles. Still, as "I'm Really Hot" states... "radio says I'm killin' 'em"; That statement couldn't be truer, even on this lesser effort. Missy is what creativity is about and what music is about; she tries not to conform which makes her different and makes each and every album she releases very unique, engaging, and exciting. I've already reviewed and listened to THE COOKBOOK and Missy raises the bar, just as she did on previous albums. Either way, this is still a 3.5 to 4 star album for me. I highly recommend Missy!

Track #8 is titled "Don't Be Cruel"...I'm sorry, but it has to be done.

Missy Elliott's 5th album can be described as one thing: predictable. The vital thing that made her past efforts (mainly "Supa Dupa Fly" & "Miss E...So Addictive") work was the flawless production, which managed to sound like "contemporary hip hop/pop" yet (sighing in embarrassment) be somewhat good quality. This time around, Missy Elliott desperately tries to take it back "old school." The only problem is that she also manages to bring along the flaws that were present then. Now usually, these "tiny flaws" weren't emphasized, so naturally it went on to be unnoticed. But since the music world has advanced in terms of complex sounds, many of the problems present in the album become increasingly substandard, magnifying her efforts to a point of "unappealing." Even when Missy Elliott does introduce something new, it becomes more and more second rate; pathetic attempts in weaving reggae together with modern R&B and questionable collaborations with no chemistry.

When it comes to lyrics, it can't get any more predictable. "I'm Really Hot" is "really" dumb; it's that typical "Missy Elliott" thing where she rambles on how she's the best at everything. Missy Elliott also pathetically attempts on adding humor, like in the song "Let Me Fix My Weave." Just by seeing the title of the song, you already can tell how stupid it probably sounds. Although it is somewhat appealing, the track "Wake Up" is scarred with hypocrisy; it's a song about how the state of hip-hop has been corrupted and how we all have to stop this "BS & Violence". Now I'm fine with the whole concept of "consciousness", but when this advice comes from an artist like Missy Elliott, who 90% of her songs, tries to personify herself to be a thug-chick, it seems to sound obligated and forced... Then she has, of all people, Jay Z telling other people to stop being so materialistic. Its funny how hypocritically contradicting this song is. Even the "better" sounding songs on the album like "Toyz", "Pass That Dutch", & "I'm Not Perfect" tend to sound typical and ordinary at best. Even the production by Timbaland cannot redeem any quality even though good intent was there. And I'm a little tired of Missy Elliott including artists who passed away in her lyrics (Jam Master Jay, Notorious B.I.G., Left Eye, Big Pun, & Aaliyah). I, like many others, loved these artists... and i'm sure Missy Elliott truly cared for them... but when she repeats them over and over in her songs, it seems to be more like she's using their name in vain... rather than paying tribute.

It seems to be a bad trend when artists lose the weight... along with the talent (it happened to Cam' Ron too). Perhaps Missy Elliott should go "under construction" again, because this new style of hers just doesn't work anymore. She needs to stop the generic subjects and obligated collaborations, which sound forced. She should also take her time (this album came pretty fast after the overly hyped "Under Construction".) I'm sure there are those "die-hard fans" that will disagree with me... but it's becoming more apparent that her career peaked at "Miss E... So Addictive"... being that that was her last "successful" yet "appealing" album. "Is This My Last Time" giving Missy Elliott the benefit of the doubt? Yes it is...