From the label who brought us Sean Kingston, Jason Derülo, and Iyaz, comes "the Princess of Beluga Heights" Auburn. Beluga Heights is a record company founded by multi-platinum producer J.R. Rotem who's worked with artists such as JLS, Rihanna, Leona Lewis, Jesse McCartney, Britney Spears, among others.

After I've heard some tracks off Auburn's YouTube page, my mind was screaming potential, potential, POTENTIAL. Her songs range from total R&B to uptempo club stompers to acoustic heartfelt numbers, and get this: IT WORKS. Versatile artists always have a place in my heart because a) their albums always come with surprises in store; b) the creativity level is often mind-blowing; and c) it's not everyday that you find someone who can actually pull off a number of genres without getting lost in translation. And in J.R. Rotem's hands, Auburn can be BIG. La La La, the debut single featuring Iyaz (We like familiar names, don't we?) is extremely radio-friendly and a total club banger, complete with J.R. Rotem signature production sure to entice the US. Though it IS a little too autotuned for my tastes (I have a VERY low tolerance level for vocoders), it's damn catchy and it samples a little ATC in the first few seconds. If Auburn sounds good in uptempo records, she sounds even BETTER in slower, R&B songs. No Good is the kind of ballad I can listen to all day, as well as Best Friend. Both are brilliant tracks, not to mention I'm also quite a sucker for smooth-as-silk vocals like hers.

I know how artists feel about comparisons, but oh well. Auburn sounds a little like Rihanna in between the A Girl Like Me and Good Girl Gone Bad eras, with two cups of Shontelle and a teaspoon of Jason Derülo. Sounds like a darn good cake, doesn't it?


Here's the official lyric video for La La La:


Auburn on MySpace.
on Facebook.
on YouTube.