First of all, I hate CDs that try to hijack your hard drive when you pop them into your computer. But funny, I didn't seem to mind when Eric Benet's CD did that. I guess the real reason I'm upset is that I can't believe I spent good money on this bad CD.

The CD begins with a catchy beat for "Let Me Show You The Way." The first time I listened to the song I couldn't even finish it, but the second time it grew on me a bit. Still, it's not what I expected from Toni Braxton. I want to give her the room to grow and evolve, but does every artist have to change into a hip hop performer?

At first I thought I might just be "hating" on Toni, but then I asked a friend to listen to it and he agreed. He felt the CD suffered because she doesn't seem to feel the music. The lyrics are bitter but Toni's life is happy now, he said.

My criticism aside, I have no doubt the CD will be a hit of some sort. Everybody seems to be rushing to produce the same type of music these days, leaving little room for adventure and little place for diversity.

Much of my concern about the CD stems from the gratuitous use of rap music. I have no problem with rap, but I don't buy Toni Braxton for rap music. If I wanted rap, I would buy rap. I want love songs and beautiful ballads from Braxton.

The third track, "A Better Man," is something of a ballad but it is grossly overproduced, drowning out Braxton's voice with irrelevant computer-generated sounds and beeps that distract from the serious message of the music.

The fifth track, "Lies, Lies, Lies," starts out as a pretty piece, but it turns out to be another overproduced song with bitter lyrics. Can we just hear Toni Braxton sing without a full orchestra of soundboard music? And aren't there any other women out there who are happy enough with their relationships to support some more upbeat tunes?

"Rock Me, Roll Me" is an apologia for the woman with issues. Turns out, whenever a woman is insecure, needy, controlling, cheating, lying or crazy, it's actually her man's fault. She just wants you to "spend a little more time," Braxton explains. Is she for real?

The next song, "Selfish," is another, well, you get the picture by now. At least this time Toni explains why she's supposed to be so bitter. Reminds me of the line from Senator Howell Heflin to Anita Hill at the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings. With his thickest southern drawl, he asked, "Are you a scorned woman?" Turns out, Braxton is. She's pissed because her hypothetical man cheated on her in the past. But hey, maybe he just wanted her to "spend a little more time."

I sort of liked the song "Do You Remember When," which steals from the Captain and Tennille's 1979 hit, "Do That To Me One More Time." The song is produced by Rodney "Dark Child" Jerkins, which is both a good thing and a bad thing. I love Jerkins's work, but I'm not convinced the song needed him.

I like the song "Me and My Boyfriend," but I had already heard it from Beyonce and Jay-Z, making this version seem duplicative, even if it's not. The song also includes a repeated line from Tupac Shakur, who says "look for me."

"Tell Me" is another duplicate song, stealing music from Anita Baker's classic "Sweet Love." Here Braxton tells her man she will do whatever it takes to please him, whatever. Satisfaction guaranteed.

The song, "And I Love You," written by Babyface and Daryl Simmons, reveals Toni back to her roots, singing a straight ballad about love. Then, the last song on the CD, called "Always," makes another attempt to communicate the feeling of love.

No doubt, Toni has pull. She got just about the whole black music industry to help her out on this CD. Pharrell Williams and the Neptunes, Rodney Jerkins, Babyface, and Arista Records' LA Reid all chipped in for this effort. Even Vibe magazine editor-in-chief Emil Wilbekin did the styling for her. Unfortunately, that's not enough.

Back to "Lies," Braxton sings, "every word you say is lies, lies, lies." With her own happy life in contrast to her music, the audience may be singing those lyrics back to her.

More Than A Woman is an okay CD, but okay is not good enough for Toni Braxton. She's at least a demi-diva by now, and her music should reflect that.

© Copyright 2002 by Keith Boykin.