The debut record from rising R&B artist Jenevieve establishes her as an artist with lots of promise, talent and the potential to create even better works in the future.
Sonically, I was pretty impressed with “Division.” The production and mixing on this album were very solid, and producer Benziboy did a fantastic job curating sounds that fit well with Jenevieve’s voice, allowing both the production and the vocals to shine. Although this album was produced entirely by Benjiboy, he still manages to show range and diversity in his production choices. The album has upbeat, pop-inspired tracks such as “Mellow Eyes” and “No Sympathy,” but also includes a few warmer, down-tempo tracks such as “Baby Powder” and “Nxwhere.” Benziboy and Jenevieve seem to make a great pair, and I respect their ability to create a collection of tracks that fit together in a cohesive group without sounding too repetitive.
Lyrically, this project was solid, but nothing remarkable. Jenevieve delivers with a beautiful vocal performance, and her lyrics are enjoyable to listen to, but very little of the lyrical content is especially captivating. However, I’ll admit that I typically don’t pay the closest attention to lyrics, so I could be biased.
I have few criticisms with “Division,” one being that the album didn’t have a very strong ending. I don’t dislike any of the tracks on the album, but I definitely prefer the first few tracks of the album to the rest of it. All the tracks after “Mellow Eyes” are solid, but they’re the weakest tracks on the record, in my opinion. However, I won’t be surprised if my opinion on this changes as I give this album a few more listens.
My only other criticism is that Jenevieve still needs to work on creating her own distinct sound. While I enjoy this album, there are only a few songs on it that separate Jenevieve from other up-and-coming R&B artists. That’s not to say that Jenevieve has no individuality — tracks like “Baby Powder” and “Résumé” show that she is perfectly capable of sounding unique — I just think she should continue to make more songs like these, and I’m confident that with time, she’ll develop her own unique sound.
All that being said, “Division” proves to be a solid body of work and a very impressive debut project. Overall, I give this album a 7.5/10. Jenevieve has established herself as a driving force in alternative R&B, and I’m excited to see what she releases in the future.
— Marshall Morgan
