Colby O

Performer: Colby O'Donis
Artist: Akon; Paul Wall; Lil' Romeo; T-Pain
Producer: Kuk Harrell; Giorgio Tuinfort; Colby O'Donis; C. "Tricky" Stewart; Christy Hall; The-Dream; Kamau Georges; Kay-Ta Matsuno; Akon; Clinton Sparks; T-Pain; Alex Teamer
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Personnel: Colby O'Donis (guitar, keyboards, synthesizer, bass instrument, drums, percussion, programming, background vocals); Kay Ta Matsuno (guitar, bass instrument); Francesco Romano (guitar); Alex Teamer (keyboards, synthesizer, bass instrument, drums, programming); David Bal4 (keyboards); Hakim Abdulsamad (programming). Audio Mixers: Mark Goodchild; Colby O'Donis; Jaycen Joshua; Dave Pensado; Andrew Wuepper; Fabian Marasciullo. Arrangers: Colby O'Donis; Alex Teamer. Queens native Colby O'Donis was already a star of stage and screen by age of 14, and his sweet, teen-pop appeal continued to earn him attention throughout his teens (notably from Michael Jackson, who helped O'Donis with his single "Your Love in My Life"). COLBY O continues O'Donis's winning streak with a radio-ready brand of sleek, breezy contemporary R&B. The singles "What You Got" (featuring Akon), and "Don't Turn Back" show what O'Donis is all about: sexy grooves tailor-made to win young girls' hearts. Akon's claim that Colby O'Donis is the Kon Live label's "secret weapon" oversells this teen R&B singer with the pin-up face along with his pleasant, puppy-love debut. Besides cool crooner Colby's excessive use of the world "girl" in the boy band style, his voice is limited, or at the very least not challenged as it glides over one slick R&B production after another, all well executed but rarely memorable. Exception to the rule is the lead-off single and opening cut "What You Got," which features label boss Akon as producer and guest vocalist plus an inescapable hook that sounds close to Mario Winans' "I Don't Wanna Know." With Akon handling most of the production and leaving the rest to Colby they're both overstretched, something that wouldn't be as obvious if this 15-track effort ran ten and mercifully chopped, starting with the clumsy "Under My Nose" or the misguided Paul Wall team-up "She Wanna Go." The irony of choosing Lil' Romeo for "they don't want us together" number "Take You Away" was probably missed by this crowd but the tween set won't mind any of this. They'll find Colby's swagger, his slang dropping, and his smooth voice all very exciting and his hair gel perfectly applied. It's hard to ask for more from such fluff so expect the usual, up to and including the T-Pain guest shot. ~ David Jeffries

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