It's terrible.

If you're not familiar with her, she's that dude next to the girl holding the cane here:

Perhaps the thing that struck me was how much it [the album Elixir, not Bria] reminds me of some of Prince's most forgettable npgmc music tracks from the plastic years.

Prince is obviously all over all of this album, and at times you think his production and instrumentation is going to overwhelm her tepid and wispy bland voice, but it never does--Prince is very careful to make the instruments compliment her voice, obviously at the detriment of just about every track on the album.

Even the obvious "single worthy" track, 2Nite, is like watching a rat getting lost in a corn maze. She sometimes sounds a bit like Nelly Furtado, if Nelly were bed ridden, but she doesn't actually appear capable of carrying a single song on her album.

Folks always call Prince a very bad businessman, but I have to say he's a genius for including this tedious and at times cringe worthy album on lotusflow3r and pricing it at 11 bucks, because it sure as hell couldn't sell on it's own.

Now, I know Prince's proteges aren't meant to actually be talented, but this one isn't even sexy in real life or on the mic. I just wish I hadn't forced myself to listen to this thing. I hate it when my greatest fears are confirmed in this way. eek.

She's feels like she's a Martika or Apollonia, but one that actually takes herself a bit too seriously. Of course, it makes this tour de force of FAIL all the more comedic.

.

[Edited 11/18/10 7:14am]

mm i think i heard maybe one song from it at some point and didnt bother listening to the rest of it.

no disrespect to prince's musicianship, but the whole vibe didnt do anything for me.

it actually acted like more of a repellent than anything enticing or even remotely genuinely sexy, but thats just my opinion.

i have a fairly wide appreciation for all different kinds of music so i thought maybe if i watched a couple of her clips on youtube for the other songs i might have a change of heart.

no such luck, the clips only cemented my previous feeling about this album.

hopefully her next album will show her voice off a bit more. i suppose it cant hurt to be optimistic.

does anyone know when her next album will be due for release

[Edited 11/18/10 4:58am]

robinhood said:

mm i think i heard maybe one song from it at some point and didnt bother listening to the rest of it.

no disrespect to prince's musicianship, but the whole vibe didnt do anything for me.

it actually acted like more of a repellent than anything enticing or even remotely genuinely sexy, but thats just my opinion.

i have a fairly wide appreciation for all different kinds of music so i thought maybe if watched a couple of her clips on youtube for the other songs i might have a change of heart.

no such luck, the clips only cemented my previously feeling about this album.

hopefully her next album will show her voice off a bit more. i suppose it cant hurt to be optimisitic lol

The problem with her voice is that it just isn't worth showing off.

It's bland and not terribly commanding.

It was designed for clever or catchy production and addictive hooks.

But the music on Elixir attempts to showcase the voice, and that's a mistake.

Letting her voice be center stage only solidifies how weak the album is.

I do hope that a sophmore album isn't in the works, and if it is, that it won't

be bundled with a Prince package. It should be sold alone and fade in to

obscurity due to it's own lack of merit. Lotusflow3r would have made a nice,

if lopsided double-album.

Blixical said:

The problem with her voice is that it just isn't worth showing off.

It's bland and not terribly commanding.

It was designed for clever or catchy production and addictive hooks.

But the music on Elixir attempts to showcase the voice, and that's a mistake.

Letting her voice be center stage only solidifies how weak the album is.

I do hope that a sophmore album isn't in the works, and if it is, that it won't

be bundled with a Prince package. It should be sold alone and fade in to

obscurity due to it's own lack of merit. Lotusflow3r would have made a nice,

if lopsided double-album.

i edited my previous post, had a few spelling problems lol

i guess her voice has a sort of dreamy appeal in a light snakey kind of way but i guess i just dont feel it.

i've heard people say her voice is, as you say, bland and non-commanding, maybe some singing lessons might help her develop it a bit more.

guess we just have to wait and see if there will be another album from her, although i have to honestly say i dont think i'd listen to any of it.

maybe my taste in music is just not on the same wavelength, but hey good for you that you managed to sit through the whole thing.

at least you got a laugh out of it, which is better than nothing lol

I bought Lotus when it came out, but it took me about a month to listen to Bria's disc.

I have not played it since.

There was a quote from Prince, i can't remember from where or the exact words he used, but it was regarding the making of Elixer, he said something like they (Prince and Bria) had to make the album, because Sade was taking to long to release a new album.

[Edited 11/18/10 6:29am]

Wow, really, don't be so harsh.

Yes, her voice is not the strongest and the album tracks are not the best but

it's not horrible at all, it's just not something special. I like her voice on backing vocals that she made for a few Prince songs.

And she said herself, they just wanted to make some good elevator music, and she was surprised that he packed her cd with Loutusflow3 and Mplsound.

And I think you really have to listen to an album full length if you wanna judge it like that robinhood.

I listend to it at the beginning and recognized very early that it's not that interesting for me

And yes at the beginning I had my problems to stay strong to listen to the rest of the album when I heard the first track, but I did because I wanted to judge it correctly.

and blixical......

her name is BRIA VALENTE not BRIAN VALENTE

I know it seduces - Bria- Brian -

and

MikeyB71 said:

I bought Lotus when it came out, but it took me about a month to listen to Bria's disc.

I have not played it since.

There was a quote from Prince, i can't remember from where or the exact words he used, but it was regarding the making of Elixer, he said something like they (Prince and Bria) had to make the album, because Sade was taking to long to release a new album.

[Edited 11/18/10 6:29am]

Yes, but he corrected himself in the Tavis interview about this statement.

He didn't want to say Bria sounds like Sade.

When I heard this correction I was that is not friendly

hestilllovesme said:

Wow, really, don't be so harsh.

Yes, her voice is not the strongest and the album tracks are not the best but

it's not horrible at all, it's just not something special. I like her voice on backing vocals that she made for a few Prince songs.

And she said herself, they just wanted to make some good elevator music, and she was surprised that he packed her cd with Loutusflow3 and Mplsound.

And I think you really have to listen to an album full length if you wanna judge it like that robinhood.

I listend to it at the beginning and recognized very early that it's not that interesting for me

And yes at the beginning I had my problems to stay strong to listen to the rest of the album when I heard the first track, but I did because I wanted to judge it correctly.

and blixical......

her name is BRIA VALENTE not BRIAN VALENTE

I know it seduces - Bria- Brian -

and

I value your input.

I do, honestly.

But, it was horrible. Remember the scene in Old Yeller when that poor dog finally died and everybody watching the movie was in complete tears? It was just that horrible.

Blhttp://prince.org/msg/reply.php?tid=347409&sc=f582d&q=7746871&pg=1ixical said:

I value your input.

I do, honestly.

http://prince.org/msg/reply.php?tid=347409&sc=f582d&q=7746871&pg=1

But, it was horrible. Remember the scene in Old Yeller when that poor dog finally died and everybody watching the movie was in complete tears? It was just that horrible.

OMG that made me laugh somehow. Or should I cry?

I know the Elixer album is a tough nut to crack for some people

I just watched her "everytime video" on youtube and I still don't like this song very much.

But I like "kept woman" and "here I come" from Elixer.

i have to edit this because:

OMG I recognized your sarcasm just now.

I just saw "i fianally listend to Brian Valente's Elixer all the way through today"

but I didn't read this here " If you're not familiar with her, she's that dude next to the girl holding the cane here"

[Edited 11/18/10 7:35am]

hestilllovesme said:

And I think you really have to listen to an album full length if you wanna judge it like that robinhood.

maybe, or on the other hand, if i dont really like the few songs i hear from an album, why would i listen to the whole thing?

the songs i've heard are an indication of what the rest of the album sounds like right? i just dont find her voice appealing enough to want to hear any more of it.

thats not a judgement by the way, its a personal opinion, highly likely it wont change either, but i'm prepared to hear how much she's improved on her next album.

but if the songs i hear from it dont thrill me, i wont listen to the whole album. i dont owe her that much of my time lol in fact she's lucky she gets any of it at all.

I listened 2 her cd once and after I did, I wanted 2 jump off a building or run screaming like a banshee!

robinhood said:

hestilllovesme said:

And I think you really have to listen to an album full length if you wanna judge it like that robinhood.

maybe, or on the other hand, if i dont really like the few songs i hear from an album, why would i listen to the whole thing?

the songs i've heard are an indication of what the rest of the album sounds like right? i just dont find her voice appealing enough to want to hear any more of it.

thats not a judgement by the way, its a personal opinion, highly likely it wont change either, but i'm prepared to hear how much she's improved on her next album.

but if the songs i hear from it dont thrill me, i wont listen to the whole album. i dont owe her that much of my time lol in fact she's lucky she gets any of it at all.

Don't get me wrong. Of course you don't have to listen to it if you simply don't like it.

I just said, if you wanna judge the whole album, you have to listen to the whole album.

But for my taste, she don't have to do a next album if she won't perform her elixer songs.

Like I said, it was a bit hard for me too, to listen to the whole thing because it didn't thrill me either. But I wanted to judge Bria's singing ability, so I did it.

I think, she may not be the strongest singer but she didn't need it for her elixer album anyway.

The songs are not made to show a strong experienced singer, it's more for relaxing and like she said, they wanted to make some good elevator music.

And maybe a lot won't agree with me, but I think she got a special tone in her voice. If she would be played on the radio, I would recognize her.

Blixical said:

It's terrible.

If you're not familiar with her, she's that dude next to the girl holding the cane here:

Ha Ha ha HA HA HA HA HA

Wildboy said:

Blixical said:

It's terrible.

If you're not familiar with her, she's that dude next to the girl holding the cane here:

Ha Ha ha HA HA HA HA HA

He is all man and she is all woman.

People will always making jokes about this couple , right?

^ I usually think Prince gets a bad rap about being too girly, but whenever I see him next to Bria (she got those Man Hands) I can't stop cracking up. And that picture, she looks so protective.... ha ha ah ha ha

i really like elixir, some very nice tunes on there.

DoffieParker said:

i really like elixir, some very nice tunes on there.

Another boy and Kept woman aren't half bad imo...and i'm not even a Bria fan.

I like the track 'Elixir.' I just try to keep her face out of it when I hear them singing about what they do.

Lick her? Not even with Prince's tongue!

QuasarOfRock said:

I hate the track 'Elixir.' I just try to keep her face and body and voice and existence out of it when I hear them singing about what they do.

Lick her? Not even with Prince's tongue!

eeeeeeeewwwww disgusting hideous awful and uncharming in every single way inside out upside down brian the tranny would then have a penis ?.eeeeewww.

[Edited 11/22/10 9:30am]

HERE said:

QuasarOfRock said:

I hate the track 'Elixir.' I just try to keep her face and body and voice and existence out of it when I hear them singing about what they do.

Lick her? Not even with Prince's tongue!

eeeeeeeewwwww disgusting hideous awful and uncharming in every single way inside out upside down brian the tranny would then have a penis ?.eeeeewww.

[Edited 11/22/10 9:30am]

I may have been misquoted here.

You motherfuckers always making fun of my woman. You wait for her touching new single, "Long Balls", all about how she like to wrap her long balls around me like a scarf

Blixical said:

It's terrible.

If you're not familiar with her, she's that dude next to the girl holding the cane here:

Perhaps the thing that struck me was how much it [the album Elixir, not Bria] reminds me of some of Prince's most forgettable npgmc music tracks from the plastic years.

Prince is obviously all over all of this album, and at times you think his production and instrumentation is going to overwhelm her tepid and wispy bland voice, but it never does--Prince is very careful to make the instruments compliment her voice, obviously at the detriment of just about every track on the album.

Even the obvious "single worthy" track, 2Nite, is like watching a rat getting lost in a corn maze. She sometimes sounds a bit like Nelly Furtado, if Nelly were bed ridden, but she doesn't actually appear capable of carrying a single song on her album.

Folks always call Prince a very bad businessman, but I have to say he's a genius for including this tedious and at times cringe worthy album on lotusflow3r and pricing it at 11 bucks, because it sure as hell couldn't sell on it's own.

Now, I know Prince's proteges aren't meant to actually be talented, but this one isn't even sexy in real life or on the mic. I just wish I hadn't forced myself to listen to this thing. I hate it when my greatest fears are confirmed in this way. eek.

She's feels like she's a Martika or Apollonia, but one that actually takes herself a bit too seriously. Of course, it makes this tour de force of FAIL all the more comedic.

.

[Edited 11/18/10 7:14am]

This whole thread is hilarious! I do find it slightly ok, only because of Kept Woman, and a couple other songs I can tolerate. My sister HATES it and her voice. She finds him/her to be very annoying and untalented in every sense of the word. I suspect her lack of talent is why Prince has yet to let her sing live. On the Tavis show he said "If you listen to it all the way through, she's got you!" Yes, got you putting your head in a blender! He called it a sleeper album and I must agree..its not good at all and not worthy of being coupled with Prince's cd. Why he did that, I have no idea?!?!?! But whatever, I listen to it anyway, hoping it will grow on me..

QuasarOfRock said:

hestilllovesme said:

I like others haven't listened to Bria's disc in a long while either. Is she the next big thing. No! But like other P prodigees, maybe she'll find her fame elsewhere. Maybe in modeling? She is pretty cute. I'll take her home with me. Just as long she don't sing to me we'll be alright. Lol. Peace!

I threw Bria's disc in the garbage can outside of target when I bought the set.

imo, it's not that bad. it lacks a certain passion prince seems to bring to his music and to be fair, she should have released her work alone, imo. obviously, her album paled by comparison to prince's, so i pretty much left his in the player and hers out