Ciara - I Bet

Ciara's self titled last album was, to put it simply, brilliant. An album without one dud is hard to find in the pop scene and Ciara's movement away from the hyperactive psychobabble of her earlier songs to a smoother, sultry R&B sound proved to be a winner. Since that album graced our lives she's been on a hiatus, had a baby and apparently almost finished recording her new album Jackie. 

The first single to be lifted from her new collection is 'I Bet',which was released back in January. The annals of Ciara's career show that marketing isn't her team's forte which explains why I knew nothing about this track until a week ago. 'I Bet' is produced and written by Ciara and R&B knob twiddler Harmony "H-Money" Samuels who has worked with the likes of Mary J Blige and XFactor USA false starters Fifth Harmony. It's a strong comeback, maintaining the soft R&B jam vibes of Ciara and its one of the most revealing musical ventures she's recorded to date. Singing about a failed relationship, I imagine her breakup from her baby daddy Future, Ciara's vocals are controlled expertly and a growth in range is obvious. It's a great comeback. Whether it will give her the hit single she needs isn't certain, but it seems like she might have to be content with being a successful 'underground' R&B artist going forward, releasing amazing music that not very many people will be exposed to. As long as she continues to release music of this calibre though, who gives a shit?

4 / 5