Disco de Destiny's Child: “Destiny Fulfilled [China]”

It's unfortunate to hear that the musical landscape's biggest female group of the last decade is planning on dismantling, but it is sobering and promising to know that they will each have futures. I really do respect Destiny's Child talent. They can harmonize. They can perform, and they have some nice fits (outfits) and very charasmatic but different personalities. Their appeal shows with the fact that they have pulled in sales of almost 3 million copies with this release which makes a statement in this current, sales-declining musical landscape.

LOSE MY BREATH-- Produced by Darkchild and Beyonce, I knew right away after hearing this first single that I had to cop this joint. The energy of this song is bananas. I love the drumline beat. It is definitely unique and at that point, there were no other songs of its kind. It was also good to see that each of the ladies were featured in the song. It was good as well to see that Darkchild made a comeback with a fresh beat. The accompanying video was also unique and hot as well. Another good fact about this song is that it never got overexposed which adds to its quality. A+

SOLDIER-Featuring T.I. & Lil Wayne, produced by Rich Harrison (Usher, J. Lo, Amerie), when I first heard this slow uptempo, I liked it. However, being a male myself the appeal of the song faded fast due to the lyrical content of the song and the fact that the song was overexposed. They played it TOO MUCH. Admittedly, the song is kind of cheesy. They sound like the Pussycat Dolls trying to look for a soldier. While I love DC, what do they know about a true, ghetto soldier? They probably would run if one came their way. The black-and-white video was tight though. Oh yea, this song is kind of long on the CD version. B

CATER 2 U-Produced by Darkchild (Rodney Jerkins), Ric Rude and Beyonce, this tight, night-life slow jam is all about a female catering to her man. While I am a male, I love this song. The phrasing of both of the verses is tight. The lyrics while touching are not cheesy or too schmaltzy. The bell-sound during the chorus is tight and just blows me away everytime I hear it. The harmonies/background vocals are tight. The bridge is done in an excellent anti-climatic way by Michelle. The song also displays each of the singer's individuality well. They each bring a different approach to their parts rather than sounding homogenized. Fourth single. A+

T-SHIRT- Produced by Andre Harris and Vidal Davis (Usher) and Beyonce, this song has got to be a single even if it is just in the Urban format. I hear this song so much in Chicago by people it is ridiculous. This slow jam dominated by Beyonce is tight. It is a very sultry and sexual song that has the girl yearning for her man so much that she adores his t-shirt to fill his place while he is gone. The hook is very catchy and the harmonies, once again, are tight. It is hard to not imagine Beyonce singing about Jay Z. I try to envision myself, but I know that the song is for Jay-Z. A nice old-school like slow jam. A

IS SHE THE REASON?-Produced by 9th Wonder, Beyonce, Sean Garrett, this old-school song with samples from I DON'T KNOW NO ONE ELSE TO TURN TO by R&B veteran Melba Moore, is a slower mid-tempo that calls for the girl reaching out to her man asking if another girl is the reason for his changing attentions toward her. The song is tight, and it works, but following the latter songs, it sounds more like filler because it would not work as a single at all, and it is somewhat boring. The harmonies are good as always. Beyonce dominates the song and Kelly is relegated to singing the pre-chorus. Michelle struggles in this song during the bridge. They should have given that to Kelly. B+

GIRL-Produced by 9th Wonder and Beyonce and containing elements from OCEAN OF THOUGHTS AND DREAMS as performed by THE DRAMATICS, this mid-tempo which was their third single is a tight song that has a good and very colorful video. At first, I did not care for this song because it does not stand out initially. However, listening to the way that the ladies phrase the lyrics they sing. The old-school vibe of the song which works really well here. Beyonce's adlibs, the harmonies and Michelle letting loose on the bridge showing her true vocal abilities brings a new light to this song. I just wished it could have done better as a single. This is music. When I sing along, I say "boy" instead of "girl" to let ya'll know. A+

BAD HABIT-Produced by Bryan Michael Cox and Kendrick Dean, the production of this Kelly-dominated song sounds so much like Usher's Burn, Fantasia's yOU GOT ME WAITING, Faith Evans' TRU LOVE, Frankie J's HOW TO DEAL and Tamia's STILL that it is crazy, but it still is its own song. The words of this song is something that many can relate to especially girls who just pigeon-hole their musical tastes to those soldiers or any other limited group of guys. Kelly interprets the song well, but vocally the song falls short on this Destiny Child's CD. I was thinking all along where are the girls at. They could have been used on the background or something because Kelyl falls just a little short, but this heartfelt, emotional song is tight. A

IF-Produced by Rockwilder and Beyonce, containing elements from INSEPARABLE as performed by Natalie Cole, this old-school slow jam sounds like something right out of 1975's R&B music catalogue. "If" looking for some tight and fresh harmonies, this is th e perfect song to listen to. The cut talks abotu "if" the guy thinks she is going to stay and ignore all the wrongs, he is wrong. I like the fact that all three of the girls are utilized well throughout the song. Because of that, out of them all, this is a true Destiny Child's song because they are all used. A

FREE-Produced by Rockwilder and Beyonce, this mid-tempo with excerpts from NIGHT WHISTLER performed by Donald Byrd is a nice, "free"ing song. It talks about no feeling like being free from a relationship. The vocals are tight, but I do wished that Kelly and Michelle could have been used more. The scatting or whatever it is that Beyonce does at the end is tight. B+

THROUGH WITH LOVE- Produced by Mario Winans and Beyonce, this empowerment song about being through with love and being strong sounds like a Mario Winans track. At first, I did not like this song and I had deemed it the worst of all the tracks. However, after listening to it so much, the haunting, slow but fast production of the song mixed with the innovative vocals make the song more appealing. Michelle brings fire during the needed fire during her bridge part. It is good hearing her sing like that. I like the collective, powerful "through with love" chants at the end. A-

LOVE-Produced by Erron Williams and Beyonce, this acoustic-sounding with Country music elements to it but still sounding R&B ballad is weird because they just sang about being "free" and "through with love" but the CD celebrates all spheres of love. I love this song. It is just a beautiful love song where the lyrics are not cheesy. It is also not your traditional R&B ballad like CATER 2 U is which is an excellent song, but here the harmonies are magnificent. It is just a nice, laidback, breezy song. All of the ladies' vocals are more evenly distributed here. A+

Overall, the CD is tight. It is good to see Destiny Child matured and grown ladies. There are not the usual disposable, bubblegum songs like Bootylicious, which was fun but good but who listens to that now? This is more quality. It is good to hear Beyonce's creamy, operatic vocals mixed in with Kelly's mature, soulful voice and Michelle's nasal but unique vocals. I just wished they were not breaking up because if this was any indication, the group was only going to get better with quality material.

I can't believe that Beyonce did this to us. It is all about that contractual agreements.. She just made this Cd to quiet the fans... She never really liked anyone the members they always placed her in the middle so when she was ready to go solo people would buy into her. She is just bad and her [...] hurts my ears. How many packs of weave can Tina stitch in to Beyonce's head? I guess Tina doesn't know that because man her hair just keeps on looking like a Raggetty Ann doll... Don't get me started on the VMAs... She looks like a Malibu Barbie doll.. Actually she should be called Malibu Beyonce. If you place spotlight on her weave grows an inch every hour and begins to blonde after six hours. I feel sorry for every victim that has been a [...] in to Beyonce's plot of ultra success. 11 tracks on a CD that is saying that your Destiny is fulfilled.. If this CD saying that it is fulfilled then I am scared of what it would be like if it weren't. Beyonce just weaved all over this CD like she did Survivor. They stick Michelle in the middle but Beyonce head and weave is bigger than Kelly and Michelle's.. MORE GROUP AND LESS BEYONCE!

This CD is bad, burn the singles and then when you get tired of them throw your CD away because the songs will be [...]

This is studio throw up. I mean come on now, be serious ... this album lacks the hard work and dedication that was once felt by Destiny's Child. Before the girls went solo they put all of themselves into their music, but since they (or better yet Beyonce) has had a taste of some serious success, there's no focus. For instance, ask yourself these questions:

1. Why didn't they have all the hit producers on this album that Beyonce had on your solo?

2. Why are there so few songs on the c.d. this time around?

3. Is there any "soul" in there voices as there used to be?

4. When does this "t-shirt" ever get washed? I mean my goodness, you put the t-shirt on AFTER sex, you had it on BEFORE sex and you walk around in the shirt. Sounds like a case of the Monica Lewinski blues to me.

5. Do you get the sense that Beyonce did this album with the girls in order to "prove" the rumors wrong? Just compare the last Destiny's Child and Beyonce's solo CD to this one. Do you feel the LACK OF EFFORT?

I am a DC fan regardless of the BUTTSUCK of the new CD, but they could have put a little more effort into this CD. I want my money back now!!!!!!!

To begin with, I am a big DC fan. I own all 5 of their albums (that includes their Christmas and Remix album) as well as all 4 solo records. I like them all pretty well (some more than others) and I really do love the voices and styles of the band (especially the new 3 person line-up).

After years of separation and 4 solo records that all turned out pretty good (everyone knows Beyonce's, but Kelly and Michelle's records are highly underrated-I really love Kelly's beautiful "Simply Deep" album). I, like everyone else, thought that when the girls regrouped they would put out something really stellar.

"Destiny Fulfilled" isn't a bad album. It has some good songs and great vocal performances. However, it's a tedious record for DC fans because it seems more like a PR move than a genuine album.

The album was rush recorded in just a few weeks. It has only 11 songs. Almost all of them are mid-tempo and most are fairly bland. And that's just the start of the record's woes.

The girls are very blatantly making this their "adult" record as well as their "street cred" record. It's filled with goofy moments of over-the-top sexuality and desperate attempts to be "thug." The girls have always had a Pop/ R&B sound and while I'm open to the idea of a group evolving, their new style seems way more forced than progressive. It plays like an annoying attempt to gain respect from Hip Hop fans (who only recently embraced Beyonce after her teaming with Jay Z). The girls got booed at a Hip Hop show while promoting their last record and this new album seems like its clawing its way tirelessly to "respectability."

Furthermore, there is a disturbingly consistent sense that the album is prepackaged to convey certain things about the girls' personalities. You'll notice that Beyonce is almost never featured in the center of group photos (as was common before). It's glaringly obvious they want to show that she's not the egomaniac diva people claim. Just the fact that she made this record after a triple platinum solo album makes it seem like a promotional tool to help make people like her more (it only took two weeks out of her schedule for crying out loud!).

Though it may be true that Beyonce has the most vocal power and star appeal, it is still nice to see the other girls getting equal vocal time and writing credits this time around. Beyonce was the driving force behind "Survivor" and she did amazingly well. Here it seems as though she took a purposeful step back to once again say, "I'm not hogging the group!" This is most exasperatingly obvious in the liner notes where each verse is labeled with the name of the girl singing. Just another way of clarifying how everyone gets a shot.

Everyone gets a shot, but no one really delivers. The songs are just plain redundant. The album opens big with "Lose My Breath," a beat-heavy song that screams, "This is our hit single y'all!" It is just that. It was made to lure fans to the record. It's good, but it's out of place. And it misrepresents the album. More manipulative marketing from the DC people. The second single, "Soldier" is more like the rest of the record. And I hate it. It's a bad song. It's the definition of the sort of bland, over-produced, too slow, too long, not interesting, and desperate to enter adulthood material that hurts the whole album.

What songs are good? I like "Through With Love." It balances Pop and R&B nicely. Plus it's a mid-tempo song that never gets boring. All three ladies sound amazing on it. It should really be the third single off this album. "If" finds the girls exchanging verses in a way that doesn't sound staged like the rest of the record. It's a natural, flowing, old school R&B track. The closing track, "Love" is a soft ballad produced by Michelle's brother (who helmed most of her solo work). It's sweet and beautiful. "Girl" (co-produced by Beyonce) is the sort of mid-tempo track that has enough swagger to keep it from going monotone. It's sharp and empowered (unlike the gooey "Cater 2 U" which is perhaps the biggest misstep of all 9 albums these girls have made).

The album's not bad. It's just very misleading and unsatisfying. It lacks the power and "oomph" of the past DC records. They may genuinely still be friends, but this record tries too hard to make that point. I yearn for the strong-minded, strong-voiced, exciting DC of the "Survivor" album. That was a smart, effective, emotional recording that started with a bang and closed solidly. It seemed like a record made from a group evolving and coming into their own. "Destiny Fulfilled (And the title? Can you get more, "look we didn't break up!" than that?) sounds like a last gasp from a bunch of talented ladies looking for a marketing ploy to sell their next solo albums. I'm surprised there wasn't a little ad in the liner notes saying, "Look for the new album from Beyonce: Fall 2006!"

The people rating this cd 4 or 5 stars are either die-hards or those with poor taste in music. One general statement can be made about the entire cd, the harmonies are great. However most of the songs sound like stuff that was left off Beyonce's first cd. It starts off decent with Lose My Breath, a typical DC song (bills, say my name) then the newfangled and gimmicky Soldier is an attempt at capitalizing on the (at the moment) southern hip-hop boom. Cater 2 U is a nice tempo and melody good adlibs beyonce and her backup all sound good on this one; can't complain here. But next, inexplicably, is a patch of medicore mid-tempos. 4-7 shouldnt even be on the CD, they'd have been called cd fillers and wouldnt be too bad of cd fillers if the cd didnt have only 11 tracks its inexcusable that on an 11 track cd you have 4 songs of garbage. #8 "If" picks up a little but the song is too long and michelle's scraggly, struggling voice shouldnt be featured here, unfortunately it is. The highlight of the Cd is track 9 and 10 FREE and THROUGH WITH LOVE great harmonies, everyone sounds great they are listenable repeatedly and get better each time. even michelle sounds good and she carries Through With Love, maybe because her verse is about GOD and she was inspired for once but she actually sounds good here. 11, LOVE, is an appropriate way to end this flawed and likely final cd. Nice, sweet, and forgettable.