Jessie J Gives Thanks To Whitney Houston

Jessie J recently gave thanks to the late, great Whitney Houston.

In case you haven’t heard, Jessie has a tendency to really belt out her tunes. Although the British singer, who dropped her third album, Sweet Talker, earlier this month, was once a little self-conscious about her skills, she said Houston’s “over-singing” let her know that giving a song everything she’s got isn’t necessarily a “bad thing.”

According to Euronews, Jessie J recently dished about her second album, Alive, a collection of tunes that never received a proper release in the U.S. While this definitely had an impact on the singer, she believes Sweet Talker will make up for those difficult times.

“On this album I was like, ‘I know who I am,’ and I know that I wake up every day meaning to do well. Sometimes I get it wrong but I’m not hurting anyone and I just wrote from my heart and I sang my ass off, you know? I just was like, ‘I sing loud.’ Thank God for Whitney Houston, who allowed me to understand that being loud and being strong and over-singing sometimes isn’t a bad thing.”

Fortunately for Jessie J, her appreciation for Houston has certainly paid off. Sweet Talker has generated a few fairly strong reviews from the press. For example, Cornell Daily Sun scribe Rachel Mack seemed to enjoy the singer’s third trip to the well.

“What truly separates Jessie J from her contenders is her ability to exude earth-shattering vocals and command, resembling historical powerhouses such as Christina Aguilera and Whitney Houston. Just like most artists today, Jessie co-authors her music with music executives who hope to fit her to the predictable pop mold of the times. Cynics of the modern music industry might think of her music as typical, lazy pop that lacks any originality, but those critics fail to recognize the strength of her talents and the genre fluidity of her music.”

Entertainment Weekly writer Kyle Anderson also had positive things to say.

“In addition to ‘Bang Bang,’ there’s the double-time 2 Chainz collab ‘Burnin’ Up,’ the triumphant opener ‘Ain’t Been Done,’ and the inevitable girl-power anthem ‘Masterpiece.’ Best of all, she doesn’t force the stuff in between; instead, she merely shrugs off the record’s more repetitive melodies with casual grace and moves on. It turns out all Jessie J needed to make a leap forward was to take a few steps back.”

Are you a fan of Jessie J? What do you think about her latest album?

[Lead image via Flowdiv]