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ARTICLE
Music Review: Mandisa, "True Beauty"
by R.J. Carter Published: August 1, 2007
Release Date: July 31, 2007 Label: Sparrow Records Related Sites: ·Sir Linksalot: Mandisa
Grade: B+
Carrie Underwood may have been the first American Idol to put out a song out that crossed over into Contemporary Christian Music territory with her breakout hit, "Jesus Take the Wheel", but it's Mandisa who has gone headlong solely into the CCM market with her music with her new CD, True Beauty.
The album kicks things off with up-tempo and positively charged "Only the World". The song addresses all the tough times when bad things happen to good people, reminding listeners that the trials are "only the world", and encouraging them with the news that, "I know the best is still yet to come / 'Cause even when my days in the world are done / There's gonna be so much more than only the world for me."
True Beauty runs the gamut of styles, sometimes going toward the soulful, evocative of CeCe Winans, while also offering up songs that will appeal to mainstream fans of artists like Rebecca St. James. The title track, "True Beauty," is one of those songs that tackles the issue of society's tendency to see and appreciate only the superficial, while "God Speaking" and "Voice of a Savior" complement each other as somber hymns urging us to listen for that still small voice.
TobyMac returns the guest-artist favor that Mandisa gave him earlier, bringing in the Diverse City band to accompany Mandisa on the hip-hop/pop blend of "Love Somebody." And the high-spirited "Shackles" will give listeners the urge to get up and dance, just as the lyrics exhort them to. Hearing the actual sound of shackles dropping to the floor late in the song at a crucial point delivers an intense emotional impact of pure joy that was genius in its simple execution.
Mandisa, "True Beauty" Track Listing
Only the World
True Beauty
God Speaking
Voice of a Savior
Love Somebody
Unrestrained
Shackles
Steal My Joy
Oh My Lord
Only You
He Will Come
Mandisa may also be taking a gentle swipe at the show that launched her into the public eye as well. With "Only You," the artist sings of all the worldly possessions and accomplishments that never give the soul satisfaction. In those lyrics, you can hear, "When then mirror doesn't match the cover of a magazine / and I'm consumed with all of my fears and insecurities / 'Cause I had my idol for a while but now I finally I see / That it didn't mean anything, anything / Only You, You satisfy." Or perhaps I'm reading overly much into that lyric.
Full of energy and spirituality, True Beauty is the mark of a promising new artist into the Christian music market, who continues to prove the adage that it's better to lose on American Idol than it is to win.
