After lengthy delays and some surprisingly low-performing singles, In a Perfect World... was issued in March 2009 and happened to sync up with
Keri Hilson's first solo Top 20 hit, the coquettish trunk rattler "Turnin Me On." Prior to this,
Hilson was quite familiar with high chart positions as a songwriter and featured vocalist. She co-wrote
Mary J. Blige's "Take Me as I Am" and
Omarion's "Ice Box," both of which went Top Five hip-hop/R&B, as well as
Ludacris and
Blige's "Runaway Love,"
Timbaland's "The Way I Are" (featuring
Hilson on vocals), and
Britney Spears' "Gimme More," all of which were Top Five pop hits. Throw in some other prominent features, including
Xzibit's "Hey Now (Mean Muggin'),"
Diddy's "After Love," two additional highlights from
Timbaland's Shock Value, and
Nas' "Hero," and you have an established track record for a serious singing/songwriting threat --
Siedah Garrett to the tenth power or stiff competition for
Ne-Yo and the-Dream. With all but three of the 14 tracks produced by some combination of
Timbaland, Polow da Don, and
Danja, In a Perfect World... nonetheless reflects the versatility
Hilson demonstrated prior to its release. It's a songwriting showcase as much as it is a coming out for a full-blown artist, yet more about what
Hilson can do than who
Hilson is. If she wasn't so adept with her pen, didn't fill the songs with her beaming personality and casually fluid voice, and didn't have top-level producers providing mostly excellent beats, it would be a mess. Sonically and (especially) lyrically, the album covers most bases when it comes to pop-oriented R&B, all scattered across a set that is heavy on solid club tracks (including the kinetic clap-and-bounce of "Get Your Money Up," a female anthem) and passable-to-steamy ballads (ranging emotionally from seductive to regretful). The slower tracks don't match up to their opposites, or even the bittersweet midtempo cut "Alienated," but they're not enough of a snag to prevent the album from being one of 2009's most replayable R&B releases. ~ Andy Kellman