Jazmine Sullivan
Love Me Back
(J Records)

Before her “break” from the music business earlier this year, 22-year-old singer/songwriter and Grammy nominee Jazmine Sullivan released her sophomore album, Love Me Back, which is a soulful blend of love, loss and heartbreak in her world of stardom.

With production work from Ne-Yo, Ryan Leslie and her mentor, Missy Elliott, the album conjures images of a young artist filled with ambitious desires and how those desires sometimes collide within the confines of a relationship. With obvious inspiration from Mary J. Blige, the first single, “Hold You Down (Goin’ in Circles),” as well as the follow-up, “10 Seconds,” both nail the back-and-forth nature of a partnership that has run its course. 

Jazmine consistently rips her heart out for the music. Love Me Back keeps with the same formula from her debut album, Fearless, by including tales of love and heartbreak through an urban-tinted glass. Nonetheless, standout tracks include “Good Enough,” “U Get On My Nerves,” “Excuse Me,” “Famous,” and “Don’t Make Me Wait.”