CD of the week:
CD OF THE WEEK: Jerusha Naidoo: Got to have it
She’s young, she’s a babe and the booklet of her debut CD, Got to Have It (Universal), folds out into a sexy mini poster. She sings upbeat R&B pop.
Jerusha Naidoo could easily have been just another clone from the overproduced Christina Aguilera mould, another young South African starlet desperately trying to make it on to the charts.
But then one looks closer: she’s a medical doctor and, as it turns out, a skilled songwriter responsible for most of the lyrics and music on Got to Have It. The catchy Are U the One? is the track that earned her a place on the air waves, but there is plenty more of its vibrant sound on the album, such as opener Got to Have It, the dirty groove of Dance and the retro-squawk-rap of Electro Boogie (both of these with Syd Money).
Some of the slower tracks, such as Look in My Eyes and U Be, are a tad nondescript, but Jerusha does have a knack for adding an ear-cathing snatch of melody to save the moment when her earnest delivery isn’t enough to save the ballad. On Tum Ho she even sings in Hindi.
Also included — inevitably, considering the single’s dance-chart success — is the Mama’s House Mix of Are U the One?, all speeded up and stretched to six minutes, unfortunately with some cheesy Eighties stutter effects.
Though Got to Have It probably won’t win a Grammy, Jerusha has certainly taken her first welcome steps on the road to fame.