06. CD Review: Will Smith Lost & Found

Wednesday, March 30, 2005

Will Smith. That is name you immediately recognize. Most associate it with blockbuster summer movies. Other associate it with rap lyrics with a positive message behind them. People also know him as a devoted husband and father. In the last two decades, Will Smith is a name people have come to know. He is not one that someone will not know about. If it isn't for his presence in movies, his music would get him noticed all too easily. Music is where he began. His first CD was released in the late eighties, and soon after the anthem about how "parents just don't understand" was released, he began his journey into acting with the release of his popular hit television show, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

It wasn't until his appearance in the blockbuster summer hit, Independence Day, that he became the man of the summer blockbuster. Each and every summer since that movie was released, Will Smith has appeared in at least one of the big summer movies. This past summer it was I. Robot. However, this year has been a busy year for Mr. Smith. Not only was I, Robot released. He also played the voice of a main character in the animated movie, Shark Tale, and he also released another movie, a comedy this time, Hitch, in the last month. With a soundtrack out for that containing one of his songs, you would think a new CD release during all of this craziness would be out of the question.

This is where you would be wrong. This week has seen the release of another CD by Will Smith. This one entitled, Lost and Found. This CD is full of fifteen tracks, with one hidden bonus track.I have been a fan of his music since he began, so picking up this CD wasn't hard to do. I was glad that I did. This CD has what you can come to expect from this man and his music. He has always made a clear stance when it came to having clean cut music. He doesn't feel the need to fill his music with cussing in the lyrics and negative messages. This is what you see so much of in music of today, especially when it comes to those in rap and hip hop genres.

The first single off the CD, "Switch", also appears on the Hitch soundtrack, and their is a video playing currently on MTV now. The song is fun with a good dance beat. As is most of the other songs. What is good about Will is that he can have fun with his lyrics. Another favorite song of mine on the CD is the fourth track, "Mr. Nice Guy," in which Will says just because he is nice doesn't mean he is soft.

However, my favorite song on the entire CD has to be, "Tell me why". The song is a duet with Mary J. Blige, another strong and popular voice in the R&B genre. This song is rumored to be later released as a single, and I really hope that it is. Intense and powerful is how I describe this song. In past CD's, he has had songs for his son, and he does so again in this album. The song discusses the issues of the day, and asks how do you explain it to the children when they ask about what has happened. The song brought tears to my eyes the first few times that I heard it. It is truly powerful, and this song is one of the few times I've ever heard Will use a curse word within in his lyrics. This alone shocked me. However, the way it was used and the song itself didn't even make me bat an eyelash. The emotions were clear to me upon first hearing it. I really do hope this song is released as a single. A good song with a strong positive message is always needed. Music influences people. We all know this.

I recommend this CD. There really one song on this CD I did not like. It is high energy and fun to listen to with positive messages throughout. No matter what this man does, he does it will. This CD is no exception.