| Blaque Out! | |
| Type: | Album |
| Artist: | Blaque |
| Cover: | Blaqueoutcover2.png |
| Border: | yes |
| Released: | January 29, 2002 |
| Recorded: | 2000–2001 |
| Length: | 51:05 |
| Label: | Columbia |
| Prev Title: | Blaque |
| Prev Year: | 1999 |
| Next Title: | Torch |
| Next Year: | 2019 |
Blaque Out is the second studio album by American R&B trio Blaque. Originally expected to be released by Columbia Records in December 2001, it received a Japan-wide physical release on January 29, 2002 only, before finally being released as a digital download through iTunes on May 22, 2007. The band worked with a variety of producers on the album, including Dallas Austin, Full Force, Trackmasters, Salaam Remi, Dru Hill member Nokio, as well as Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers.
The album earned largely lukewarm reviews from music critics who felt it was similar to the group's self-titled debut album (1998) but lacked inspiration. Blaque Outs only single "Can't Get It Back" was released on October 29, 2001, and peaked at number 91 on Billboards Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[1] In 2003, it was re-recorded by British girl band Mis-Teeq. Group member Natina Reed said that Blaque Out! was both the strongest of the group's three albums and also her personal favorite album.[2]
AllMusic editor Jason Birchmeier rated the album two and a half out of five stars. He wrote that Blaque Out "finds the urban trio of female vocalists exploring much of the same terrain they explored on their debut album a few years earlier. However, like that album, Blaque Out has its share of lackluster filler. On the album's better moments, the trio co-opt many of the era's more successful trends, sounding often like Destiny's Child and other times like Janet Jackson." Demetria Lucas, writing Vibe, found that "on Blaque Out, Shamari Fears, Brandi Williams, and Natina Reed rely on their predecessor’s platinum-proven formula, creating a solid but seldom inspired sophomore set. Reed rhymes on nearly every track with a voice and flow identical to Left Eye's, which makes for monotony [...] While Blaque Out never ventures into uncharted R&B territory, Blaque still has the recipe for success."
Initially expected to be released in United States on December 11, 2001, Blaque Out was eventually released in Japan in 2002 and finally made it to iTunes in 2007. In a 2012 interview, Natina Reed commented on their record company's decision to shelve the album's physical release in the United States: "I think they missed out the most of being able to identify what Blaque really was at that point [...] This album branched out a little more than the first one did and reached out to many more types of people [...] It was a big record, but we dropped the ball on that record. Whether we did that, it was simply because we were making changes. Me and Kurupt from Tha Dogg Pound were expecting a child at this point and the label did not want to replace me [..] That’s pretty much what happened during that time. It is confusing to the fans, but it was a little bit more personal than people thought it was."[3]
Notes
Sample credits
| Region | Date | Format | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | CD | [5] | ||
| United States | digital download | [6] [7] |