Monica After The Storm CD

Initial pressings included an Enhanced bonus disc.
Personnel: Monica, Tyrese (vocals); Jermaine Dupri, Missy Elliott, Mia X,
DMX (rap vocals); Bryan Michael Cox, Rodney "Darkchild" Jenkins, Soulshock, Karlin (various instruments); Eric Jackson, William Odum, RJ, Tommy Martin, Charles Pettaway (guitar); Bam, Ryan (keyboards, drums, programming); Montez Arnold, Dominique (keyboards); Tweet, Shamora Crawford, New Birth Praise Team (background vocals).
Producers include: Missy Elliott, DJ Scratchator, Craig X, Spike, Jamal.
If the gap between Monica's first and second albums wasn't long enough, After the Storm followed nearly five years after its predecessor. That's an extended period of inactivity by anyone's standards, let alone a still-young performer whose first two albums went multi-platinum. Despite that often problematic issue, After the Storm picks up where The Boy Is Mine left off with nary a speed bump. Rather than come across as if there's lost time being made up, the album has all the assuredness and smart developments that should keep Monica's younger longtime followers behind her -- all the while holding the ability to appeal to a wider spectrum of R&B and hip-hop fans. The batch of Missy Elliott-produced songs -- "Get It Off," "So Gone," "Knock Knock" -- provide a bulk of the most exciting material, with just the right amount of swagger added to the singer's more wide-eyed personality of the '90s. Another promising aspect is that Monica did a fair amount of the composing herself; while not every tune is solid, "I Wrote This Song" can go toe to toe with any of the hits she's had written for her. The only significant factor working against her is that snail's-pace release schedule. ~ Andy Kellman
After then-teenaged Monica waited an unusual three years to follow up her 1995 platinum debut MISS THANG with THE BOY IS MINE and scored one of the biggest crossover hits ever with that sophomore effort's title track, she waited five years to drop her third album, AFTER THE STORM. There's something to the whole slow-and-steady thing, and while the record was consigned to the "notoriously delayed" bin for awhile, it was seemingly not for anything lacking in the album itself.
Monica possesses a sultry, multi-octave voice and knows how to wield it to great effect. On AFTER THE STORM, the singer is furnished with the perfect songs around which to wrap her imperious voice. Monica even shows off her own songwriting chops on deft tunes like the swaying, melodic "I Wrote This Song" and the forcefully catchy "Ain't Gonna Cry No More." Each track is lushly and elegantly produced by some of the best in the game; of particular note are Missy Elliott's cuts (and check her guest rap on the infectious "Knock Knock"). AFTER THE STORM proves worth its wait, a solid third step by one of the shining young voices of R&B.