Bebe Rexha has established herself as a hitmaker – featuring on singles like David Guetta’s ‘Hey Mama’, Louis Tomlinson’s ‘Back To You’ and G-Eazy’s ‘Me, Myself and I’. The lead single for this debut album, ‘Meant To Be’, hit big and there’s plenty more where that came from.
Rexha wrote or co-wrote all the songs here, and she knows how to sprinkle playful elements in every track. She brings the same ‘Meant To Be’ energy to the pure-pop chorus of ‘2 Souls On Fire’; acoustic guitar riffs help create a soulful pop ballad on ‘knees’; ‘I Got You’ and ‘Self Control’ are playful electropop that will be leaping into DJ playlists as I write. She flexes her vocal dexterity and hits the high notes for ‘Don’t Get Any Closer’, ‘Grace’ and ‘Pillow’.
A few tracks do lack energy: on ‘Mine’ and ‘Unsteady’, the battle between pop and soul is lacklustre; she struggles to find her rhythm on ‘Shining Star’; ‘Sad’ feels sketchy where it should be soulful.
But Expectations hits a lot more than it misses. Bebe Rexha is no ordinary singer. She’s a chameleon who can switch vocals, blend with any sound, and find rhythm with any tempo. She is an artist that can make other genres pop.
