''Hot Coko'' is the debut solo studio album by American R&B singer

Coko Cheryl Elizabeth Gamble (formerly Clemons; born June 13, 1970), better known by her stage name Coko, is an American singer-songwriter best known as the lead singer of the R&B vocal trio Sisters With Voices (SWV). Aside from her R&B career, Gamble ...

. It was released by

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

on August 10, 1999. ''Hot Coko'' served as the singer's debut effort following the release of her band

SWV SWV (Sisters with Voices) is an American R&B vocal trio from New York City whose members are Cheryl (Coko) Gamble, Tamara (Taj) Johnson, and Leanne (Lelee) Lyons. Formed in 1988 as a gospel group, SWV became one of the most successful R&B g ...

's third album ''

Release Some Tension ''Release Some Tension'' is the third studio album by American R&B vocal group SWV. It was released by RCA Records on July 29, 1997. The album guest appearances by E-40, Puff Daddy, Missy Elliott, Timbaland, Foxy Brown, Lil' Cease, Lil' Kim, Sn ...

'' (1997), which led towards the group's first disbandment in 1998. Guest appearances on the album are made by rapper

Eve Eve (; ; ar, حَوَّاء, Ḥawwāʾ; el, Εὕα, Heúa; la, Eva, Heva; Syriac: romanized: ) is a figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. According to the origin story, "Creation myths are symbolic stories describing how the ...

and singer

Tyrese Tyrese Darnell Gibson (born December 30, 1978) is an American actor and singer. He released his self-titled debut album in 1998, which featured the single " Sweet Lady", peaking at number twelve on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100. His second ...

. ''Hot Coko'' features

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

from the likes of Damon Thomas,

Rodney Jerkins Rodney Roy Jerkins (born July 29, 1977), also known by his stage name Darkchild, is an American record producer, rapper, and songwriter. He has collaborated with a broad range of popular artists. Jerkins has won multiple Grammy Awards. Among hi ...

Marc Anthony Marco Antonio Muñiz Rivera (born September 16, 1968), known professionally as Marc Anthony, is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is the top selling tropical salsa artist of all time. A three-time Grammy Award and six-time Latin Gra ...

Missy Elliott Melissa Arnette Elliott (born July 1, 1971), better known as Missy Elliott or Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliot, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. She embarked on her music career with R&B girl group Sista in the earl ...

Timbaland Timothy Zachery Mosley (born March 10, 1972), known professionally as Timbaland, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. He has received widespread acclaim for his innovative production work and distinc ...

and

Brian Alexander Morgan Brian Alexander Morgan is an American record producer from Wichita, Kansas, United States, best known for his work writing and producing with the R&B group SWV. Career In his early 20s, Morgan recorded a demo tape with his childhood friend LaChel ...

, whom Coko worked with while a member of

earlier in the decade. The album debuted at number 68 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and entered the top 20 of the US

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated J ...

. It received generally mixed to positive reviews from music critics upon its release. ''Hot Coko'' spawned two singles that found minimal ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' chart success, with its lead single "Sunshine", reaching the lower ranks of the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, where it reached the top seventy, becoming her sole appearance on that chart to date. Shortly after the album's underperformance on the ''Billboard'' charts, Coko departed

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

in late 1999.

Background and recording

first rose to prominence in the 1990s as a member of the trio

. Following the group's disbandment in 1998, she pursued a solo music career. In a 1999 ''Billboard'' interview, Coko said that she had been unable to record solo music due to her SWV obligations. Her debut studio album was recorded in various studios in California and New York. Coko took more creative control of her music by co-writing songs and picking producers. She co-wrote music with

who also produced songs for the album. Although she described hip hop music as "cool", Coko identified herself as a R&B artist. She referred to the album as representing her "gospel roots" and likened her sound to

Alvin and the Chipmunks Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three s ...

with a "Coko twist".

executive Brett Wright believed that Coko would remain "true to her R&B roots" and cited the "

urban Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...

crossover market" as her primary demographic.

Composition and lyrics

''Billboard'''s Steven J. Horowitz wrote that "Sunshine" was an "ebullient ode to a loved one". Coko dedicated the song to her then three-year-old son

Lil Tracy Jazz Ishmael Butler (born October 3, 1995), professionally known as Lil Tracy, is an American rapper and singer. He was also known under the name Yung Bruh during the beginning of his career. Tracy is best known for his collaborations with the l ...

. Produced by Jerkins, the instrumentation consists of "interlocking jerky drum loops and squelching basslines" and a "stuttering production".

Noisey ''Vice'' (stylized in all caps) is a Canadian-American magazine focused on lifestyle, arts, culture, and news/politics. Founded in 1994 in Montreal as an alternative punk magazine, the founders later launched the youth media company Vice Media, ...

's David Lehmann wrote it was similar to Jenkins' other late 1990s songs. Recording the song with "multi-layered vocals", Coko sings the lyrics: "Sunshine, sunshine / You brighten up my days / I love you always". ''Vibe'''s Larry Flick likened the lyrics to a

nursery rhyme A nursery rhyme is a traditional poem or song for children in Britain and many other countries, but usage of the term dates only from the late 18th/early 19th century. The term Mother Goose rhymes is interchangeable with nursery rhymes. From t ...

, and described "Bigger Than We" and "Try-Na Come Home" as

soul ballad A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner.J. M. Cur ...

s. Flick compared Coko's vocals for "Bigger Than We" to

Gladys Knight Gladys Maria Knight (born May 28, 1944), known as the "Empress of Soul", is an American singer, actress and businesswoman. A seven-time Grammy Award-winner, Knight recorded hits through the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s with her family group Gladys Kn ...

, specifically due to the song's "layer rhythm-harmony arrangement". "Triflin'", featuring a rap verse from

, is an R&B song with hip hop influences and lyrics about a woman teasing her boyfriend. The

hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...

includes: "Ghetto / Sorry / Oh no / Tired game / And that's such a shame / ... pitiful." ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'''s Matt Diehl cited "Triflin'" and "I Ain't Feelin You" as examples of

hip hop soul Hip hop soul is a subgenre of contemporary R&B music, most popular during the early and mid 1990s, which fuses R&B or soul singing with hip hop musical production. The subgenre had evolved from a previous R&B subgenre, new jack swing, which h ...

. Flick wrote that "I Ain't Feelin You" was a "

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

anthem" and referred to "Everytime" as "smooth ndwarmly romantic". Coko recorded "

If This World Were Mine "If This World Were Mine" is a 1967 song by soul music duo Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell from their album ''United''. Written solely by Gaye, it was one of the few songs they recorded without Ashford & Simpson writing or producing. When it was re ...

", originally a 1967 single by

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo ar ...

and

Tammi Terrell Tammi Terrell (born Thomasina Winifred Montgomery; April 29, 1945 – March 16, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter, widely known as a star singer for Motown Records during the 1960s, notably for a series of duets with singer Marvin Gaye. ...

, as a duet with

. Flick described the cover as a

slow jam A slow jam is music with rhythm and blues and soul influences. Slow jams are commonly R&B ballads A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', whi ...

. The standard edition of the album ends with "So Hard to Say Goodbye" which features

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

from

Babyface Babyface or Baby Face can refer to: Nicknames * Lester Joseph Gillis a.k.a. Baby Face Nelson, an infamous 1930s bank robber * Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette (1933–1971), an American hard bop and soul-jazz musician * "Baby Face", Jimmy McLarnin ...

and

Kevon Edmonds Kevon Edmonds (born February 25, 1958) is an American singer and actor. He is member of the R&B group After 7 and the older brother of singer, songwriter, and record producer Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds. After 7 scored three platinum- or gold-s ...

Reception

''Hot Coko'' was released to a generally mixed to positive reception.

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

editor

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...

wrote that "

oko OKO ( rus, ОКО, r=, literally means eye, also an abbreviation for Ob'yedinonnyye Kristallom Osnovaniya ( rus, Oбъединённые Кристаллом Oснования, r=, literally means Foundations Bound by a Crystal)) is a complex o ...

isn't the most charismatic singer, but she is blessed with a strong voice that sounds very inviting when placed in the right settings." He awarded the album three out of five stars. Matt Diehl from ''

'' found that ''Hot Coko'' "plays like a game of 'Name That Diva': Too often, she obliges

Mary J. Blige Mary Jane Blige ( ; born January 11, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Often referred to as the " Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" and " Queen of R&B", Blige has won nine Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, four American Music Award ...

fans with copycat vocals of their idol while faithfully replicating

Faith Evans Faith Renée Evans (born June 10, 1973) is an American singer and actress. Born in Lakeland, Florida, and raised in New Jersey, she relocated to Los Angeles in 1991 for a career in the music business. After working as a backing vocalist for Al B ...

’ smooth sound. But when Coko’s flamethrower pipes cook the chocolaty-good hip-hop soul rhythms that drive ”Triflin”’ and ”I Ain’t Feeling You,” she’s not just a sister with a voice but with an attitude."

Background and recording

Composition and lyrics

Reception

Track listing

Charts

References

External links