Ciara

Ciara - Ciara
Critic Score
Based on 12 reviews
2013 Ratings: #339 / 1115
User Score
Based on 112 ratings
2013 Rank: #361
Liked by 11 people
July 9, 2013 / Release Date
LP / Format
Epic / Label
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CRITIC REVIEWS

80
Tiny Mix Tapes

Songs like “Body Party” and the other best material on Ciara is an undeniable force of nature — the extract of pop itself, elemental and slippery like an invisible, omnipresent particle in the air.

80
AllMusic

The result isn't a muddled mess but another lean and focused set, despite the involvement of several writers and producers. 

80
SPIN

Heartfelt congratulations to Ciara, furthermore, for being pretty rad! 

80
FACT Magazine

Ciara is perhaps her most accurately realised work to date, slinking and strutting between, in and around the music with an enjoyable (if occasionally frustrating) malleability that has become the bedrock of her appeal.

80
The Guardian
Ciara has quietly built up a formidable discography, and this eponymous set maintains the high quality.
80
The Irish Times
When Ciara throws her heart and soul into the midst of Super Turnt Up, singing and rapping in turn, you know you're dealing with a real live one.
73
Pitchfork

Ciara also touches on just about every facet of her style to date, and while she’s a more versatile, accomplished singer than when she started, her appeal remains essentially unchanged.

70
PopMatters

The production, writing, singing, and overall packaging comes together to make ideal pop-R&B records. Unfortunately, inconsistency keeps Ciara from being a masterpiece.

70
Consequence of Sound

With Ciara, her most complete and shortest album yet, the Austin native is only working with the essential elements of her sound

60
Slant Magazine

As a mission statement from a newly independent R&B diva perpetually hovering at the fringe of career achievement, Ciara’s values are at best endearingly confused. As a collection of potential singles from an artist who should have more #1’s, it’s a modest, calculated effort.

58
A.V. Club

Though Ciara is a perfectly competent album, it’s the least interesting one she could have made given the winning hand she was dealt, and as she should know by now, winning hands only come around so often.

vivi
89

I really thought this album was from the mid 2000s, but it's from 2013! I also thought that the awesome Nicki Minaj/Ciara combo for the first track would be rated higher, but that isn't the case either.

I really, really like how this album opened, Nicki Minaj always uses her feature slots so well and she really makes the tracks she features on her own.

Ciara has a really nice voice that works very well on this album, and the production here is really good too. It has a fun and enjoyable sound ... read more

Vespertwink
78

Ngl, i love how Nicki always makes that the main artists on it sound like THE feats, that's how much she owns that shi up!
There's something about Ciara that, yes, you know she's from the more generic old school side of R&B Pop, but she just always leave a mark in her projects that is just, like, HERS. You recognize something is a Ciara song within just a few seconds. Alas, she has some of the catchiest hooks in the music scene tbh, basically a gift for drag performers since learning the ... read more

drumlineboogie
30

Her very soft and limited vocal range has always hindered her but on this album it makes some songs almost unlistenable with shrill-like runs and belts. Not to mention the lyrical content is awful and cringe-worthy (Super Turnt Up made me audibly cackle the entire 4 and a half minutes) and the production is outdated and boring... what happened to her?? She was so iconic now she's just a corny fad :/ not even TWO Nicki features could save their respective songs.

GI0
52

Eeeeehhhh

vivi
89

I really thought this album was from the mid 2000s, but it's from 2013! I also thought that the awesome Nicki Minaj/Ciara combo for the first track would be rated higher, but that isn't the case either.

I really, really like how this album opened, Nicki Minaj always uses her feature slots so well and she really makes the tracks she features on her own.

Ciara has a really nice voice that works very well on this album, and the production here is really good too. It has a fun and enjoyable sound ... read more

Vespertwink
78

Ngl, i love how Nicki always makes that the main artists on it sound like THE feats, that's how much she owns that shi up!
There's something about Ciara that, yes, you know she's from the more generic old school side of R&B Pop, but she just always leave a mark in her projects that is just, like, HERS. You recognize something is a Ciara song within just a few seconds. Alas, she has some of the catchiest hooks in the music scene tbh, basically a gift for drag performers since learning the ... read more

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Track List

1I'm Out
3:58
43
2Sophomore
3:44
46
3Body Party
3:54
81
4Keep On Lookin'
3:17
50
5Read My Lips
4:08
27
6Where You Go
3:44
feat. Future
83
7Super Turnt Up
4:28
58
8DUI
4:35
46
9Livin' It Up
3:45
55
10Overdose
3:47
89
11Body Party (Remix)
3:57
Bonus Track
feat. Future, B.o.B
77
Total Length: 43 minutes

Year End Lists

#39/The Guardian
#41/FACT Magazine
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Added on: July 2, 2013