True Romance
Studio album by
Estelle
ReleasedFebruary 17, 2015
GenreR&B[1]
Length44:55
LabelEstablished 1980 Records
ProducerKibwe "12Keyz" Luke, Best Kept Secret, Darhyl "Hey DJ" Camper Jr., D. Smith, Ivan Barias, Josiah Bell, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, Johnny Black, Keith Harris, Myles William, Sharif "Reefa" Slater, Soundwavve
Estelle chronology
All of Me
(2012)		 True Romance
(2015)		 Lovers Rock
(2018)
Singles from True Romance
  1. "Make Her Say (Beat It Up)"
    Released: February 17, 2014
  2. "Conqueror"
    Released: July 22, 2014

True Romance is the fourth studio album by British rapper and singer Estelle. The album was released on February 17, 2015, by Established 1980 Records. The album was supported by the singles "Make Her Say (Beat It Up)" and "Conqueror".

The album's sleeve was designed by Rebecca Sugar, creator of the animated series Steven Universe in which Estelle provided the voice of the character Garnet.

Singles

The first single, "Make Her Say (Beat It Up)", was released on February 18, 2014.[2] On April 15, 2014, the music video was released with a Clear Version of the song.[3]

The album's second single "Conqueror" was released on July 22, 2014.[4] The track was featured in the 2014 film Addicted. A version of the song was recorded alongside Jussie Smollett for the 2015 TV series Empire, refuelling sales of the single (peaking at No. 42 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 15 on R&B) and making it her biggest US hit since her Grammy-winning "American Boy". On July 21, 2014, the music video was released.[5]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic64/100[6]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[7]
Consequence of SoundC−[8]
New York Daily News[9]
Pitchfork Media6.9/10[10]
Rolling Stone[11]
Slant Magazine[1]

True Romance received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from critics, the album received an average score of 64, which indicates "generally favorable reviews", based on 9 reviews.[6] Andy Kellman of AllMusic said, "Patched together and seemingly out-of-character as it is, the singer's fourth album does have more going for it than her third one did."[7] Pat Levy of Consequence of Sound said, "With her fourth album, British singer/rapper Estelle postures as a Beyoncé-type figure and fails to achieve comparable results. Clunky songwriting and mediocre lyrics sink an album full of strong production choices and prove that Estelle is unlikely to claim anything more than a spot as the JV Bey. True Romance isn’t going to help Estelle’s quest to remove herself from the one-hit wonder category (and “American Boy” sure was a hit). In all likelihood, it will further separate her from the pop stardom she’s seeking."[8] Sam C. Mac of Slant Magazine said, "Singing big string-laden power ballads, flexing her often-underutilized rap cadence over patient house grooves, and unapologetically indulging her distinctive genre tastes, True Romance largely proves that Estelle's talents were being too encumbered by the demands of record execs and producer John Legend, delivering a fleet 45 minutes of music that sounds more true to her West London upbringing."[1]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Time After Time"Estelle SwarayKeith Harris3:49
2."Conqueror"
  • Sharif "Reefa" Slater
  • Johnny Black
4:27
3."Something Good / Devotion (Passion Interlude)"
  • Swaray
  • D. Smith /
TS Desandies		D. Smith / Soundwavve6:10
4."Make Her Say (Beat It Up)"
  • Swaray
  • Smith
Smith2:38
5."Time Share (Suite 509)"
  • Swaray
  • Janelle Kroll
  • Sash Blu
  • J. Richardson
4:50
6."The Same"
  • Swaray
  • Angélique Cinélu
Harris4:23
7."Fight for It"
  • Swaray
  • Smith
Smith4:01
8."Silly Girls"
  • Swaray
  • Samuel Dew
J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League3:26
9."Gotcha Love"SwarayDarhyl "Hey DJ" Camper Jr.3:25
10."She Will Love"
  • Swaray
  • King
Reefa3:40
11."All That Matters"SwarayJosiah Bell4:06
Total length:44:55
True Romance — iTunes Store bonus track[12]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
12."Not Sure"
  • Swaray
  • Luke
  • Moraites
  • Slater
  • Myles William
  • Kibwe "12Keyz" Luke
  • Reefa
4:07
Notes
  • ^[a] signifies an additional producer
  • "Silly Girls" contains a sample of "I Don't Want to Play Around" by Ace Spectrum, written by Ed Zant and Aubrey Johnson

Charts

Chart (2015) Peak
position
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[13] 31

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Estelle: True Romance". Slant Magazine. 13 February 2015. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  2. ↑ "Make Her Say (Beat It Up) [Explicit] by Estelle on Amazon Music". Amazon. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  3. ↑ "Video: Estelle – 'Make Her Say (Beat It Up)'". Rap-Up. 15 April 2014. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  4. ↑ "Conqueror by Estelle on Amazon Music". Amazon. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  5. ↑ "Video: Estelle – 'Conqueror'". Rap-Up. 21 July 2014. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  6. 1 2 "True Romance by Estelle Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  7. 1 2 Andy Kellman. "True Romance - Estelle | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  8. 1 2 Flynn, Katherine (12 February 2015). "Estelle – True Romance". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  9. ↑ "'True Romance': Music review". NY Daily News. 13 February 2015. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
  10. ↑ Molly Beauchemin (3 March 2015). "Estelle: True Romance Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  11. ↑ Arnold, Chuck (17 February 2015). "True Romance". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  12. ↑ "iTunes - Music - True Romance by Estelle". iTunes Store (United Kingdom).
  13. ↑ "Estelle Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
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