Some artists just have a hard time staying afloat. Either they drown in the sheer volume of their success, or they scored a few big hits, made a couple albums, and then fell by the wayside as new artists started to make headway. Then there's those pesky record labels, often times an artist has a certain vision that doesn't fit what their label wants, so this results in a conflict that can take years to resolve. Today, I bring before you a handful of artists that have been absent from the music scene a little too long (if you ask me, anyway). They've promised new music is on the way, yet have not made good on it yet. This is most likely no fault of their own (or they're just taking their sweet ass time), but still, the question remains: will these artists ever release new music?
1. JoJo
Popular: 2004-2006
Last Album Released: "The High Road" (2006)
Last Hit Single: "Too Little Too Late" (2006)
If you can remember her, JoJo was the young starlet who broke out with "Leave (Get Out)" when she was only 13 years old. From that point, she became a palpable presence on the radio, and she starred in movies such as "Aquamarine" and "RV". After "Too Little Too Late" subsided sometime in 2007, fans were anxious to see where she was headed next. Well, that hope soon turned into wishful thinking, as JoJo began a monstrous feud with her label Blackground Entertainment, mostly on the direction for her new album. She couldn't even release another single until 2011's "Disaster". It was enough to get the ball rolling, and JoJo appeared in a face wash ad soon after, but it wasn't enough to actually get another record in stores. Ever since, she has scrapped the album she was working on for over five years and has also split from her label. She promised new music was coming sometime in 2013, but it never came to pass.
2. Michelle Branch
Popular: 2001-2004
Last Album Released: "Hotel Paper" (2003)
Last Hit Single: "Breathe" (2004)
Surely you must remember the young teenager who brought you such hits as "Everywhere" and "All You Wanted". Her unique blend of singer-songwriter and pop/rock music made her a favorite with critics and the public. She was able to follow up this success with "Hotel Paper" in 2003, though its singles didn't hit as hard as her previous album. She was featured on her second Santana collaboration, "Feeling You", soon after, and then she formed a country duo with friend Jessica Harp in 2006. Known as The Wreckers, they released on album in 2006, it launched a couple singles, but soon subsided. Since then, it's as if Michelle Branch has disappeared, as The Wreckers disbanded and she has yet to release another full-length record. She too was able to release a minor hit in 2010, "Loud Music", but it didn't generate enough buzz to mark a comeback. She also promised a new record in 2013, known as "West Coast Time", and she promised a return to pop/rock, but for reasons unknown, that record hasn't made it to press.
3. Enya
Popular: 1988-2008
Last Album Released: "And Winter Came" (2008)
Last Hit Single: "Only Time" (2001)
Ah yes, the mastress of contemporary feel-good music. Now, Enya is notorious for extended gaps between albums, however, those gaps have never exceeded five years. Now that it's 2014, a full six years have elapsed since her last record, which is kind of worrisome. Like Michelle, Enya has been very quiet lately, having her management drop the hint of a new album sometime in 2010, but has since given no update on any new music what-so-ever. I think it's because I adore her music so much, that I am on the edge of my seat for when she finally does drop a new album. I mean really, no one makes music as good as she does.
4. Missy Elliot
Popular: 1997-2005
Last Album Released: "The Cookbook" (2005)
Last Hit Single: "Lose Control" (2005)
Yeah that's right, I like me some Missy Elliot, the hip-hop heavyweight that broke barriers in the late-90s. She and Timbaland produced several well-sound, well-written, and well-organized records that all went platinum in the US, and she released some ground-breaking music videos and singles. Her career was on fire until the mid-2000s, when "The Cookbook" eventually cooled down, and she was struck with the misfortune of Graves disease. Due to this, she took some time off from music to focus on her health. However, in 2011 she started to start the talk of a new record, called "Block Party". She talked about it for while actually, until 2013, then she disappeared like the rest of the artists I've mentioned. Neither she nor her management have given any tips of a new album, so we're left to wonder if it will ever materialize.
5. Shania Twain
Popular: 1995-2003
Last Album Released: "Up!" (2002)
Last Hit Single: "Forever and For Always" (2003)
Ahhhhhhhh!! I love this woman! Say what you want about her, but I think she's the bomb-diggity! And in all honesty, it's been waaaaay too damn long since she's released an album of new material, it's time for her to return with the big, country-pop that she made ubiquitous in the late-90s. She did once talk about setting up a new record, but that was all the way back in 2008 or so. Nobody in her team has commented on the possibility of a new album since July 2013, and Shania has been an obscure figure in pop culture since her greatest hits compilation in 2004. I mean, she can always come back with new music, No Doubt waited 11 years to drop another album and it was actually quite good! Please come back Shania!
Well, that's all for today, feel free to let me the know the artist you want to make a come back!
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