It was ten years ago that we were introduced to R&B singer Keke Wyatt, who, at the tender age of eighteen, covered the René & Angela classic “MY FIRST LOVE” with R&B crooner Avant, which helped propel them both to success. But a lot has happened in the last decade, though.

In 2001, Keke released her certified gold debut album, Soul Sista, which was recorded in only two weeks. On Christmas Day 2001, she stabbed her husband and manager Rahmat Morton during a domestic dispute but was acquitted of second degree assault on March 25, 2002. By 2004, Keke had signed with Cash Money Records with plans of releasing an album in May 2005. But the album was shelved, and Keke signed with TVT Records prior to the label going bankrupt February 2008. She joined Shanachie Records last year, and today she’s releasing Who Knew?, the long-awaited follow-up to her debut.

“I’m sure that ya heard the rumors ’bout me. Word on the street is I’m that ‘B,’” Keke opens on the title track, one of the album’s finest with Keke commenting on an unexpected relationship. “WEAKEST” continues the sentiment only in a smooth, ballad form, and she also delivers a great rendition of Rachelle Ferrell’s “Peace on Earth” with the assistance of an acoustic guitar.

However, the rest of the album generally feels dated and stale, which isn’t completely Keke’s fault. The production team, which includes The Underdogs, L. Young, Dream Team and Troy Oliver, among others, is also at fault for offering up these tracks which sound like rejects from the 1990s albums of songstresses such as Faith Evans, Brandy and Deborah Cox, just to name a few. As long as it’s taken Keke to be in a position to be heard again through no choice of her own, though, you’ve gotta cut her a little slack because her voice still sounds good.

The one attempt at an updated sound (“Getting It”) fails miserably, though, sounding completely out of place on an album that is, for the most part, calm and subdued. While listeners can appreciate the absence of overused samples and overshadowing beats which would hinder Keke’s voice from being heard and distract from the generally smooth ballads, who knew Keke Wyatt would return only with material that sounds like something we heard years ago?

Preview the entire album here: http://www.amazon.com/Who-Knew/dp/B00363U0L2/ref=mb_oe_o

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