Photographer: Mike Ruiz.

Following a pair of vocal showcase albums that involved classy yet fun spins on the likes of Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band, Nina Simone, and Billy Strayhorn, Queen Latifah enlists producers Cool & Dre to help concoct PERSONA, a willfully schizophrenic set of pop-oriented material. As anyone familiar with her recent screen and studio work would expect, Latifah's shifts from character to character are not rocky. "What's the Plan" is an obvious Cheryl Lynn circa-"Encore" impersonation, albeit one streaked with Dre's vocal effect-driven gibberish. "Cue the Rain" works a rocking backdrop--not unlike a fist-pumping cut off a mid-'80s soundtrack--with quotes from Fleetwood Mac's "The Chain." One of the more contemporary tracks, the sleek and flirty "Take Me Away (With You)," features Marsha Ambrosius and is surprisingly effective. Just about all of it is enjoyable. Few vocalists who can sing and rap display such versatility on one album.

Billboard (p.44) - "[T]he highlight is 'Fast Car,' where Latifah and Missy Elliott channel the goofy exuberance of OutKast's 'Hey Ya!'"