By Stephanie Caruso
Ashley Tisdale’s solo debut is a catchy effort that follows the paths previously established by tween queens Lindsay Lohan, Hilary Duff, and every other actress/singer/fragrance mogul out there today. For those of you who are still unaware, Tisdale played Sharpay Evans in the uber-successful Disney Channel movie musical extravaganza, High School Musical. The television wonder skyrocketed Tisdale’s claim to fame and alas, you have the album that’s been highly anticipated by middle school girls everywhere. Tisdale also stars in the popular Disney Channel show The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. Thus, she is a Disney Channel goddess.
But with great power comes great responsibility, and Tisdale is a role model who has to stick to role-model-appropriate lyrics. The most scandalous lyrics on the album are “Baby I can see us touching like that / Baby I can see us moving like that / Baby I can see us kissing like that”. And of course, there is the ever-present virginal song “Don’t Touch [The Zoom Song]”. On the surface, Headstrong may seem to be unpleasant at best. For most people above the age of thirteen it is, but anybody else who enjoyed High School Musical will like this perhaps less embarrassing sound.
As mentioned before, it’s catchy. It’s so catchy that you might find yourself humming her first single “He Said She Said” for no logical reason other than the lyric “She got everything you can’t pass it / so Jessica Alba fantastic / Instant classic boys like Woooo!” It’s a hybrid of many different types of music blended into one “hip” beat. This particular song, like the rest of the tracks on the album, is highly produced in order to cover a lack of vocal ability. However this technique has been widely used and can be expected of almost every Disney Channel star.
If you’re part of the rest of the population who wasn’t exactly ecstatic over the sugary-pop explosion of high school loveliness, Tisdale certainly isn’t for you. It’s an intense ride of happiness that even the most joyous person may have a hard time handling. In short: approach with caution if over that age of thirteen – and use extreme caution if you are male.
STARS: 2.5
