As Ciara continues to work on her fourth studio album (due May / June), a new cut from the record’s recording sessions has surfaced in the form of ‘I’m Up In The Bank’. Written and produced by The-Dream and Tricky Stewart, the song sees the 24 year old hit back at the critics, who have – in truth – been rather merciless towards her since her last LP ‘Fantasy Ride’ failed to ignite the charts in the way she and her label had hoped.

Is it any good, though?

Well the track does a great job of re-engaging Ms. Harris with her core Urban audience and exudes much in the way of swagger. However, I’m gonna need something with a bit more ‘umph’ to heighten my anticipation levels for her new record – which are already quite high, considering the fact I really enjoyed ‘Fantasy Ride’.

Hit or Miss?

R&B star Ciara rocked the red carpet at Mariah Carey‘s official End of Tour Party at Las Vegas hotspot Haze yesterday. Ms. Harris is looking consistently on-point these days. Gotta love it!

Peep more pics of CiCi and MiMi below:

Your thoughts?

R&B star Ciara rocked the stage at the Arise Magazine Fashion Week After-Party at the Plaza Hotel in New York last night. The 24 year old journeyed back to her older hits including ‘Like A Boy’, and ‘Goodies’, as well as newer cut ‘High Price’ from her 2009 ‘Fantasy Ride’ LP. Check it out above….

As ever, Cici nailed it! Great performance.

Your thoughts?

Ciara hit the stage at one the New York Fashion Week’s most popular events last evening. The sexy siren performed a collection of her biggest hits for the guests at the ARISE magazine ‘African Collective – Part III’ runway show after-party at the The Plaza in New York City. Peep below for more images of Ciara doing some ‘work’:

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As Ludacris readies the release of his new LP ‘Battle of the Sexes’ (due March 9th), a new Ciara-assisted remix for his latest single ‘How Low Can You Go’ has surfaced. Set to feature on Luda’s album, the remix goes hard! Ciara turns in a hotter than hot verse m- profanity and all (Ms. Harris excels on up-tempo cuts in this vein), which makes for the already decent track to be that much better. Good stuff.

Randomness: Am I the only one feeling when Ciara hops on tracks like this as well as the poppier cuts? I ask as I consistently hear folk slamming her for ditching her ‘roots’. Yet the last time I checked Crunk was dead. As the success of many before have shown, there is nothing wrong with keeping elements of what folk know you for (which she has), yet crossing over at the same time. I mean do people really think Beyonce, for example, would be ‘Beyonce – the megastar’ if she carried on singing a certain brand of R&B ala ‘Bills Bills Bills’ and ‘Say My Name’. Artistic growth is all about trying new things and expanding your reach….right?

Hit or Miss?

Peep chart rivals Ciara and Rihanna chatting it up at Clive Davis’ Pre-Grammy Party a few hours ago. Looks like an interesting convo, right? In the interest of fun….

Caption This!

Sexy songstresses Ciara and Christina Aguilera was spotted at Tricky Stewart’s pre-Grammy party at Wonderland in Los Angeles. Stewart offered productions to both of singers’ upcoming albums. Check out more images below:

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Ciara continues to make her mark on Paris’ Fashion Week. Givenchy held a cocktail reception in the French capital last night honouring the ‘Promise’ singer, who was dressed from head-to-toe in a dazzling ensemble from fashion house.

Kanye West and long-time girlfriend Amber Rose were also in attendance. Peep more pictures below…

Your thoughts?

R&B star Ciara was the talk of the town in Paris today – for both good and not so good reasons. The ‘Love Sex Magic’ singer wowed onlookers at the Givenchy haute couture fashion show on one of the fashion houses ensembles.

However, photographers were reportedly incensed that  the 24 year old turned up some 40 minutes late, as she had been touted as the main attracted to shoot because of what she’d be wearing – and the fact no reason was given for her late arrival. Nonetheless, Ms. Harris did apologise on her way in.

In all honesty, though, who cares about a late arrival when she looked this good. Peep more pics below!

Your thoughts?

Since her debut on the Billboard charts in 2004, Ciara has demonstrated tremendous growth as an artist. As one of the leading forces in dance, she has transcended beyond the butt-popping gyrations of her early career to become one of the most technically skilled performers in music today. In fact, Ciara’s precision is so acute that many consider her to be as good as or even better than modern day Janet Jackson.

Nevertheless, despite this improvement in her music and choreography, Ciara has yet to match the success of her first album, ‘Goodies’, which has sold over 3 million copies in the US alone. Indeed, her latest album, ‘Fantasy Ride’, while generating a top 10 hit with ‘Love Sex Magic (Ft. Justin Timberlake)’, has only managed to sell just over 300k units. This begs the question: has the industry been fair to Ciara?

It is no secret that Ciara’s voice is quite limited in many ways. However, she compensates for this lack vocal prowess  by outperforming almost all of her contemporaries on the dance floor. Throughout 2009, she delivered high energy performances and displayed outstanding skill that easily placed her in a completely different league from her peers, including Britney Spears and Usher. Yet Ciara has not received the level of recognition that her talents deserve, regardless of the fact that her routines were definitely more difficult than that of ‘Single Ladies’.

On the musical front, Ciara has been out-paced by artists such as Rihanna, who are known more for their beauty and fashion sense than actual talent. Interestingly, there is no doubt that Ciara is just as appealing as Rihanna in every sense of the word but many argue that because of the latter’s unwavering label support and funding, Ciara has not managed to access as wide a market. It seems that Ciara’s success has been unjustifiably limited.

Thus, it can be said that Ciara has not achieved a level of success that matches her abilities. While artists like Rihanna and Ke$ha continue to dominate the Pop charts, she finds herself struggling to make an impact. Nonetheless, judging by her discipline and drive to succeed, the old saying seems to be true: ‘you just can’t keep a good woman down’.

Do you think that the industry has been fair to

Ciara?

According to reports, R&B star Ciara has secured a lucrative endorsement deal with Adidas. The singer, who is currently hard at work on her 4th studio album, joins other high-profile names including David Beckham to front the Adidas Originals 2010 global marketing campaign. As part of the deal, the 24 year old will serve as a spokesperson in the campaign’s TV commercials worldwide, as well as feature as a model in the print ads for the ladies line.

The Adidas deal adds to the ever-growing list of sponsors/endorsements Ms. Harris has under her belt, which as at writing include Verizon, DoSomething.org, Express (Skinny) Jeans and fashion designers Givenchy and Pucci.{Source}

More power to her!

Your thoughts?

Fresh off the heels of her recent controversy with the Pussycat Dolls, Melody Thornton has found herself embroiled in yet another public feud. The singer has accused fellow performer Ciara of copying her style in her recent photoshoot in L’Officiel Magazine. Peep her comments from her Twitter about the shots below:

Although Thornton has left the tweet on the website, she issued the following minor retraction:

Yet another artist displaying of a lack of wisdom and media savvy. Rather than focusing on preparing for what could be the start of her solo career, Thornton has already started burning bridges before she has even gotten the chance to cross them. As an act emerging from a group that is but a shell of what it used to be, she is going to have a hard time positioning herself as a force on the charts, and this behaviour is not going to support her cause.

Thoughts?