It's Who You Are That's Important, Jessie - #40 Jessie J - Who Are You

Hype. It's a funny old thing. It can mean that an act can rocket into the charts with almost no justification, or, like in some cases, it can make a waiting audience sceptical before anything even happens. Thankfully, despite all of the hype, awards and other such stuff, Jessie J has justified all of the publicity, and delivered what is actually a very good album.

I should start by saying that this isn't what I expected it to be at all. Having heard Do It Like a Dude, I expected a fully-blown R&B album here, full of attitude. That didn't sound like anything that would interest me in the slightest. To be honest, the album cover doesn't really do much to dispel that thought.

However, you might be surprised to learn that Jessie actually has an excellent voice. This becomes apparent on the acoustic tracks on here (maybe I've got the bonus edition) – and hearing her live is fascinating. Big White Room is my case in point. Check it out with this link. Would you have expected that? Compared to the Do It Like a Dude, there is a lot of beauty in her voice, and a confidence that justifies that afore-mentioned hype.

When you take into account that she came top in the BBC Sound of 2011 poll, ahead of acts like the Vaccines, James Blake, Warpaint and the magnificent Anna Calvi, that's quite a reputation to fulfill. The thing is, Jessie seems more than capable of filling the huge boots that have been placed in her path.

The comment about her voice doesn't mean that there aren't R&B songs on here. Now I won't even start to pretend to being an expert on the subject, but I can hear why they would be popular (well, they might need a little editing to take over Radio 1). It's that attitude though, and Jessie's 'couldn't give a fuck' persona that makes her so likeable. Coming across like that can go one of two ways really, people will pick up on your confidence and admire you for it, or will take an instant dislike to an seemingly ignorant person. It would be intriguing to see her Twitter feed, as I would put a fairly confident bet on it being a combination of the two. Fans declaring their love, and 'haters', as we seem to call them these days, abusing her for absolutely no reason. For the record Jessie, if you do get to read this by some miraculous coincidence, I really enjoy your music, more than I ever thought I would.

So, highlights? Big White Room as I've already mentioned, and for my money, Who's Laughing Now, which sees Jessie 'sticking it' to all the people that slagged her off when she was younger, then came rushing back as soon as she became famous. It might not be a wholly original idea, but it's got enough in it to keep it fresh, and parts are also pretty funny.

Do It Like a Dude also raises a smile. I'll have to admit, the first time I saw the video, I only noticed in the background somewhere, and didn't really realise that she was taking the piss. Looking back, I'm obviously a bit of a tool. It's catchy as hell (I've been humming it to myself pretty much all day), and it really is hard not to like the lyrics if you listen to them properly. That confidence I was talking about? Never been more apparent than here.

I think that's probably enough from me, I do think you should go and give Jessie J a go, no matter what you think of her before you actually give her a chance. Oh, and did I mention, she's pretty fine too.

Another of my favourite albums tomorrow, stop by and take a look?

For now, if you didn't mind this, then please feel free to pass it on... Or check out one of the older entries down the right hand side. There's 39 more in there.

See ya's later.