There are not many guys that I know that wouldn't wife up good ole "Jilly from Philly." And for good reason. Extraordinary singing abilities aside, her warm and humble persona combined with her smile makes her as irresistible as Donald Trump and a paycheck. This is probably why even though it's been about three years since her last studio recording; she still remained busy doing side work, which makes up Collaborations.

From her damn-near perfect hook on Lupe Fiasco's Daydreamin' to blessing a Kirk Franklin gospel-influenced track named Kingdom Come, this CD acts more as a dress rehearsal to what we should expect for her next effort. Proving that she's probably one of the most diverse vocalists in music today, effortlessly shifting from soul, rap, gospel and jazz only leaves me more frustrated that it's not her original material on the album.

One of the few perks to the album is finally getting my hands on material that I wouldn't have purchased otherwise, like the Wild, Wild, West soundtrack contribution with her and Common on 8 Minutes to Sunrise, not to mention The Rain off of one of Will Smith's albums. (Side note: Common was actually credited as being a ghostwriter for the song).

Collaborations obviously seems like a release used to buy some time for Hidden Beach before her next solo offering is suppose to come out later this year. Until then I guess we will have to go back to her other albums that assisted in increasing the population for the past seven years and be satisfied. Jill, your public awaits.