RMJ entry #6:

The music I've been waking up to in the past week is Jewel's latest CD, "0304", released Tuesday June 5, 2003. Jewel describes her new music style as "dance meets urban meets folk". Whatever it is, it's definitely different from her previous work. Most of the people I've spoken to about this album are not accepting it. To them, the change is too drastic. Granted it is true that this is a big change, but does that make it bad? Is it so pertinent for artists to stick to their image once they've established it? Why can't they stray a little to find more grounds for their expression? Shania has done it. So has Faith. And now Jewel is taking her whack.

My take on this: If you think you have a shot, go for it! There is no "one side" to things. There is no "one way" to doing things right. We live in a 3 dimensional world with the 4th dimension of time. To fit in such a world, we should be well-rounded. We should try different things from different angles. Who's to say the first thing we do right is THE one thing we'll EVER do right?

Having said that, I highly recommend this new album by Jewel. It's a refreshing digression from her old sound.

"Follow your heart, your intuition. It will lead you in the right direction."