Sign up for our free newsletter:

It's not often one artist has two recording careers. There's Jaci Velasquez the highly acclaimed Christian pop artist, and also Jaci Velasquez the Latin pop singing sensation. It's a notable distinction because Jaci's Latin career isn't based solely on Spanish-language versions of her Christian pop albums. They're completely new works, and though they touch upon Jaci's spirituality, they aren't as evangelistic as her Christian pop albums. This may explain why Jaci's finding crossover success in the Latin market. Her first Latin album, Llegar A Ti, earned her #1 radio play and top awards in the Latin music market. It's likely Jaci's Latin success will continue with her second Spanish-language release, Mi Corazòn (which means "My Heart").

Musically, the production on Mi Corazòn is top-notch. Not surprising considering the producers involved—Desmond Child (Ricky Martin), Emilio Estefan Jr. (Gloria's husband), Rudy Pe'rez (Luis Miguel), and Alejandro Ja'en. I'm not familiar with all the Latin pop artists in the music market, but this album sounds as good as anything Selena ever released, as well as anything else in this genre I've caught on the radio. It's no wonder Jaci has found a mainstream audience with her Spanish-language projects. I'd even go so far as to say that they're better productions than her Christian pop albums, which is saying a lot since they also sound great.

I never received a full translation of all the songs, but they are spiritually inspired and personal to Jaci's life, even though she didn't have much of a hand in writing them. The first single, "Como se cura una herida," is testimony to Jaci's perseverance through several life changes (including the recent separation of her parents). "Lo que nunca cambiaria" is a call for purity in our romantic relationships. "Bendito Amor" deals with rejecting things that are damaging to our lives. "Sin ti no puedo vivir" focuses our attention on God's love, which will last until the end of the world. There's also a Spanish version of "You Don't Miss a Thing" from her Crystal Clear album. For the most part, these songs don't specifically touch upon Christ's saving power, but they aren't incompatible with Christian beliefs either. Jaci's still committed to her Christian ministry through her other albums.

Jaci's Christian market fans likely will embrace Mi Corazón, even if they don't speak Spanish. However, I'm surprised that more effort hasn't been invested in merging Jaci's Spanish- and English-speaking fans. All of this album's lyrics are sung and written in Spanish, with no translations yet available to the public (not even on the Web site)—yet everything else in the CD booklet (production credits, copyright information, acknowledgments) is in English. Jaci's English-speaking fans would like this album, but undoubtedly they'd want to know what she's singing about! In turn, even though these albums are specially made for the Latin market, I would think the Spanish fans who are being introduced to Jaci through these albums would be curious to hear her other works. Word, Jaci's record label, could either re-release Jaci's previous Christian albums with newly recorded vocals, or else make Spanish lyrics available. Besides paying attention to both of Jaci's audiences, it also expands her ministerial outreach.

Regardless, Mi Corazòn is a very well made Latin pop album that will please both fans of the genre and of Jaci Velasquez. Between this album, last year's Crystal Clear album, and her soon-to-be-released Christmas album, Jaci Velasquez is one busy young lady!

Copyright © Christian Music Today. Click for reprint information.

Click here to view our music review archives.

Visit the artist pages for related interviews and reviews.

				Try an Issue of Today's Christian RISK-FREE! Name Street Address City/State/Zip E-mail Address No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. Click here for International orders. If you decide you want to keep Today's Christian coming, honor your invoice for just $17.95 and receive five more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The trial issues are yours to keep, regardless. Give Today's Christian as a gift Buy 1 gift subscription, get 1 FREE!