Philly Spirit

By JOHN JURGENSEN

Jazmine Sullivan diligently followed the roadmap for success in pop music. As a young girl she sang gospel in church; competed in talent shows; learned from local Philadelphia success stories like Jill Scott; acquired a mentor in rapper Missy Elliott; and signed to a major record label at age 16.

Retna Ltd.

Jazmine Sullivan

That's when Ms. Sullivan's young career went off the road. Instead of pushing her as a pop starlet, Jive Records dropped the singer without releasing a record. "I was a baby. I wasn't an artist," Ms. Sullivan recalls. At 18 years old, she began a tough two years of learning how to write her own music. "Fearless," the debut album that Ms. Sullivan wrote and executive-produced, is No. 1 on the Billboard R&B albums chart. Next week, Ms. Sullivan begins a concert tour with soul singer Maxwell.

On her new album, the 21-year-old singer pours her full-bodied tenor into various stylistic molds. Ms. Sullivan's music echoes both Lauryn Hill and Alicia Keys on "Need U Bad," which rides a reggae pulse and breaks into cascading R&B choruses. Other tracks feature retro touches, the stamp of producer Salaam Remi, who has also worked with the British singer Amy Winehouse. For example, "Bust Your Windows" has creeping strings and a subtle Motown swing. It's an indignant song about payback for a broken heart.

Anger creeps into other songs, too, including "Call Me Guilty," sung as someone who fights back against domestic abuse. Ms. Sullivan says the turbulence of her career informed the music she wrote. "I didn't want to be the victim on my album, or in life," she says.

Write to John Jurgensen at john.jurgensen@wsj.com