Album Review - “If It’s Meant To Be” by Chris Paris

What is it like to be a hopeless romantic and a R&B singer? 

Are your melodies captured under rain-soaked windows while your songs are written on tear-stained sheets of paper? 

Are your conversations marked by nostalgic memories with past lovers, wondering what could have been, or are they simply lovers looking to escape the dating lifestyle?

For Chris Paris, his project If It's Meant To Be captures this idea in its essence, as each song shows the singer as a dating-explorative artist pouring his emotions through pop-esque tracks, noting his success or lack thereof in the romance-sphere. 

Running just over 40 minutes, first-time listeners to Paris will see the artist as a songwriter capable of attacking the singular topic of relationship from every nuanced angle, an art comparable to Megan Thee Stallion's talent for depicting her derriere or that of Pusha-T to coke. On paper, one could see it as repetitive, but in execution, it's an achievement. 

As a project, content-wise, If It's Meant To Be arrives as a self-assured, heart-on-sleeve man placed amid a work-in-process dating world. Full of saying the quiet part out loud, ruminations from emotional openness led from his perspective over 14 songs. 

Fans will enjoy the project's production quality. Maybe it's Paris' innate ability to find star-quality instrumentals. However, this project is chalked with quality production that highlights the best of the singer, whether it's a piano-laden track like "The Night is Young" or an upbeat walking theme like "Roses." The beats on this project take the driver's seat, and that's far from a bad thing.

With only two features on the project, both from artist 1ne, you will have plenty of content from the singer to enjoy from all spectrums, like the low-paced reminiscent "Rosemary-Blues" or the intro "Charge it To The Game," which has Paris setting the tone for the remainder of the album. There's a mood and tone truly for everyone. Whether that's good or bad is up to you. 

If you have 40 minutes to yourself and want to enjoy some new-age R&B, check out the project here!