No Boys Allowed
by Keri Hilson
Metascore
54

Mixed or average reviews - based on 13 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 13
  3. Negative: 0 out of 13
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  1. BBC Music
    Jan 3, 2011
    80
    Warm and confident throughout her second album, Hilson is becoming hard to ignore.
  2. Entertainment Weekly
    Jan 3, 2011
    67
    This zigzagging sophomore disc, No Boys Allowed, suggests she's not quite sure where to go next.
  3. The Telegraph (UK)
    Jan 27, 2011
    60
    There are a few tasty future-pop moments, but mainly it's predictable r&b, weighed down with tiresome, ersatz sexiness.
  5. NOW Magazine
    Jan 18, 2011
    60
    Impressive, then, that this boy-army, one-girl team was able to pull off a contemporary R&B album so feminine, breezy and thankfully low on ballads.
  6. Boston Globe
    Jan 3, 2011
    60
    Hilson loses focus with hookless songs the busy production can't save, while the MCs largely shoot blanks.
  7. The New York Times
    Dec 21, 2010
    60
    Ms. Hilson's own records aren't tipping toward bona fide dance music as much as Rihanna's, and don't yet have their audience-strafing sweep. But a few songs here are good enough to stop the overthinking comparisons
  8. Rolling Stone
    Jan 19, 2011
    50
    Her second album is hit-or-miss, with failed attempts at pop crossover (the Timbaland collabo "Breaking Point") and sub-Rihanna reggae moves. Still, the high points are worth digging out.
  9. Dot Music
    Jan 18, 2011
    50
    The mixed messages are infuriating, and the complete lack of soul or identity perplexing.
  10. AllMusic
    Dec 21, 2010
    50
    Her follow-up isn't merely eager to stand out but rather desperate, as if the studios in which it was recorded contained a clock counting down to the point of failure, the moment when Hilson would no longer stand a chance of being a ubiquitous, multi-platinum superstar.
  11. Los Angeles Times
    Dec 21, 2010
    50
    In glimpses it reaches that goal--like in maybe half of the sticky and finessed "Breaking Point"--but it's undone by the album's many other contradictory messages.
  12. Slant Magazine
    Dec 21, 2010
    50
    Keri is so very...what? It sounds like she's making a move at Chaka-Whitney "every woman" territory, only with a few key differences.
  13. HipHopDX
    Jan 13, 2011
    40
    No Boys Allowed doesn't match its polished predecessor success a whole project. The songwriting feels more in line with her R&B/Pop peers than anything else.
  14. The Guardian
    Jan 6, 2011
    40
    Though Hilson sings like a sweet-voiced dream throughout, No Boys Allowed is muddled and devoid of the gutsiness the title leads us to expect.

User Reviews

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User Score
8.2

Universal acclaim- based on 79 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 64 out of 79
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 79
  3. Negative: 8 out of 79
  1. kaydenxmcg
    Apr 21, 2011
    3
    This album is a huge letdown compared to her debut "In A Perfect World...". A lot of the material in the album sounds a lot like what RihannaThis album is a huge letdown compared to her debut "In A Perfect World...". A lot of the material in the album sounds a lot like what Rihanna has already done. Also, the cohesion between each song is very poorly linked. The only good songs, in my opinion, are "Pretty Girl Rock", and "One Night Stand". "Lose Control", in my opinion, is a poor remake of Rihanna's "What's My Name". I was shocked when listened to "The Way You Love Me". It is very oversexed, and her chanting "F*** me, f*** me" sounds very strange.… Full Review »
  2. RhysHilson
    Dec 26, 2010
    10
    This album may not be the most refined, but it soared well beyond my own expectations. It may not hold theme in the terms of sound, butThis album may not be the most refined, but it soared well beyond my own expectations. It may not hold theme in the terms of sound, but lyrically, although it is not innovative, it contains within it the angst of a girl scorned by love, clearly more than once, but with a glimpse of hope and an overtone of sexuality.
    The set opens with "Buyou", a brash, brassy album opener with pace-along, interchanging production provided by Boi-1da and co. The blatant "I have arrived" opener is assisted by J. Cole, who's rap delivery focuses on swanning in on the scorned females burned by their "broke, broke boys". Tracks 2 & 3, "Pretty Girl Rock" and "The Way Ya Love Me", featuring Rick Ross, move from the perspective of woman to man, instead focusing on the female perspective. "Pretty Girl Rock" is a standard sing-a-long female anthem, perhaps being interpretable to some as a bragging show by Hilson. The outlandish and loud "The Way Ya Love Me" can be hard to listen to due to the sheer tonality and lyrics of the track, and is, for me, the worst track of the set. Track 4, "Bahm Bahm..." is a throwaway number, with Hilson acting as a Rihanna-type figure, the track laced with island flavor. Tracks 5 onward act as the album's main "Hoora" however, opening with the swooning R&B gropefest "One Night Stand". A ridiculously sexy, yet slightly trashy duet with Chris Brown, the two singers harmonise and ad-lib throughout the song, there high pitched tones coursing through the Bereal produced track. A highlight of the song, and album itself is the spoken seduction during the conclusion of the song by Brown, acting as a segue into the sixth track, an odd song(s) produced by StarGate, with additional star power thrown in by rapper Nelly. The obvious attempt at Rihanna success is heard through the song (and producers), but the song contains a catchiness and vocal ability that is so very Keri Hilson, and the immediate close to the track and open of ballad outro "Let Me Down", a 2 minute section of the song with light beatboxing adds a new-found interest in the album itself, as a glint of originality is added in place of the feeling that Hilson is trying to be someone she's not. This interest is continued into "Toy Soldier", a Danja produced track racked with disappointment to an aggressive male counterpart. The song is a standout of the set, with a club beat, but bassline, instrumentation and vocal of a ballad, making this song an interesting piece as itself. Tracks 8 & 9, single "Breaking Point" and "Beautiful Mistake", are the only 2 Timbaland productions of the standard set, and are both general R&B tracks, with "Beautiful Mistake" being a clear winner of these 2 tracks, not by the light-hearted production, but by the lyrical work of a woman seeing error in pursuing a romantic relationship with a previous friend. Track 10 - "Gimme What I Want", a certified club banger is an unprecedented lashing of Hip-Hop fun, an idea almost left barren by the album. "All the Boys", the closing cut from the standard album, is an ode to a lover, with a ripe vocal and acoustic tenderness that acts as a perfect closing to the album. If any of the other editions are purchased, there are still many more songs to enjoy, however.The standout of these is "Fearless", the iTunes bonus track, a stomping proclamation of catchiness and bravery.
    Overall, this album to me is a flawless set of self doubt, balanced by the strength of a scorned but hopeful female.    … Full Review »
  3. BWETMatangi
    Aug 26, 2013
    5
    "No Boys Allowed" isn't all that, but it definitely isn't bad. The best songs are "Pretty Girl Rock", "Bahm Bahm"and the "Pretty Girl Rock""No Boys Allowed" isn't all that, but it definitely isn't bad. The best songs are "Pretty Girl Rock", "Bahm Bahm"and the "Pretty Girl Rock" remix featuring Kanye West.… Full Review »
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