Jessie J's 'Sweet Talker' - Will It Succeed In America?

Its only been a few years since UK pop songstress Jessie J broke U.S. ground with her hit single, 'Domino,' and it felt like she would be one of those artists that would never fade away. She hasn't exactly disappeared, but her newest record, Sweet Talker, could make or break the relevance she has in America.

'Domino,' which was released in 2011 and peaked at number six on the Billboard 200 chart, was pop gold, and it appeared as if she was on her way to being a household name. However, another single never charted, and the buzz for her debut record, Who Are You, eventually fizzled out. It's alright though - there's always the second album, right? Well, not really.

While Jessie J worked hard to create and put out her second album, Alive, back in 2013, the American fans were left in the dark for it. It was only released in the UK and was decently received - it was certified Gold, reached number three on the album charts, and lead single, 'Wild,' got to number five. It's not like it was a total failure, so why the refusal to release it in America? Turns out, the label didn't believe it would perform well in America, so there were plans to put out Alive in the U.S. with some additional tracks produced by Pharrell. The re-release scheduled to drop in 2014 obviously never happened. Instead, Jessie J was back at it in the studio for album number three.

More: Jessie J's 'Bang Bang' a summer playlist staple

This was kind of a big deal now. After crushing the hearts of U.S. fans when they were promised Alive on their home turf, the third record had to be perfect. Luckily, Jessie J got off to an epic start with the release of 'Bang Bang,' the monster song of the summer featuring Nicki Minaj and Ariana Grande. The track was huge worldwide, and in the U.S., it reached number three - officially surpassing the success of 'Domino.' Naturally, it's included on her third record Sweet Talker, and it had to've been the song that her label was looking for when she was making Alive.

Next page: Will 'Sweet Talker' do well in America?

But now that her single has done some damage, it's time for Sweet Talker to do the same. Does the album have what it takes to be successful in the U.S. and maybe spawn another 'Bang Bang'? Released this week, Sweet Talker is 12 tracks full of the Jessie J pop from her first records mixed with a little new, too. The critics are pretty into it, as well. Entertainment Weekly gave the album a B rating, but Slant Magazine was a little more harsh, giving it two and a half stars out of five. Slant spoke the minds of any naysayers for Sweet Talker, saying, "If all Jessie's label wanted was a few bangers, they could have saved themselves some time and money by tacking them onto a repackaged version of Alive and calling it a day."

It's harsh, and it makes sense if Sweet Talker really isn't good enough to standalone as its own LP, but it totally does. Songs like 'Keep Us Together' and 'Masterpiece' are bound to be radio hits, while 'Personal' is one of the best vocal performances we've heard from Jessie J yet. The fatal flaw of Sweet Talker resides in the fact that the album's biggest track is only on the deluxe edition - 'Strip' may as well be 'Domino's little sister, and it wouldn't be a surprise to see the label pull a 'Super Bass' and release the song as a single anyway - similarly to what they did with Minaj's deluxe edition-only track a few years back.

More: Listen to Jessie J's new song, 'Ain't Been Done'

The odds a little against Jessie J here, because despite the fact that she had a huge single in 'Bang Bang,' it doesn't mean that it'll sell records, and Minaj and Grande also aren't on the rest of the 11 songs. However, Sweet Talker has the meat to it that Alive didn't when it comes to what should appeal in America, and it should only be a matter of time until we see the rest of the singles sweet talk their way onto the Billboard charts.