Off The Record (studio album) by Ember (US)

of course, courtney stodden's maelstromic life has been fascinating ever since she made headlines when she married 51 year old actor doug hutchison at the tender age of 16 (although she somehow looked like she was in her late 20s), so you can see how a confessional full-length album like this would be riveting (akin to the interest in the masterpiece "my teenage dream ended" by farrah abraham). before that, it was clear her parents were grooming her for a glitzy hollywood success story, from her entry in the miss teen USA washington pageant to her suggestive music videos made when she was just 14/15 ("car candy", "don't put it on me" to name a few) , culminating in them essentially signing off their daughter to a D-list actor (who happened to be a few years older than courtney's father) - did you know a 16 year old can get married in the state of nevada with parental consent? that's the same with the majority of US states.... anyway, fast-forward 8 years and here we are, courtney's now 24 years old and she desperately wanted to let go of her name and all that came with it. and so, ember was born.

so what about the music ? the record may drawback on melancholic yet unoriginal alt R&B / trap production (that although does feel very "2018", isn't that impressive), however the lyrical content really makes this record and provides highly engaging insight into her life over the past eight years, from her woes with former hubby hutchison to her sexual assault at 19 (the song "me too" is extremely frank about it). overall, "off the record" is well executed and it sounds like something that courtney needed to get off her chest. it doesn't matter how many people bother to listen to it, the important thing is that it's out there . what matters now is her mental and physical health - i just hope things look a bit brighter for courtney after the rollercoaster that has been this past decade.