You may not know Dionne Farris' name, but you've heard her voice. Hers were the soaring vocals that powered "Tennessee," the breakthrough hit by alternative rappers Arrested Development. Here Farris steps out on her own with a strong debut called Wild Seed-Wild Flower. She smoothly blends elements of hip-hop and alternative rock while positioning herself as a new kind of R&B divathe anti-Whitney. Farris has a lot more on her mind than "I Will Always Love You." On "Don't Ever Touch Me Again," she tackles child abuse, while on "Stop to Think," she rails against drug addiction. But Farris never sounds preachy, and she even manages to take a Beatles song and make it her own with a slow, funky version of "Blackbird." .--Jim DeRogatis
