Ginny Owens - 'Beautiful'

Beautiful shows us the side of Ginny Owens that loves R & B. Her third full-length release has a laid-back and soulful feel that seems to simply state "This is who I am ... and I am comfortable in my own skin."

If you've ever heard Ginny Owens sing or if you have had the pleasure of speaking to her, you wouldn't have automatically known that she's been blind since the age of two. She doesn't use her loss of sight as an excuse or as something that keeps her from writing or singing for God. Knowing this, I was surprised and pretty offended when one reviewer that I read actually suggested that the album would have been "cool" if she had written the songs in the context of her disability so we can all see how she perceives the world around her. Maybe it's just me, but I took that to mean that this individual felt like she should exploit her blindness since, hey, we all know how wonderful God is so give us the scoop on how you can manage to keep a smile on your face in a world that seems to look down on your blindness. I've talked to Ginny and can tell you that this is one lady who doesn't define herself by her vision or lack there-of. There is so much more to her. It's sad that in our world, there are some people in our world who never look past the obvious to see the beauty within. Look a little deeper at Ginny Owens and you'll see for yourself ... she's beautiful.

Ginny says: "To me, Beautiful feels like a comfortable pair of jeans - I'm conent and relaxed each time I wear it, and I like the way it looks on me. It reflects my lifelong musical influences and reveals some of my deepest thoughts and struggles...all the things I love about singing and songwriting wrapped together in one package. For describing this record, I've coined the phrase "old soul". While the record has a decidedly R&B flavor born out of years of listening to everything from Stevie Wonder to rap, its lyrics are very much about my maturing process. Many of the words and melodies are simple - not unlike my previous projects - but lots of them were born out of the more seasoned corners of my soul."

Beautiful is a wonderful blend of the many musical sides of Ginny Owens. The lyrics speak to your heart and you can almost feel your own pain, frustration, love and joy pouring out of your speakers in a way that you yourself couldn't put those feelings to words. The piano-driven ballad feel backs the words up in such a way that you're given a sense of peace throughout the album that makes the thunderstorm of emotions that it evokes not just bearable, but spiritual in a growth oriented way. Looking inside of ourselves at what we need to change and what we need to accept is a hard task, but Ginny's Beautiful helps it be do-able.