"If You Feel It" by Denise Lopez

Song#:  3716

Date:  11/12/1988

Debut:  96

Peak:  94

Weeks:  3

Genre:  Latin Freestyle, Dance-Pop

Pop Bits:  After a few attempts to get a career kicked off, this Queens, NY, native finally got a break when her first single for A&M Records, "Sayin' Sorry (Don't Make It Right)," got to #6 Dance while cracking the Pop Top 40 (#31). The good performance of the song gave Lopez the opportunity to record her debut album Truth in Disguise. Included on the LP was a song she had previously recorded for RCA Records "If You Feel It." That track had been released back in '87 by RCA, but it could only get to #35 Dance. Feeling that the song still had some life left to it, A&M decided to do new remixes of the track and issue it out as the next single from Lopez's album. It would do a little bit better the second time around, but not by much. It would get to #22 Dance while scraping the bottom of the Pop chart for a minor few weeks. A third single, "Too Much, Too Late," would get to #21 Dance, but miss the Pop chart. The album would end up peaking at a low #184.

ReduxReview:  Just like "Sayin' Sorry (Don't Make It Right)," this is a nicely done freestyle track that was typical for the day. It had hooks, Lopez sounded good, and the production was tight and professional. I actually like it just a bit better than "Sayin' Sorry," but it still wasn't a song that was going to push through the clutter and come out in the Top 10. It just wasn't all that memorable. Still, it was a nice freestyle tune and a fun listen.

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  Double Shot!  1) A&M gave Lopez a second shot and in 1990 she recorded her second album Every Dog Has Her Day. Its first single, "Don't You Wanna Be Mine," would only make a short appearance on the Pop chart peaking at #86. With that failed single, the album didn't chart and that seemed to have brought an end to Lopez's days at A&M. Save for a guest appearance on a '93 single by Status Control titled "Ain't You Happy (With What You Got)," it seems Lopez left the music biz after her two albums.  2) While virtually unknown in the US, there is another famous singer by the name of Denise Lopez. Originally from Mexico City, Mexico, the other Denise Lopez would later relocate to Sweden and would begin in the music business as a backup singer/dancer. That led to a contract with Columbia Records in Sweden and in 1995 she issued out a debut album under her nickname DeDe titled TBA (Totally Bombastic Anecdotes). It was successful with her single "Party" reaching #8 in Sweden. She also gained a large following in Japan. A few more albums would follow including later ones under her given name of Denise Lopez or by DeDe Lopez. She would grab a #2 hit in Sweden in 2007 with "Turn You On," which was a collaboration with former Fugee member Pras Michel.

_________________________________________________________________________________