2NE1's lead vocalist Park Bom first relished in the spotlight as a solo artist back in 2009 when she debuted her first hit single, "You & I". Produced by YG Entertainment's in-house beat maker, Teddy, who has been responsible for knocking every 2NE1 song out of the park since their debut, managed to give Bom just the right amount of love with "You & I"; the production of the song was a great complement to Bom's voice and the overall style was spot on. - Before 2NE1 though, Park Bom had already served her round of features on various YG songs (We Belong Together, Forever With You), so her agency has had ample time to get acclimated with what works and what doesn't with this singer, as well as Park Bom herself with her own vocal prowess. Park Bom has developed a very distinguished singing voice in K-pop. While it's not the strongest, the timbre of her voice is instantly recognizable and has a certain likeability to it, especially when she focuses it in the right vocal range. It's a rare occasion to hear Bom for more than 10 seconds at a time in any given 2NE1 song - she's regularly stuck belting out the choruses - so it's interesting to see how she handles full songs on her own. For me, it's always a mixed moment of anxiety and wonder to hear if she can hit all the lows and highs, especially with as piercing of a voice as her's. Which brings us to her latest solo single, "Don't Cry." --- Between the releases of 2NE1's "1st Mini Album" (2009) and "To Anyone" (2010), there's been a noticeable change in the way YG has designated the use of Park Bom's singing.  She went from ad-libbing all over the place to not ad-libbing at all, and while it made sense with 2NE1's musical approach of 2010 - rather static and overly digitized - a piece of me wanted to hear a bit more fluidity in the vocals, especially with Bom because her voice is not fit to be over processed. If I needed evidence to prove that point, "Don't Cry" is a great example of what I'm getting at.  Teddy knows that if Bom hits all the right notes (which she usually does, given that she will forever remain in the same old octave she resides in), all he needs to do is bust out a great song and there's a hit in the making. No need for auto-tune, no need to over process. As if on cue, Park Bom works it out to a T in "Don't Cry". This song isn't as R&B-by-the-books as "You & I" was, as "Don't Cry" is less aggressive and very YG-pop. What Bom does here is take away some of the loudness in her singing and reaches toward her lower range for once. Bom doesn't really have a low register, but she gave it a go in "Don't Cry" and she pretty much pulled it off. The transitional pre-chorus is a little iffy for me (not a fan of the multiplying snares), but all in all, this song is a winner. I'm curious, though, if Park Bom could take on a swooping ballad a la Gummy. I don't know about you, but I think Bom's more than ready to take a risk or two and step out of her comfort zone. --- 4.4/5 --- What are your thoughts on this digital single? --- Suggestions for a future review?  Hit the author up on Twitter (@rothsresidence) or via e-mail (arnold.arteaga@allkpop.com)! — Note: This article does not reflect the opinions of allkpop, only of the author.