G.NA has a fantastic voice, and hearing her lend it in features is always a pleasant experience. Her voice is full of color, it's broad, and flexible - Pop music, meet your muse. However, it takes the right pop songs to bring a singer like G.NA to full bloom. So do we find those in her latest mini-album, 'Top Girl'? Well, it's hard to say. — Earlier this year, G.NA released 'Black & White,' and while it was a commercial winner, it was something of a one step forward, two steps back thing for me to sit through. The main issue I had with it was that there wasn't anything connecting G.NA to her music - no songs spoke to me and for her as G.NA. And although it happens in 'Top Girl,' there isn't a glaring disconnected from her as an artist this time. At least not as much as with 'Black & White.' Really, the only song that does little for G.NA is the title track, "Top Girl," which just so happens to be overly chipper-cutesy. Now, as much as I'd like to hear G.NA sing a frilly song, she doesn't pull it off very well. Frankly, her voice is too good for that stuff. "Top Girl" is a bubblegum pop song, and G.NA literally sounds like she has a gumball nuzzled between her cheeks. She's giving the song what it asks for - squishy vocals and gratuitous belts - but she's not being reimbursed anything for her labor. — "Top Girl" — The obvious highlight of the mini-album is "Banana" featuring Swings and JC Jieun. G.NA is in her element in this song. That is, proving she's got style, conviction, and maybe a little lean to her step. "Banana" is slightly exotic, and that works for G.NA tremendously well. The tribal-meets-club-pop sound is a near match for G.NA on all kinds of levels. The song itself, with its addictive hook and syncopation is very bare, but drop G.NA's voice into the mix, and suddenly there's a club banger in your hands with maybe 10 inches of depth. There's enough happening in the song for it to stay afloat, and that's always a green light in Kpop. — "Banana" ft. Swings and JC Jieun: best hook ever right here — "Hate You" and "Icon" take G.NA out of the exotic, amazonian princess charade and back on familiar, pop-tastic grounds. However, one of these is passable, while the other unforgivable. "Hate You" is a mid-tempo song that embraces G.NA's sweeter side, but showcases her in a much favorable light than the title track. For one, G.NA doesn't sound like a chipmunk. The song is soft but kind of fierce, and it gives G.NA enough of that room to go from sweet singer to power vocal diva in seconds. "Icon," on the other hand, is monotony to the third power. The melody is almost nonexistent, and we lose G.NA completely. She has checked out of this mad house, and I have no clue who is singing in her place. ==== 'Top Girl,' like any other Kpop mini-album, aims to showcase an array of styles geared toward satisfying the commercial audience in one spoonful rather than taking G.NA on a musical venture that would benefit her singing career in the long run. Of course, that's not to say all of the songs on 'Top Girl' are 'bad', because some of them are perfectly fine, and on trend. The thing is, Kpop could have so much more depth if only idols were given the proper material to make it happen. G.NA is one singer I like to keep on file as an idol I feel could take solo artists in Korean pop to a new level of awesome, because she certainly has the pipes to do it. Pop music doesn't always have to be cheesy, and it's the non-cheesy pop music that is meant for a singer like G.NA. G.NA's debut single, "I Will Back Off So You Can Live Better," is one example of how well a singer in Kpop can sound with just a little bit of direction, inspiration, and sophistication. Sadly, none of those elements are present in this collection, which is entirely unfair for this singer. — Overall Rating: 2.9/5: very little cohesion, with just a couple passable songs — What are your thoughts on 'Top Girl' by G.NA? — Suggestions for a future review? Hit the author up on Twitter (@rothsresidence) or via e-mail (arnold.arteaga@allkpop.com)! — Rating Overview: 0 – 1.9 ; poor, without any redeeming qualities 2.0 – 2.9 ; mediocre, but with some saving graces 3.0 – 3.9 ; good, with noteworthy highs and lows 4.0 – 4.9 ; excellent, with minimal flaws 5 ; superior, and as near to perfection as the song/album can be — Note: This article does not reflect the opinions of allkpop, only of the author.