Kelly Osbourne

Offspring of the rich and famous are always easy to write off as opportunistic little brats when they join the work force. Paris Hilton has certainly proved that anyone can have a music career with the right amount of cash, but it’s almost bewildering when something of quality seeps through these cracks. Ozzy’s daughter Kelly nearly came through on her debut, but her insistence on doing mall punk in full bratty form was too much to swallow. On her sophomore record, it’s as if Kelly has rid herself of the girl we saw on The Osbournes and retreated to her true self: an insecure young woman looking to find her voice. Funnily enough, her voice has been treated with the finest digital voice manipulation her dad could buy, but with the help of super songwriter Linda Perry, the 21-year-old has found her name on a very good electro-pop record. Some may cringe over the idea of Kelly’s music, but played in the right club in between Annie and Rachel Stevens, "One Word” would easily fill the floor. She does make the odd misstep, like on the aggressive anti-rape song "Don’t Touch Me While I’m Sleeping,” but she recovers nicely on the hyper "Edge of Your Atmosphere,” which out-Gwens Ms. Stefani. Let the naysayers bitch all they want; Sleeping in the Nothing is a sparkling pop record that only suffers from the fact that she may be too far ahead of her fans who’re likely still looking for more of that Avril-style pop rock.