Whether she's cutely crooning the '95 hit "Sittin' Up in My Room," off the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack, or playing the teen heartthrob Moesha on her UPN sitcom of the same name, nineteen-year-old Brandy exudes more pizazz than the Hanson brothers combined and bursts with enough naive charm to make Jewel look like a jaded sailor. Her second album bubbles with that same effervescence, from the simply. wrought "Happy" to the sweeping orchestration of the hit single "The Boy Is Mine." (a duet with Monica). Brandy's soulful vibrato fits comfortably inside a cover of Bryan Adams' "Everything I Do (I Do It for You)," and her playful intonations thrive atop funkier numbers like "Top of the World" (with Mase). Never Say Never can feel as sappy as a Hallmark card (cheesiest moment: the Spanish guitar and chimes in "Almost Doesn't Count"); still, R&B's littlest sister provides a sweet escape for teary teddy-bear clutchers and starry-eyed romantics. (RS 790-791)

LORRAINE ALI