With the advent of Reality TV has come the phenomenon known as “Making the Band.” And Danity Kane, a MTB alum has released their sophomore album on Bad Boy Records entitled Welcome to the Dollhouse.

With guest spots by top artists like P. Diddy (he actually formed DK), Missy Elliot, and Rick Ross, you’d think that this album would be formidable… and you’d be right.

While their self-titled debut back in 2006 sounded a bit over-produced, and almost contrived, the girls have made up their lost artistic ground by bringing a more authentic and personalized feel to Dollhouse.

Songs like “Damaged” evoke an emotional aesthetic while still stroking the audience’s eardrums with complex, well-thought-out beats. And as far as production goes, the vocal layers are effective without getting too sonically busy.

“Bad Girl” is laced with infectious hooks that are only made more compelling with Missy Elliot’s own brand of clever word smithing. And you can tell executive producer P.Diddy shelled out some serious Benjamins to ensure that the beats were booming.

Overall, Danity Kane had a lot to prove with their 2nd album, what with avoiding the ‘sophomore slump’ and all. And what could’ve ended up as an average, take-it-or-leave-it collection of songs has become an ‘honorable mention’ in the R&B/Pop/Hip-Hop genre for 2008.