Ark Music Factory gives singers a bad name.Photo by Tom Rogers

Alana Lee Hamilton is another one of Ark Music Factory’s (AMF) artists, or should I say, victims. However, unlike Rebecca Black, this girl has real talent and an impressive resume as an actor, singer and dancer. Her first single for AMF was titled, “Butterflies.”

The song is pretty self-explanatory, there is a young girl who has a crush on a boy and gets butterflies whenever she’s around him. While the song lacks depth, when it comes to the lyrics at least it is age appropriate for a 14-year-old. The song is catchy and repetitive which is perfect for it’s target audience of pre-teens. However, I think it would have been a lot better had AMF not produced it.

I guess it’s their signature mark to place an old and creepy unknown rapper in every song they produce. I find that method extremely unsettling especially because the unnecessary rapper also happens to be Patrice Wilson, the writer and founder of AMF. I understand a little self promotion here and there, but if parents are paying you between $2,000 and $4,000 to write and produce a song and music video for their child why would you write yourself a random cameo, especially if the song is for kids ages 10-14?

It is clear to me that Alana Lee can actually sing so why is her song completely auto-tuned? Just because it’s a pop song doesn’t mean it has to be. In fact, it probably would sound a 100 times better if it were acoustic. It might lose the dance element but her singing abilities would be showcased more.

Luckily, this song wasn’t detrimental to Alana’s career and if anything got her name out there as a singer. With that said, if I were her, I would cut all ties with AMF and attempt to get a record deal with a legitimate record label that knows what they are doing. I realize record deals don’t happen over night but she also has a promising acting career to focus on. She is signed with the Savage Agency and recently had a supporting role in her first feature film titled “Measure of a Man.” Hopefully, her success will continue to grow and her singing career will eventually fall into the right hands and escape the grasp of Ark Music Factory.