Ashanti’s multiplatinum self-titled 2002 debut didn’t announce the arrival of an important new voice in R&B so much as replicate the superficialities of Mary J. Blige. Capably co-opting Blige’s vocal phrasing over recycled hip-hop–tested samples, the 22-year-old Long Island product served up frothy hits that captured around-the-way-girl sass sans genuine emotion.

Ashanti-directed haterade spread nearly as rapidly as her success. As her once hit-laden record label, Murder Inc., has gone cold, Inc. nemesis 50 Cent mocks her on mix tapes — likening her facial features to those of Eddie Munster. Meanwhile, curvier R&B divas with noticeably stronger pipes (such as Beyoncé) have already begun displacing her in the public eye.

Ashanti acknowledges none of this furor on Chapter II, a startlingly generic effort that resuscitates her derivative formulas with robotic routine. Once again, she delivers color-by-number portraits of affairs of the heart (“Breakup 2 Makeup”), sings monotonous melodies over samples made famous by your favorite rappers (“Rain on Me,” “Feel So Good”) and deploys her favorite four-letter word (“Rock Wit U [Awww Baby],” “Sweet Baby”).

Though it’s tempting to blame the lifeless terrain on the absence of another silly-but-catchy Ja Rule duet, the greater loss may be Inc. producer 7 Aurelius, who provided past bubblegum hits with snappier flavor. As rapper Chink Santana growls on “Shany’s World,” “[This album] is a place where it’s just so beautiful that don’t nuthin’ matter.” Beauty never sounded so bland.