Remember the Mary Jane Girls? Protégés of Rick James, the girl group’s name might have gone right over my little head back then (as did their lusty come-ons), but I was fascinated by their mix of pop, funk, and a whole lot of attitude. (Mostly the attitude. See “In My House.”)

So coming across Electrik Red last night, I sensed an equally brash kinship with that Eighties quartet. Make no mistake, Naomi, Leslie, Binkie, and Sarah may be former backup dancers but they aren’t paying lip-synch service to being in control. The foursome spent two years working on demos in private before they felt they were ready to shop them around, landing at Def Jam in February 2007.

Now over two years later, these four former video vixens are finally moving to the front, dancing to their own tunes. Their debut, the charmingly titled How To Be A Lady, was overseen by the in-demand writing-producing team of Christopher “Tricky” Stewart and The-Dream, and is out April 21.

“So Good,” the track from Electrik Red that caught my attention, sounds like vintage Prince (himself no stranger to female protégés). The title is so spot-on, it’s ridiculous, and I love the video’s candy-colored-rope choreography:

Purchase Electrik Red – “So Good” (Explicit) via iTunes, Amazon MP3.