USHER – “LOOKING 4 MYSELF”
RELEASE DATE: JUNE 12, 2012
RATING: 4 out of 5 “CONFESSIONS”
It’s nearly impossible to top the commercial craze of “Confessions.” It is Usher’s most successful album to date and what LA Reid calls the “the last big album this industry has seen.” With “Confessions” Usher became the first artist to top the Billboard Hot Airplay 100 with three consecutive number-one singles with “Yeah,” ”Burn,” and “Confessions Part II.” To date, the album has shipped over ten million copies in the US and has received a diamond certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It is the latest album in American music history to receive the diamond certification; no album released after “Confessions” has achieved this certification. “Confessions” serves as the second best-selling album of the 2000s decade in the US.
After losing LA Reid as the CEO of his Arista records label in 2003 and steering away from long-time producer Jermaine Dupri, future albums spawned hit records such as “Love in This Club,” “OMG,” and “DJ Got Us Fallin’in Love” but were never able achieve the acclaim of being part of a complete album that Usher fans were accustomed to.
LOVE IT: “Looking 4 Myself” is Usher’s seventh studio album. He rejoins Will-i-am, who produced, wrote, and is featured on his smash single “OMG.” This is an example of stadium music at its finest as Usher urges you to “turn it up” and “play it loud in the club.” Always channeling Michael Jackson through his music, Usher makes his own “Scream” song which is another club banger that can be considered a sequel to” DJ Got Us Falling in Love.” Besides his “Yeah” collaboration with Ludacris and “Hot Tottie” track with Jay-Z, Usher hasn’t faired well when collaborating with rappers but “Let Me See” featuring Rick Ross actually works. Pay attention to Rozay’s slick and timely Trayvon Martin reference. Usher returns the favor on Ross’s “Touch N You” single from his forthcoming “God Forgives I Don’t” album.
When reuniting with Pharrell on a 60’s throwback groove called “Twisted” about a misunderstanding with his main squeeze, the song reflects an unusual blend of Motown funk and the creative freedom of the Neptunes frontman. The irony in the track is that the only dance that you can really do to the song while staying on top of the rhythm is Chubby Checker’s twist.
There’s a lot of experimentation on this album as Usher appears to fight the formula of a predictable R&B record. The lead single “Climax” reflects this as Usher’s voice dominates the track to the point where you forget that there’s even an instrumental present. He offers so many choices for the hook that you can decide which section of the song that you want to repeat.
Usher plays the role of relationships expert on “Lessons for the Lover” on a slick Chinese melody that sounds like it should have been used at the conclusion of “Romeo Must Die.” When he delves into the sensuality of “Dive” he uses precipitation as a backdrop to describe his passionate side without being overly provocative. On “Numb” which sounds like something straight out of the Black Eyed Peas catalog, Usher makes it magical as it represents uptempo feel-good music.
If “Confessions” represents Usher’s attempt at “Thriller” then “Looking 4 Myself” is clearly his confirmation of creating “Off the Wall.”
HATE IT: On “Sins of My Father” produced by Nas’s long-time beatmaker Salaam Remi, we get Usher’s thoughts on his absentee father and as the beat builds we think that we may be getting a hip-hop feature on the subject. When it doesn’t arrive it feels like a letdown. Any mixtape DJ that lays down Nas’s vocal from “Poppa Was a Playa” or Jay-Z’s talk of the topic on “Still Got Love For U” will be considered a genius for the mashup. We also get a similar feeling of disappointment on “What Happened To U” when the first few seconds are taken from Biggie’s “One More Chance” remix. It isn’t like we were expecting Christopher Wallace but we were expecting something notoriously epic.
The best song on the album isn’t actually on the album. It’s only the slightly more expensive deluxe version. But if you spend the $11.99 to buy the additional four tracks, you will be disappointed in three of them. But “I.F.U.” is so damn good you might as well pay the extra $2.00.