Byron Edwards, Urban News Room
(UNR) Usher is back with his newest album Raymond vs. Raymond following a year and a half hiatus, two children, and failed marriage.
With 14 tracks from heavy hitter producers, such as Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, The Runners, Polow da Don, Sean Garrett, Will.I.Am, Brian Michael Cox, and Jermaine Dupri, several radio singles, and three videos currently in rotation, the once Prince of RnB appears to be ready to regain his fans and #1 seat.
In recent years, Usher has become a household name, not for his music, but for his family drama with his mother, Jonetta Patterson and ex wife, Tameka Foster. “Raymond vs. Raymond” helps to bring Usher back to music, while helping him regain and hold the attention of both his older and younger fans.
With a portfolio including seven #1 hit singles and two #1 albums, Usher seems ready to battle the charts again after his last album,Here I Stand, was commercially unsuccessful. Fans looking for the next “Confessions” will be disappointed, but fans willing to accept Usher as an evolving artist will appreciate his latest work.
His current radio single “Hey Daddy” peaking at number 31 on the Hot 100 Billboard chart, questions if fans still find him relevant and believable. Once the leader of the pack against Justin Timberlake, Robin Thicke, and NeYo, now Usher is racing to keep up, something that is possible with the quality and number of hits on the latest album.
“There Goes My Baby”, shows a return of the teenage, slow song singing, RnB superstar we met on “My Way”, while “Lil Freak” featuring Nicki Minaj, has become a club anthem.
Other notable tracks on the album include, “Mars vs. Venus”, “Making Love”, “OMG” ft. Will.I.Am, and the lead single “Papers”.
Overall, Raymond vs. Raymond is a good album and worth your money and space on iTunes, but like the album title suggests, the battle Usher has between himself is apparent through the album material, performances, and recent television appearances.
Once the 2010 Usher Raymond stops battling with the 2004 Usher Raymond, he has the potential to be number #1 again.
Purchase the album on iTunes here.
‘OMG’
‘Hey Daddy’
‘Lil Freak’
Byron Edwards, Contributor – UrbanNewsRoom.com
I was actually surprised at how well the “new” usher is doing! Kudos to him and much respect for trying to get back in the game with these young boys!
I love the comparision between “There Goes My Baby” (2010) and “My Way” (1997)… 13 yrs later he still makes musical magical. On the other hand “Lil Freak” is not typical Usher but that may
be the avenue he needs to travel to increase his fan base. The song has underrated sexual overtones that work well with radio and he was able to use Minaj (love her or hate her). Overall, Usher can still make enjoyable music!
I think Usher gets better with time though the chart may not show that… I will definitely buy the album! I didn’t know the video for lil freak was out yet! Thanks for the videos
I think this album is way better than “Here I Stand”. It is a mixture of Usher’s own personal style, and modern day hip hop/R&B. I recommend others to listen.
I think this album will continually grow on people if everyone decides to open up and accept it. Because we all wanted an Usher album that would TOP “Confessions” we’re tip-toeing around the fact that the man STILL makes great music. I agree, this album is better than Here I Stand and I believe that Usher made the change he needed to stay afloat in the R&B industry today.
I actually had no interest in purchasing this album, but since I loved Here I stand and wasn’t too fond off Confessions (anomaly,I know), I may like Raymond va Raymond for the simple fact that I appreciate creative maturity in artists…kind of like A.Keys’ The Element of Freedom. Purchasing Usher’s latest right now…
Actually, this Usher album did not have the “wow” factor that I was looking for. There are few tracks up there that I find myself hitting rewind on the ipod, but its definitely not an album that I listen to its entirety in one sitting. Still, Confessions does it for me, and I guess I had my hopes up for something even better. All in all its still good music that proves that Usher has made a mark in the game, and he still can pull out the big guns.
Great post – I’ve been trying to decide if it was worth the buy and I suppose it is. Everyone deserves a second chance. I’m going for it.
Thanks for these insights Byron. Great point with the battle that’s occurring internally and obviously on this album. As a once Usher SUPER SUPER fan I’m having a hard time believing him throughout the album. I’m going to keep listening to it though – I’m sure it’ll set it.
Great and informative review! I’m not so sure about Usher or Raymond but this review offers insight into what the album is really all about.
I wonder what woman he is going to date next and victimize for the material for his album after this!!!
Hmm…great review. I’ve really been wondering about this album. Honestly, I think everyone wants to believe in Usher still, but I think we all have to accept that we’ll never get “Confessions-Usher” back. I mean, after all, the whole Chilli thing was like SEVEN years ago!! But I’ll definitely check out the album now after reading this.
Okay, just listened to “OMG”…at first, I wasn’t feelin’ Usher on auto-tune. But I must say, I can see this rockin’ in da club…we’ll see
I haven’t had a chance to listen to the album all the way through but I think the singles and the songs I have heard are on point for Usher right now! He has drenched his last few albums with emotions, which has caused us to either love or hate him…so I think this was a good direction for him to take at this point in his career! I think he has the type of talent that will only be critized but never ignored!
I havent heard the entire album yet but the singles he has out so far sound good. I agree that he probably will never reach the status that Confessions had, but what do you expect the music world has change drastically since he put that album out and using your personal life to sell records isnt going to work everytime. I say focus on music that means something and take care of your kids.
To be honest, in my opinion, Mr.Raymond has long become irrelevant especially in regard to maintaining the status quo. Lets not even get into keeping up with his competition. I haven’t heard an Usher track I liked since Confessions! This is a classic example of artists loosing touch with the the times if you ask me. There are a few anomalies however, you have the ubiquitous Jay-Z, the wordsmith and street Griot Nasir Jones, and Even Snoop Dogg (if your on the West side), but Usher…is not on that level. His attempts to transcend time are futile and pathetic at best. He needs to quit while he’s ahead or he’ll only further embarrass himself. I saw Drew Hill on 106th and Park the other night..Flashforward…Usher.
Here you got confessions which is a classic about the dirt he’s doing, which by the way WE LOVE, and then you got this grown man pouring his soul out on ‘Here I Stand’ talking about how happy he is being married? Young adults don’t want to hear that! Then you got him getting a divorce and taking his old ass back to the club scene!? Which is it? Are you a happily married man whose grown out of your childish playeristic ways or are you a club hopping womanizer? Or maybe you’re that old guy standing in the back of the club buying young girls drinks?? Can anyone say AWKWARD!!
I haven’t had a chance to hear the whole album yet but what I have heard has sounded pretty good. I haven’t been a huge fan of Usher’s since ‘My Way’ but I still enjoy hearing his singles on the radio. I have heard that this album is still not as good as ‘Confessions’ but that was then and this is now. Good review.