Artist: Usher

Album: Raymond V Raymond

Label: LaFace/Arista Records

The R&B phenom is back. It has been two years since the release of his last album ‘Here I Stand,’ so at the time any new material from Usher was definitely in deep anticipation. This new album has been a bit of wakeup call since his recent public divorce. It goes to show that even through his personal trials and tribulations, Usher still didn’t let that interfere with his recording schedule. And yet again, his music has never ceased to amaze me between the lyrics and the production he chose to include into his sixth studio album.

The initial title for his album was changed from ‘Monster’ to ‘Raymond v Raymond’ because of the recent events that occurred within his troubled marriage. According to Usher, the title was inspired by the 1979 divorce film ‘Kramer vs. Kramer.’ The buzz single for the album was released in the fall of 2009 written by Sean Garrett and mega producer Zaytoven entitled ‘Papers’ was basically a teaser that his new album was on the way. The follow up single ‘Hey Daddy (Daddy’s Home)’ was the track that put Usher back into the Spotlight just two months later. The Runners produced track gave Usher a more mature image allowing him to reach back into his female fan base again a newly single artist. That track marked the first time Usher ever worked with the heavyweight production team The Runners and honestly I wouldn’t be surprised if Miami-based DJ Khaled had something to do with that. Surprisingly enough, even months before the release of his album, NBA picked up on a promo single entitled ‘More’ as the theme song for the NBA All-Star Games of 2010 that was held in Dallas, Texas. ‘More’ eventually went on to becoming an iTunes bonus track not available on the album. Another interesting fact about the album is that the last track on ‘Raymond v Raymond’ is literally a remake from the song that Benny Mardones made famous entitled ‘Into the Night.’ The remake was produced by Jim Jonsin, who also produced another promo single ‘There Goes My Baby.’ Speaking of production, we all know that Usher had to go back to his roots with producers Bryan-Michael Cox and JD on at least one track entitled ‘Foolin’ Around,’ a semi-sequel to multi-platinum single ‘Confessions,’ which they also produced.

The release of T.I. couldn’t have been released at the right time. The undisputed King of the South is featured with Usher under the track entitled ‘Guilty’ which, I wouldn’t be a surprised if they release it as a single sometime in the late Spring or early Summer. The interesting club track was written by Zone 4’s Ester Dean and produced by newcomer A.J. ‘Prettyboifresh’ Parhm.

On the real, the anticipation behind this album was well worth the wait, the Usher we knew before Tameka has returned for the better. You can literally vibe through the entire album as different elements provide platinum worthy material. Honestly though, I still think his ‘Confessions’ album was something he probably couldn’t redo. Either way, if you’re a die-hard Usher fan, it is something you definitely need to cop. Guest features include: Nicki Minaj, Ludacris, will.i.am, and T.I.

Notable tracks: ‘Monstar,’ ‘Hey Daddy (Daddy’s Home),’ ‘There Goes My Baby,’ ‘Lil Freak,’ ‘OMG,’ ‘Foolin’ Around,’ ‘Papers,’ ‘So Many Girls,’ ‘Guilty,’ ‘Okay,’ and ‘Making Love (Into the Night).’