After Usher released his third studio album, "8701", he found himself at somewhat of a crossroads. Although he had sold more than 8 millions records over the previous decade, his music seemed to only have one purpose: keeping young female hearts brooding over him (in his defense, it was working, and well).
Usher was transitioning from a teenage R&B idol to an adult artist, and without careful treading, that transition can be a career killer. Thankfully for Usher, his transition was as smooth as his singing voice.
If "8701" was Usher's last 'teen' album, "Confessions" was his graduation into adulthood. Usher sang on his previous album with a boyish breeziness that few could match, but on "Confessions" it's clear the boy is now a man.
Usher recorded over forty tracks for "Confessions", which was released in March 2004 to great reception from critics and fans alike. The album had the biggest first-week sales for an R&B album ever, and Usher was nominated for 8 awards at the Grammy's that year.
The album finds Usher hitting on some heavier, more personal topics than his past records, like infidelity, unplanned pregnancies, tough relationships and of course, breakups. The album has a heavy R&B sound that is punctuated with some appreciation for jazz and old school traditions, making it a unique piece of work.
The album is an hour long and has some truly fantastic tracks, but it's the beginning of the track listing that shines above all else. The first 22 minutes of this album is truly epic music. "Yeah!", "Throwback", "Caught Up", "Confessions Part II", "Burn" and "Caught Up" to me are the best tracks on the album, and some of Ushers best work period.
The album starts, obviously, with "Yeah!", Ushers cyber-crunk meets R&B club banger with Lil' Jon and Ludacris. After this track came out it was hard to escape it. It played on the radio more times than could be counted and at every party from New York to Los Angeles. Over Lil Jon's semi-amazing car-alarm beat, Usher sings a simple story about a girl who won't let him leave the nightclub.
The track topped the Billboard charts for five weeks and was nominated for two Grammy awards. It's Usher's own "go to" track for the album, his number one, his "Thriller".
The track is epic party music, and I think even people who say they don't like this track actually do deep down, it's that good. Usher shows off how talented he is as he spits so quickly: "So she's all up in my head now, got me thinking that it might good idea to take her with me/'Cause she's ready to leave (ready to leave)/But I gotta keep it real now, 'cause on a one to ten she's a certified twenty/but that just ain't me/Hey!"
"Burn", like many of the other tracks on the album was influenced by some of Usher's real life situations and experiences. This track came about from a situation where Chilli Thomas from the group TLC was about to end.
The track is great for many reasons, one of which is that Usher can flat out sing just as well as anyone in the industry, and he proves it here. On top of that, the lyrics and tone of the song work on many levels. Obviously, Usher is breaking up with his girl, he's not happy but he wants to move on. She's really sad about this, she can't deal, and he feels bad for her but he knows that she's going to have to accept it.
You can tell this song is close to his heart as he croons: "It's been a long time coming/ But we done been fell apart/Really wanna work this out/But I don't think ya gonna change ya/I do but you don't/Think it's best we go our separate ways/Tell me why I should stay in this relationship/When I'm hurting baby, I ain't happy baby/Plus theres so many other things I gotta deal with/I think that you should let it burn."
Another track that was based on a real life situation was "Confessions Part II", Ushers most personal and possibly the best track on the album. Part of the song details the situation and aftermath of telling your long-term girlfriend about impregnating your mistress.
The subject matter is intense, but somehow Usher still grabs the audience's sympathy. That's part of the brilliance of the song, and of Usher himself. He tries to own up to what he has done, and okay, he can sing pretty well too.
You can hear how personal the track is to Usher as he sings: "Now this gon' be the hardest thing I think I ever had to do/Got me talkin' to myself askin' how I'm gon' tell you/'bout that chick on part 1 I told ya'll I was creepin' with, creepin' with/Said she's 3 months pregnant and she's keepin' it/The first thing that came to mind was you/Second thing was how do I know if it's mine and is it true."
Usher truly shows maturity on "Confessions", as he deals with all sorts of romantic infatuation and regret. While some parts of the album don't always portray Usher in such a flattering light, all it did was sell 1.1 million copies in its first week, earn a Grammy for Best Contemporary R&B album, and was certified diamond in sales, selling over 10 million worldwide. Not bad.
Ushers "Confessions" spawned many impersonations from R. Kelly's "Ignition" to "Don't Wanna Try" by Frankie J. Either way the album is definitely a classic.
Looks like Tiger Woods is in the wrong business.
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