Usher
Hard II Love (Sony Music)
Breakdown: After releasing the incredibly successful single ‘Crash’ earlier this year, Usher is back with his eighth studio album ‘Hard II Love’. The album features 15 effortless R&B jams and collaborations with rappers Young Thug and Future.
How Many Good Tracks: 12 of the 14.
What I Liked: This is an incredibly sexy album. Usher’s powerful vocal oozes sex appeal which works really well with his signature blend of R&B and hip-hop. His falsetto is his greatest weapon and seems to use it smarter than ever with this release. Despite the title, this is an album about love and, as expected, the album features some incredibly romantic tracks. Usher is a versatile artist and takes a more urban approach this time around compared to his previous release – 2012’s ‘Looking 4 Myself’. The production on the album is bold, strong and makes a statement which helps each song to stand out. I love that Usher dropped an old-school R&B album despite the changes to the music climate. It’s been a while since those albums sold millions of copies and the risk has certainly paid off for him. R&B is a genre where the singer shines and I’m glad Usher is staying in his lane – and crushing it.
What I Didn’t Like: While some of the tracks are a bit cheesy and could use with a bit of tweaking in the songwriting, this is one of Usher’s best album yet.
Best Track: Rivals (Feat. Future)
Rating: 4.5/5
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