The title “Raymond v. Raymond” suggests that R&B star Usher is presenting himself in a Jekyll and Hyde situation. Presumably, it’s the romantic gentleman who sang “U Got It Bad” on one hand versus the partying bad boy behind 2001’s “Yeah!”
As it turns out, the dual sides of Usher aren’t dueling at all on his latest disc. Rather, the album presents a fair allotment of both halves. Interspersed evenly among the ballads are tales of loose club-going romance. Both sides are present, but only once do they notably crash.
“Papers,” a track that has already topped the Billboard Hip-Hop/R&B charts, details Usher’s highly publicized divorce in 2009 among rumors of infidelity. This piano-laden single might not get play at clubs, but its emotional honesty makes it stand out against the rest of the album.
The hipper tracks fit in well with the current offerings of hip-hop and R&B, but there isn’t a song that will rule the charts as long as “U Got It Bad” and “Yeah!” did in their days. The track “Lil Freak” offers an entertaining guest verse by Nicki Minaj but doesn’t quite get the heart rate going.
The album does OK overall, but Usher might need to consolidate his personality to reach the status of his 2004 album “Confessions.”
