Hopefully some of the more 'grown R&B' stations will latch onto the slow grooves and ballads here. Philadelphia') also contribute in important, if smaller, amounts. Past collaborators like Ivan 'Orthodox' Barrias and remain involved, while ('Today'), ('Betterman'), and the ever-rising ('Ms. Even the remaining uptempo songs have an easygoing disposition. With the exception of lead song (and lead single) 'B.U.D.D.Y.,' which - like several early rap tracks and 's 'Here Comes the Hotstepper' - jacks the rhythm from 'Heartbeat,' 's early-'80s club classic, nothing is designed to pick the listener up and toss her around the room. Indeed, is just another one of his durable albums that straddles throwback soul and contemporary R&B. The customary consistency of his material has been, and will likely continue to be, mistaken for lazy sameness, as if he really needs to spice things up with insincere trend-hopping or ill-fitting collaborations with hot MCs. (He remains, in fact, under the watch of, the ex-Def Jam executive who initially signed him.) The only measurable difference between this and the past albums is its significantly shorter length, which only allows each song to get the attention it deserves. Even though he was involved in a label trade (!) with, which transplanted him from Def Jam's Def Soul wing to Atlantic, there's no audible evidence of change. 's fourth straight strong showing, does not veer from the steadiness of its predecessors.
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