Unfinished Business (Roc-A-Fella/Jive, 2004) by Jay-Z and R. Kelly

Put simply, this is a bad album.  It clearly seems like it was an attempt to sell records along with their tour (which also flopped).  The fact that this album's material is sometimes referred to as leftover stuff from the Best of Both Worlds sessions from 2002 is bad enough.  Considering that album's best records were mediocre at the very best though, it seems foolish to release stuff from the cutting room floor from those sessions.  However, that logic still didn't stop this release from happening.

Back at One (Motown, 1999) by Brian McKnight

Now Brian McKnight is kind of weird with his 2012 risqué single, his news about about releasing and then not releasing his "adult mixtape."  What makes this all particularly interesting is that instead of singing about graphic sex, he used to sing great love songs like the ones featured on this album.  The standout, in my opinion, is the title track and "6,8, 12" is a really gripping heartbreak song.  Long story short, Brian sounds a lot better singing about passion than he does singing about pussy.

Another Level (Interscope, 1996) by Blackstreet

I was probably around 9 or 10 years old when I first got this album, and so a lot of its qualities went unappreciated until later.  To me, at the time of purchase, the album was all about the smash single "No Diggity" with Dr. Dre.  However, in hindsight, I am able to recognize Teddy Riley's amazing abilities as a songwriter as well as a performer.  The addition of the two new members to Blackstreet was also successful on this album too.

1st Born Second (Interscope, 2001) by Bilal

I like this album a lot.  It is a very good mix of Hip-Hop and R&B.  It's cool because it isn't just singing over rap beats either.  The sound is like a modern-day Sly & the Family Stone.  Contributions from Hip-Hop heavyweights make the project that much sweeter too.  Jadakiss, Dr. Dre, Common, and Mos Def all shine with their respective roles in assisting Bilal with his memorable debut release.  By far, "Fast Lane" is the best track in my opinion.

An All-4-One Christmas (Atlantic, 1995) by All-4-One

These guys can actually sing quite well.  However, them singing Christmas standards is just another example of how the group sings other people's material.  "I Swear" and "I Could Love You Like That" were both country songs originally and then All-4-One redid them and took them to the pop and R&B charts where they saw success.

Nostalgia, Ultra (N/A, 2011) by Frank Ocean

I didn't hear this mixtape until after I had heard Watch the Throne.  My two favorite tracks on the album are "No Church in the Wild" and "Made in America."  Although that is not just based on Ocean's appearance on those two tracks, his contributions do make those particular songs stand out.  This mix tape is quirky, but in a good way.  I was immediately hooked with the "Street Fighter" video game intro and I like the Stanley Kubrick stuff too.  It's a cohesive body of work, but not unlike Tyler the Creator's Goblin, it can seem a bit confusing.  Vocally, his best track is "Songs for Women."  The only thing that somewhat holds the mixtape back is the production, but it's a mixtape so it's not really fair to hold that against it.  Overall, it's a great release from a very promising new talent.

Chain Letter (Virgin, 2005) by Brooke Valentine

As of right now, Brooke Valentine is pretty much considered a one-hit wonder.  However, that is somewhat surprising considering the attention that this, her debut album, was given.  She is a gorgeous woman, but that sexiness brought about interesting content that not all other performers who are easy on the eyes talked about (if I'm not mistaken, she makes reference to poking holes in condoms at one point).  The track with Big Boi, "Girlfight" not surprisingly is solid.  But for all intents and purposes, at this moment, Chain Letter was the beginning and the end of Brooke Valentine's singing career (she now goes by B. Valentine).

Unpredictable (J, 2005) by Jamie Foxx

I was actually a little disappointed with Unpredictable.  Considering Jamie Foxx won an Oscar for playing Ray Charles, I expected more sophistication.  The actual singing is good and the production is solid.  But the content is every cliche that Hip-Hop and contemporary R&B had fed into for the past fifteen years.  In a nut shell, Ludacris' guest verse on "Unpredictable" is the album's best moment.

Love Always (MCA, 1997) by K-Ci & JoJo

This album is pretty much a one-hit project.  However, the song that was a hit is totally worth the cost of an entire album.  "All My Life" has a jazz pop melody that is absolutely amazing.  It is also a song that I have many fond memories of slow dancing to when I was in France while I was in Fifth Grade.  In my opinion, it's one of the greatest pop songs of the 90s and will continue to hold up for a long time to come.

The Day (Epic, 1996) by Babyface

This album has some very memorable tracks, the most popular being "Everytime I Close My Eyes."  Overall though, the project, in my opinion, showcases Babyface's ability as a writer more than his chops as a singer.  "Simple Days" is a wonderful look back on childhood  and LL proves why he's one of the best at hip hop love songs with "This is For the Lover in You."  The other thing that Edmonds does here really well is merge hip hop and R&B (without getting a singer to just sing over a rap beat).  This is a good release, but the best showcase of Babyface's talents are his collaborations with other artists such as Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men.

Because of You (Def Jam, 2007) by Ne-Yo

This album, Ne-Yo's second, has an incredible amount of sentimental value to me.  One of the singles, "Go On Girl," was the first single review that I wrote that I saw in print in the pages of Billboard.  I remember the first time that I heard the song and picked it to review, it was the day after I told a girl how I had romantic feelings for her and she didn't feel the same way.  It was a very fitting record, and a catharsis to write the review of it.  There was a lot of filler on this album, but the lead single (and title track) was excellent and the dancing that Ne-Yo did in the video was reminiscent of a young Michael Jackson.  In a music industry that seems to have changed faster than ever before in the past ten years, it still doesn't surprise me that Ne-Yo has lasted as long as he has.  And I'll bet he'll be around for a long time from now as well.

The Emancipation of Mimi (Def Jam, 2005) by Mariah Carey

This is arguably the greatest comeback in modern pop music.  After a few years of less than stellar material and a public meltdown, Mariah came back and reclaimed her spot as the greatest voice in pop music since Whitney Houston.  The great thing about this album too is that it balances her hip hop and pop sensibilities to make for a very well-rounded release.  Nothing against the project's singles, but the album's highlight, in my opinion, is "Stay the Night."  It has a Motown-esque feel production-wise (it was produced by Kanye West) and Mariah's vocal abilities steal the show-like they often do.

Age Ain't Nothing but a Number (Blackground, 1994) by Aaliyah

The controversy surrounding R.Kelly's marriage to Aaliyah seemed to overshadow the album itself.  However, the album is very good.  It blended hip hop and R&B very well.  And even if Mary held the title of the queen of hip hop soul, Aaliyah had the youthful attitude and swagger that provided her an identity all her own.  "Back and Forth" still holds up almost twenty years later and the title track still bangs too.  The video is bittersweet though.  It has Aaliyah, of course, and Proof.  Two artists whose lives were tragically cut short.  Fortunately, through music, they will never be forgotten and will always be appreciated.

The Best of Both Worlds (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam/Jive, 2002) by Jay-Z & R.Kelly

This album certainly didn't live up to the hype.  The controversy surrounding R. Kelly at the time didn't help either.  The album still has its strong points though- Jay-Z delivers solid raps and The R brings catchy hooks.  The production suited both of these guys' strengths well too.  The problem is that the songs are very cookie cutter and generic both musically and lyrically.  And for two artists who forever changed their respective genres with their innovative styles and amazing talents, a lot more was expected from this project.  Some of this was redeemed though at Jay-Z's Madison Square Garden show when the two of them came out and performed the title track and "Take You Home With Me" while all of NY sang along.

8701 (Arista, 2001) by Usher

Usher's third album is a solid mix of ballads and up-tempo dance numbers.  "U Remind Me" is basically a more dance-friendly version of "U Make Me Wanna" wherein one girl makes Usher think of another girl.  "U Got it Bad" is a phenomenal ballad and when he says, "Look at your mate, help me sing my song/Tell her, 'I'm your man, you're my girl/I'm gonna tell it to the whole wide world'/Ladies say, 'I'm your girl, you're my man/Promise to love you the best I can,'" it's impossible to not sing along.  The one song that I think was overlooked on this album for some reason though was "Can U Help Me."  The Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis-produced ballad has beautiful music and displays Usher's range as a vocalist.  Emotionally and technically, it is my favorite record on 8701.

Diary of a Mad Band (Uptown, 1993) by Jodeci

This album definitely showed a change in image and approach from their debut.  On their debut, Jodeci was simply romancing women.  On this go round though, they were just trying to get them in to bed.  "Feenin" is a prime example.  And "Cry For You (the album's first single), in my opinion, is the best song on the album.  DOAMB was one of the first albums where people were singing over rap beats, and one of the few albums that ever did it well.  I am a bigger fan of K-Ci and Jojo's "All My Life", but at the time, I think Jodeci's sexually-charged material delivered in a slightly more rugged fashion was a good counter-balance to Boyz II Men, who basically said the same things at time, but in a more pop-friendly way.  In other words, Jodeci talked about having sex and Boyz II Men talked about making love.