Apple Music Rank: 95
Album: Confessions
Artist: Usher
Year: 2004
Genre: R&B/Soul
Was I familiar with Usher? I actually bought the first Usher CD back in ’94. Not My Way. The self-titled one before he started working with Jermaine Dupri. He’s an R&B legend. Yes, I was familiar with Usher.
Had I heard Confessions before? Yes, but not as many times as you might think based on my answer to the first question above.
Thoughts on Confessions: This won’t be the last time you hear me say this on this list: Not the album I would’ve picked by this artist. In fact, Usher has two other albums I prefer, but 8701 is my favorite. I’m struggling to put my feelings on this album on paper. After My Way and 8701 this one just missed the mark for me a bit. I loved 90s R&B and this album is a bit too removed from that era. It started moving Usher into the new millennium when I was content staying where I was. No doubt “Yeah!” is an all-time banger, but I’ve never been a fan of Lil’ Jon’s production and while it was fun to hear at a bar or on a dance floor at a wedding and Luda delivers an incredible verse, it’s never been one of my favorite Usher songs. It’s literally the same three notes for the entire song.
As for the title track and subsequent sequel, that’s the part of the album that really makes me cringe. Yes, consecutive songs of Usher confessing to his lady and begging for forgiveness because he’s been a piece of shit. Let me summarize:
Part I: Usher singing (I’m paraphrasing). Brace yourself. You’re not ready for this. It’s really bad. You ready? Seriously, this is gonna suck. I feel so bad. You’re so great. You deserve better. I’ve been fucking around. I’m so mad at myself for what a cheating piece of shit I am. I know you’re mad. I can’t look myself in the mirror. I’m such a liar. Please forgive me. I can’t live with myself. Blah blah blah.
Part II: Also, she’s pregnant. In the middle of the track, Usher actually speaks, “This is by far the hardest thing I think I’ve ever had to do. To tell you, the woman I love, that I’m having a baby by a woman that I barely even know. I hope you can accept the fact that I’m man enough to tell you this, and hopefully you’ll give me another chance. This ain’t about my career, this ain’t about my life. This is about us. Please.” The line, “I hope you can accept the fact that I’m man enough to tell you this,” literally makes me laugh out loud. What an arrogant bastard. I’m man enough to tell you this but not man enough to keep my dick in my pants and you need to accept that. The worst part of both of these songs is they both feel like humblebrags…but that’s not exactly the right term. He’s like, “Aw man, I’m so sorry. I really messed up. I messed up so bad I have to sing two songs to tell everyone how much ass I’m getting.” The problem is, despite the absurd lyrical content, Part II is kind of the shit. The melody and vocals bounce all over that beat and Usher has never sounded better. I just can’t stand the idiotic shit he’s singing with over-the-top sincerity. It’s excruciating. If I finally start my theoretical podcast Too Close: An In-Depth Analysis of 90s R&B Lyrics, “Confessions, Pt. II” will definitely get its own episode even though it was released in 2004.
Favorite track: I’m going deep on this one, but “Bad Girl” is my jam on Confessions. I know there are bigger hits, but when in doubt, go with the funkiest song.
Will I listen to Confessions again? I’m sure that I will, but I’ll probably do the same thing I do every time I listen to it. I’ll laugh at how stupid “Confessions” is and think, “I should be listening to 8701 instead.” I’m better off picking the half dozen or so songs from this album that I really like, then adding them to an Usher playlist and shuffling it. I rarely make it through this whole album.
Would I buy it on vinyl? I actually did once, but I sold it during my vinyl purge a few years ago. Didn’t listen to it enough to keep it.
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