A Beginner’s Guide to the New “King of R&B,” in 10 Songs
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Singing and dancing sensation Usher Raymond IV, known mononymously as Usher, has been promising a comeback for what feels like ages—and this may be the year it finally happens. The “king of R&B,” as some call him, is nearing the end of his impressive, nearly three-year Las Vegas residency. He’s released three new singles this year, including, just this week, a song called “Boyfriend,” which is making waves for its music video starring multihyphenate entertainer and new mother Keke Palmer. There’s a juicy backstory to the collaboration: Palmer attended one of Usher’s Vegas concerts, where she was serenaded (in a perfectly professional manner, I might add) by the crooner. After a video of the incident made it to Twitter, Palmer’s (now-former) partner shamed her for wearing an outfit that he evidently felt was too revealing for a mom. The internet reacted, the couple reportedly split afterward, and Palmer is now poking fun at the real-life drama with Usher in “Boyfriend.”
But if this is the first time you’re getting a taste of the musical stylings of one of R&B’s most influential voices, then boy, do I have some homework for you. Claiming eight studio albums, nine Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hits, and 18 Billboard Top 10 entries across his 30-year career (and keep in mind, the man is only 44), Usher has mastered the art of blending genres to create a sound that leaves you wanting more. Having sold more than 100 million records, he’s one of the bestselling artists of all time. There’s a good chance you’ve heard at least a few of his songs—most likely his biggest hit, the club banger “Yeah!,” which has enlivened countless dance floors, proms, and bar mitzvahs. However, for the uninitiated, we give you the perfect playlist to acquaint yourself with the singer from Atlanta. Peace up, A-Town down!
Usher’s self-titled debut album may be his most derivative work, which makes sense, considering he was only 15 years old when it was released under the tutelage of legendary hip-hop producer P. Diddy. The singer was still finding his own sound then, but “Think of You” foreshadowed what he would later bring to the genre: a fresh 1990s hip-hop/pop soundscape that remains faithful to R&B’s roots, with many messages of forlorn longing.
It wasn’t until Usher teamed up with Jermaine Dupri—another acclaimed hip-hop and R&B producer—for the album My Way that he started to make a real name for himself. The lead single “You Make Me Wanna …” didn’t just solidify Usher’s personality, style, and place in the music industry (and on the charts)—it also jump-started his hilarious trend of making truly unserious hit songs about nefarious and/or adulterous deeds.
Make no mistake: Usher may be a talented dancer with a roster of hits at his disposal, but like most R&B disciples, he’s a crooner at heart. (My Way was named for the Frank Sinatra song, after all.) His third album, 8701, is great proof, with the Atlantan entertainer bringing the resonance of soul legends (including Donny Hathaway, Marvin Gaye, and Stevie Wonder) into the 2000s. “U Got It Bad” is the anthem for the down-bad simps among us who are so in love with someone that everything else falls by the wayside. (Including, again, our current partner? Usher, honey, I have questions.)
“U Remind Me” is required listening because it exemplifies the thing Usher is best at: making a very catchy tune about a rather funny set of circumstances. With the music video acting as supplementary storytelling, the song details Usher running up to a random girl in the mall just to tell her that he can’t date her because she looks like someone else who broke his heart previously? Sir, did she ask!?
Confessions is the crown jewel of Usher’s discography. The album showcases the singer at the height of his storytelling ability—Part 1 of the titular tale employs an in medias res narrative, whereas Part 2 is the actual beginning of the story—and the height of his industry dominance. The diamond-certified album includes the two bestselling singles of 2004, and was itself the bestselling R&B album, and bestselling album by a Black artist, of the 21st century. When I think of Usher as a defining voice of a generation and genre, it’s hard to overlook the song that gets even tweens to sing their hearts out about infidelity and secret families. The track is also a marvel of a composition, but don’t just take it from me—take it from this Reddit user, who calls it the “most complex and elaborate pop song of the past 25 years.”
Making melodramatic speeches and preambles is a classic rite of passage in R&B. But leave it to Usher to elevate that to an art: When he opens “Burn” with theatrical hedging before breaking up with the song’s subject, he changes the rhythm of one line (“it’s better for me to … let it go now”) to match the music, a gratifying, surprising move that commandeers the listener’s attention before the song has even really started. Usher’s magic can be boiled down to his attention to detail: detail that knows what your ears want to hear even when you don’t. It makes it hard not to sing along, and indeed, the song’s massive popularity is partially because “Burn” feels so good to sing—at the top of your lungs in the car, with your friends at a slumber party, under your breath on the long ride home. It also soundtracks one of the funniest episodes of animated television in existence.
Confessions is a treat of back-to-back hits—some honorable mentions include “Bad Girl” and “Superstar,” though you should really listen to the entire record—but I’d be remiss not to include Usher’s most popular collaboration. He plays extremely well with others on a track (see also “Slow Jam” with singer Monica and rapper Wale’s “The Matrimony”), but his song with fellow R&B legend Alicia Keys is a perfect capsule of nostalgia (and a perfect karaoke duet).
Whether or not this song would successfully persuade you to have sex in a nightclub is up to you, but this single, from his 2008 album Here I Stand, is an indelible marker of the end of Y2K and the beginning of the stylings of the 2010s. (No matter how time evolves, I’m just grateful Usher hasn’t given up the practice of the music-video dance breakdown.)
Raymond v. Raymond might be Usher’s most adult album, as much of it alludes to his first divorce and being a single man in a different stage of life. The standout single is the slinky ballad “There Goes My Baby,” in which he fully flexes all of his vocal prowess.
Choosing a favorite Usher song is a tall order, but if you ask me, I won’t hesitate to put “Climax” in contention. Matching the thematic crux of the song, the melody and instrumentation repeatedly summit mountains and rappel back down to create one of Usher’s most dynamic tracks. “Climax” is, smartly, one of his sparser offerings, production-wise, which really allows his vocals to soar to new heights as his emotions (and his relationship) crash to the bottom.
Because Usher is more than just a singer, a proper introduction to his body of work should include his best music videos. Here are five that encapsulate his ability to craft a world, and his top-tier dance capabilities:
“My Way”
“Yeah!”
