Tag: R Kelly

audio review : TP3 [ Reloaded ] … R Kelly

audio review : TP3 [ Reloaded ] ... R Kelly

TP doesn’t really stand for 12 Play anymore. The charm of the original album is that there are only 12 songs. This one has 19, or 15 if you don’t count the Trapped In The Closet sequels. The inclusion of five Chapters instead of limiting it to one song, or perhaps hiding the set as bonus tracks, makes for an incredibly awkward playlist.

After being Saved by Jesus and doing a club dance called the backslide, R Kelly is nonetheless Reloaded. He’s Kickin It With Your Girlfriend, Touchin on her body, about to Hit It Til The Mornin. This is the worst TP in the trilogy, thanks in part to that messy Closet, but at least it sticks to raunchy romance, which fits the theme.

my rating : 3 of 5

2005

What is R Kelly’s best album?

R Kelly’s best album, as far as I’m concerned, is his fourth, or third if you don’t count the one with Public Announcement. I hate the title. Eponymous titles are silly in general and R is his second in row; he should’ve called it VIP as the Chase interlude suggests; but the music represents Kelly at his artistic peak. You can say it’s his magnum opus.

It’s also by far his longest, but most of its twenty-something songs are damn good. Would it be better if it were stripped down à la 12 Play? Certainly, but that can be said for most long albums. What I Feel; a song that should’ve been reserved for his friend Michael Jackson; is superb in any case. Down Low Double Life is another major standout.

I like TP2 and Chocolate Factory. The Happy People [ U Saved Me ] set is probably his second best. R Kelly was making mostly good albums up to that point, but he hasn’t made a good one since. The rest, from TP3 to his 12 Nights Of Christmas; all the 12 Play references suggest a music icon, legend even, longing for his glory days; are merely decent.

my vote : R

audio review : R ( album ) ... R Kelly

audio review : I Admit ( song ) … R Kelly

Why R Kelly would put out a song entitled I Admit while being publicly accused of, and potentially investigated for, real-life sex crimes; a song at least partially about said allegations; is beyond me. He stops short of confessing to an actual crime; in fact he strongly implies his innocence; and a song, even a long-ass rambling one, is just a song, but it’s not a good look.

“I admit it,” the ill-advised hook goes, “I did it.” His detractors (“haters”) will isolate those words and use them as weapons, but his sentiments aren’t lost on me. This is, from the prolific R&B artist whose album titles include Love Letter and Write Me Back, an open diary entry in which the singer; a famous one on the verge of becoming infamous; laments his life struggles.

You can say he’s playing the victim, but, in some ways, he is one. A lot of celebrities are. They’re often taken advantage of for the sake of fame and fortune and Kells is no exception. I think that’s him in “the tape”. I saw it before deepfakes. I also think he’s being falsely accused by lying-ass groupies. Don’t get me started on Jim DeRogatis and the biased news media.

my rating : 3 of 5

2018