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My Way (Usher album)

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Untitled

My Way is the second studio album by American singer Usher. It was released on September 16, 1997 by LaFace Records, in North America. The album features guest appearances from Monica, Jermaine Dupri, and Lil' Kim. The album was supported by three singles; including these platinum-selling singles with "Nice & Slow", "My Way", and "You Make Me Wanna...".

With most of the album production by Babyface and Dupri, the album debuted at number 15 on Billboard 200 and number four on US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. The album eventually topped the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart for 3 weeks and it also peaked at number four on the Billboard 200 and became a commercial success. It was certified six times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). My Way earned Usher a nomination for Grammy-nominations and became his breakthrough album.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Village Voice(1-star Honorable Mention)[2]
Rolling Stone(unfavorable)[3]
Q[4]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[5]

My Way received generally mixed to positive reviews from music critics. In a contemporary review, The Source magazine said with My Way, "Usher proves that he's aiming to become more than just R&B music's best kept secret".[6] Asondra R. Hunter from Vibe said that Usher is sensual through his mild tone gentle tone and tasteful, refined lyrics.[7] Robert Christgau, writing in The Village Voice, cited "Just Like Me" and "You Make We Wanna..." as highlights and quippedly called Usher "the sweetest nonvirgin a mama could ask".[2] He gave My Way a one-star honorable mention,[8] indicating "a worthy effort consumers attuned to its overriding aesthetic or individual vision may well like."[9] In a negative review for Rolling Stone, David Fricke felt that the album has too many downtempo songs, and criticised the writing and production quality.[3]

In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave My Way four out of five stars and praised Usher's vocal restraint, but noted inconsistency in quality.[1] In a 2002 review, Q magazine also gave it four stars and wrote that it established Usher's reputation as a young and skillful performer of R&B slow jams.[4] Keith Harris, writing in The Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004), gave it three-and-a-half stars and said that, although Dupri's combination of hi-hat hits, acoustic-guitar arpeggios, and occasional guest raps from him and Lil Kim can inhibit the album, My Way was the work of a significant, enterprising artist.[5] Yahoo! Music's Billy Johnson Jr. credited the album for Usher's breakthrough into the music industry, and lauded the production of the three singles.[10]

Commercial performance

My Way debuted at number 15 on the US Billboard 200 chart dated October 4, 1997, selling 66,000 copies in its first week in the United States.[11][12] It entered the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums at number four on that same week.[13] The album rose to number one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums on January 10, 1998; it topped the chart for three consecutive weeks,[14] and remained on the chart for a total of seventy-five weeks.[15] My Way peaked at number four on the Billboard 200, and spent seventy-nine weeks on that chart.[16] It has since been certified six times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over six million copies in the United States.[17] It has sold six million copies in the United States and seven million copies worldwide.[18]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)ProducerLength
1."You Make Me Wanna..."
  • Jermaine Dupri
  • Manuel Seal
  • Usher
Dupri3:39
2."Just Like Me" (featuring Lil' Kim)
  • Dupri
  • Seal
  • Kimberly Jones
  • Dupri
  • Seal*
3:26
3."Nice & Slow"
  • Dupri
  • Seal*
3:48
4."Slow Jam" (featuring Monica)
Babyface4:43
5."My Way"
  • Dupri
  • Seal
  • Usher
  • Dupri
  • Seal*
3:35
6."Come Back" (featuring Jermaine Dupri)
  • Dupri
  • Seal*
3:47
7."I Will"
Williams3:55
8."Bedtime"BabyfaceBabyface4:45
9."One Day You'll Be Mine"
  • Dupri
  • Seal*
3:23
10."You Make Me Wanna..." (Extended Version)
  • Jermaine Dupri
  • Manuel Seal
  • Usher Raymond
Dupri5:19

(*) denotes co-producer.[19]

Sample credits

Personnel

Credits are adapted from Allmusic.[20]

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[31] 2× Platinum 200,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[32] Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[33] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[34] 6× Platinum 6,000,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b My Way – Usher. Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved on June 24, 2013.
  2. ^ a b Christgau, Robert (January 27, 1998). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  3. ^ a b Fricke, David (December 25, 1997). "Usher: My Way". Rolling Stone. New York. Archived from the original on December 23, 2008. Retrieved June 23, 2013. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ a b "Review: My Way". Q. London: 148. August 2002.
  5. ^ a b Harris et al. 2004, p. 839.
  6. ^ "Review: My Way". The Source. New York: 174. November 1997.
  7. ^ Hunter, Asondra R. (October 1997). "Revolutions". Vibe. New York: 170. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  8. ^ Christgau, Robert. "Album: Usher: My Way". Robert Christgau. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  9. ^ Christgau, Robert (2000). "Key to Icons". Robert Christgau. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  10. ^ Johnson Jr., Billy. "My Way". Yahoo! Music. Archived from the original on November 7, 2010. Retrieved November 7, 2010.
  11. ^ Basham, David (December 13, 2001). "Got Charts? Usher's Platinum Mine; A Tolkien Spell; An Ill-Fated Concept". MTV News. Viacom. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  12. ^ "Billboard 200". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. October 4, 1997. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  13. ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. October 4, 1997. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  14. ^
  15. ^ a b "Usher Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  16. ^ a b "Usher Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference United_StatesUsherMy_WayalbumCertRef was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  18. ^ Hopwood, Christian (2002). "Usher 8701 Review". BBC Music. BBC. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  19. ^ My Way (CD liner). Usher. LaFace Records. 1997.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  20. ^ My Way – Usher: Credits. Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved on June 24, 2013.
  21. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Usher – My Way". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  22. ^ "Usher – My Way: Awards". Allmusic. Rovi Corporations. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  23. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Usher – My Way" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  24. ^ "Lescharts.com – Usher – My Way". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  25. ^ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  26. ^ "Charts.nz – Usher – My Way". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  27. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Usher – My Way". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  28. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Usher – My Way". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  29. ^ "Usher | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
  30. ^ Geoff Mayfield (December 25, 1999). 1999 The Year in Music Totally '90s: Diary of a Decade - The listing of Top Pop Albums of the '90s & Hot 100 Singles of the '90s. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved October 15, 2010. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  31. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Usher – My Way". Music Canada.
  32. ^ "Dutch album certifications – Usher – My Way" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Enter My Way in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 2001 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
  33. ^ "British album certifications – Usher – My Way". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type My Way in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  34. ^ "American album certifications – Usher – My Way". Recording Industry Association of America.

Bibliography

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