The Washington Times’ critic Andrew Leahey gives the album three saying, “ funky and futuristic, with adventurous pop songs that set their sights on the dance floor one minute and the bedroom the next.” STORY: Usher to Use Digital Dancers for Live-Streamed Concert Rolling Stone’s Jody Rosen offers the album 4½ out of 5 stars saying, “The only thing that rings false on Usher‘s seventh LP is the title: If there’s anyone in music who doesn’t have an identity crisis, it’s Usher Raymond the theme here, such as it is, is his own versatility. “As such, many of the songs here could just as easily be plugged into an album by any artist who traffics in making the kind of pulsating Euro-disco that conjures images of sweaty, beachside Ibizan nightclubs where white curtains billow around VIP sections drowning in bottle service - like, say, Britney Spears or Jennifer Lopez.” No wonder the urban pop superstar is looking for himself.” STORY: E3 2012: Usher Provides Choreography For ‘Dance Central 3’Ī not-so-impressed Sarah Rodman of The Boston Globe says, “One track on Usher’s latest album, out Tuesday, is credited to nine songwriters. “The album gets stranger from there, though, and 13 songs and an hour later Usher has made a convincing case for his revolution, even if it never fully comes to pass.” The album even features “the sticky doo-wop melody ripped from Billy Joel’s ‘Uptown Girl.’” Randall Roberts of Los Angeles Timesawards the album 3 stars saying, “Revolutionary? Not so much, but it’s weirder than anything Lady Gaga’s done.” The album, Roberts says, includes key music that draws on a word of styles. Usher also has a serious tone in the album, with songs such as “Sins of the Father” and “Lessons for the Lover.” Jones also mentions that while there’s plenty of explicit sex mentioned throughout the album (“Lemme See”), listeners will be surprised by “Climax” delivering something other than what the title suggests. Jones says, “where he once filled the dance floor with the crunk-fueled ‘Yeah,’ he achieves the same effect with synth-driven ‘Scream’ and energetic ‘Euphoria.’” USA Today critic Steve Jones gives the album 3½ out of four stars saying Usher‘s brand of R&B relies more on electronic music sensibilities than hip-hop. PHOTOS: Billboard Music Awards 2012 Red Carpet Arrivals The album, Aswad says, has the warm, organic feel of R&B and deep pop hooks, but also has the “pulsating low-end and shimmering keyboard flourishes of EDM.” Aswad says, “while there’s a prominent EDM sound on many of the tracks (folk, not so much), the sound has fused seamlessly with R&B, making Looking 4 Myself, at its best, a truly next-level soul album.” The collection has received mixed reviews, and has recently been made into a Laughable Lyric list from The Huffington Post.īillboard’s Jem Aswad states that in the interviews surrounding the release of Looking, Usher discussed the wide variety of music that influenced the album-from electronic dance music to Mumford & Sons. The 14-track album (18 on the deluxe edition) features artists such as Rick Ross, Pharrell, Luke Steele and A$AP Rocky. Raymond, has already resulted in three singles with “Climax,” “Scream,” and “Lemme See.”

The 33-year-old Tennessee native’s seventh album, and latest since 2010’s Raymond vs. Usher released his latest album, Looking 4 Myself, on June 12.

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