USA Today: Usher used to be good at crooning slyly libidinous slow jams and dance-tastic hits, like crunk treat “Yeah!” But the bulk of these 14 tracks traffic in lusty yet lackluster R&B jams lazily strewn with ooohs, grunts and generic club beats. 2.5 out of 4

New York Daily News: Of course, comparisons to a blockbuster CD like Confessions always prove a losing game for the artist. But at least Raymond v. Raymond has more verve than Here I Stand. It’s solidly listenable and Usher’s voice has never sounded more sinewy. In an age of Auto-Tune, it’s nice to hear an R&B singer who doesn’t need it, even if market forces did entice him to indulge it in that cynical will.i.am song. 2.5 out of 5

The Washington Post: Usher manages to make some great music, especially when he appears to be getting his bearings back as a single man and heartthrob. “Pro Lover” is a crackling player’s anthem, “Guilty” without the guilt, and “Okay” is a fast-paced ride.

Chicago Tribune: “Foolin’ Around” delivers a straying husband’s mea culpa, only to see his marriage end in tears and “Papers.” It’s the kind of lacerating perspective that adulthood brings, but Usher’s too busy chasing his past to fully embrace it. 2.5 out of 4

Boston Herald: Aside from those confusing confessionals, the 31-year-old is back to the playboy ways he swore he’d left behind. Usher’s 180-degree turn from devoted husband to thrill-seeking player has made his tales decidedly less believable, but it hasn’t compromised the quality of his music. B+

In a bold move proving he is not one of those celebrity types with his head stuck in the sand, Usher responded to the backlash against his man vest with humor and restraint on Twitter:

Well played, Mr. Raymond, well played. Don’t let ‘em see you sweat. This calm, light-hearted response is in stark contrast to the furious fits Chris Brown used to have over folks teasing him about his knee-high boots and slim, feminine leggings from the cover of his album “Graffitti.” Grown men can laugh about their mistakes. Little boys scowl when called out on them.

Now that he’s addressed the questionable wardrobe choice, is Usher gonna take on the criticisms slamming the not-so-great musical performance he gave at the All-Star Game? Or did he miss those tweets?

SOURCE

Like Barry White, Jodeci, and R. Kelly before him, R&B superstar Usher is the master of a very specific milieu: music for — and about — making babies. And it has certainly served him well. Since the now 29-year-old first emerged as a precocious, buttery-smooth lothario in the mid-’90s, he’s brought home five Grammys, racked up a dozen top 10 singles, and sold more than 25 million records. So what happens when one of the biggest sex symbols in the business, who last dominated the charts with 2004′s Confessions, actually settles down and makes his own? (A baby, that is.)

The newly married dad — son Usher Raymond V was born last November — is both different and entirely the same on his fifth album, Here I Stand. One moment, he’s celebrating fatherhood with ”Prayer for You” (”You carry my name/And I pray that you’re better than me”) as his little boy gurgles in the background, or he’s reciting earnest paeans to monogamy (”Before I Met You,” ”Something Special”). The next, Usher’s groin-thrusting his way through salacious bedroom grooves like ”Trading Places” and ”This Ain’t Sex.” Indeed, the already massive single ”Love in This Club” is about as libidinous as he’s ever been: ”Let’s both get undressed right here/Keep it up girl, I swear/I’ma give it to you nonstop/And I don’t care/Who’s watchin’,” he croons over producer Polow Da Don’s shuddering, sex-drenched synths. Well then, Mr. Naughty!

Amid all the back-and-forth, a certain well-known pair of newlyweds drop in — Beyoncé on the insidious, if oddly drowsy, half sequel, ”Love in This Club Part II,” and Jay-Z on the horn-laden second-chance anthem ”Best Thing” — as do Lil Wayne, Young Jeezy, and will.i.am. Ultimately, though, they’re just icing. Usher is still best when on his own, especially when he’s at his most raw. The gripping slow-burn ballad ”Moving Mountains” — in which he pleads, ”Just leave me” over and over to an emotionally remote lover — is an easy pick for a second single. And the equally helpless ”His Mistakes,” about a relationship haunted by the man who came before him, vibrates with genuine hurt and anger.

The album’s title track, a well-wrought Stevie Wonderesque throwback, doesn’t come till the end, and that’s a shame, because some listeners may already be flagging by then. At nearly 70 minutes, the disc could certainly have used a stronger editing hand, and even in his newly revelatory state, Usher remains more a smooth entertainer than an astute lyricist. Still, a good portion of Stand’s tunes deserve a place in the dance-floor pantheon — and, yes, in the bedroom, too.

The new album, due May 27, is titled “Here I Stand.” “People keep asking, ‘Is it better than ‘Confessions’? It’s a great record overall,” says Iz “He’s taking the listeners on the adventure with him.” The brothers produced the tune “Play Me” on the new Usher album. Meanwhile, Iz and Bobby — who’ve worked with such heavy hitters as Mary J. Blige, Gwen Stefani, Aretha Franklin, Mariah Carey and Missy Elliott, most recently winning two Grammys for Chaka Khan’s “Funk This” — continue to keep all burners going at once.

“We’re real excited about the two records we just finished for Sean Garrett’s new album, ‘Turbo 919,’” says Avila. “We’ve been working with Taboo from The Black Eyed Peas the last three months. We’re finishing a mix for Anthony Hamilton. His album ‘Point of It All’ is dropping during this summer. And next we’re going to be doing a couple records for Jamie Foxx.”

“I’m back on the scene and ready to do it all over again. This is going to be an incredible journey,” the chart-topper prophesizes. “It is a classic and should be remembered 20 years from now. I’m ready to shock the world.”

Yet, his loyalists were not at all surprised to learn that the pop phenom’s bounce-heavy, party starter “Love In This Club” featuring Atlanta rapper Young Jeezy had a rapid-fire ascension on Billboard’s music charts. Still as his energy surges with talks of his latest project, the anticipation hardly the cause of this first-time dad’s adrenalin rush. He’s as busy as the fancy footwork he serves up on the dance floor, infiltrating the silver screen (In The Mix, She’s All That, Light It Up), The Great White Way (Chicago), the basketball court (he’s co-owner of the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers) and as a philanthropist (and founder of New Look Organization, an Atlanta-based nonprofit which provides youth with a new outlook on life through education and real-world experience). But lately nothing has kept him more engaged than fatherhood and his family.

“My mother had dinner at our house, and all my family came in from all over. Some were newly married; some had babies,” Usher told ESSENCE back in 2005. “I was like, “Wow, where have I been? Have I missed everything?” That was a wake-up call. One of my biggest flaws is not allocating time properly to my family, because of my artistic obligation, my journey.”

Moving forward, Usher heeded his call as a husband to his wife Tameka Foster. Last September, the two got hitched and in November they welcomed their first child together, Usher Raymond V.

Undoubtedly, his personal experiences in life and love are the blueprint for his lyrical content.

“My first single takes you back to the beginning of my life story–[reintroducing] the guy who wanted to hustle and play in the club but eventually making his journey to lifetime” he says. “Life will take you through high and low valleys, give you seasons—rain and shine. Ultimately, the end of this story leads to a lifetime[ fulfilled]. That’s what this entire project is all about.”

Usher’s favorite part of his new album is an interlude dedicated to his son entitled, “Pray For You,” and he looks forward to the day when his namesake will listen to the new tribute.

“I modeled this one as an example for my son who will understand someday that when you stand for what’s right, regardless of what anyone else’s opinion may be, you are right,” he says. “No man should judge another for what he feels and stands for. Do you understand what I stand for?”

For those of us who don’t, we’ll get a hint of Usher’s ideology when he drops his melodic diary on May 27.

Here I Stand tells a story of growth; triumphant, reflective, somewhat defiant, and marks a new period in Usher’s life and creative expression. Through his music, Usher illustrates the tension and challenges of balancing a very public life with private decisions; of being a sex symbol and entertainer with being a faithful husband and father. Here I Stand finds Usher working with some of the best producers and writers around, including Polow Da Don, who produced the first hit single Love In This Club, Jermaine Dupri, Dre & Vidal and Dream & Tricky Stewart.

Although the market has changed dramatically since Usher’s last release, there is a massive anticipation for his return, demonstrated by the groundbreaking one week jump of Love In This Club from #51 to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (see story below). The follow up single Moving Mountains, provides an opportunity for multiple format single success across pop, rhythm and urban radio.

Usher once again is ready to take top spot & give his fans what he has been giving them from day one, great music!

Tentative Tracklisting (subject to change)
[Credit to UBG]
1. Intro
2. Love In This Club featuring Young Jeezy
3. This Ain’t Sex
4. Trading Places
5. Moving Mountains
6. What’s Your Name featuring will.i.am
7. Prayer For You Interlude
8. Something Special
9. Love You Gently
10. Best Thing featuring Jay Z
11. Before I Met You
12. His Mistakes
13. Appetite
14. What’s A Man To Do
15. Lifetime
16. Love In This Club Part II Usher featuring Beyoncé & Lil Wayne
17. Here I Stand