Chris Brown

The wistful romanticism and light acoustic thump of "With You" recalls Beyonce's "Irreplaceable," while the stomping aggro crunk of "Hold Up" benefits from a guest spot by Outkast's Big Boi. But the album's greatest asset is Chris Brown himself. He not only has a great voice, but he's a supremely likable dude, whether he's flirting with schoolboy sleaze ("Kiss Kiss," "Wall to Wall") or affecting love and tenderness ("I Wanna Be").

It's been a long stretch between Usher albums — long enough for Chris Brown to build a
whole career, growing from a temporary substitute to an undeniably major pop star. He
seals the deal with Exclusive, an all-grown-up album on a level with Justin Timberlake's
Justified, Rihanna's Good Girl Gone Bad or even Bobby Brown's King of Stage. "With You" is
the convincer, even if you can instantly tell that producer Stargate was just tryi... More >