Confessions is the fourth studio album by American singer Usher. It was released on March 23, 2004, by Arista Records. Recording sessions for the album took place during 2003 to 2004, with its production handled by his longtime collaborator Jermaine Dupri, along with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Lil Jon, among others. Primarily an R&B album, Confessions showcases Usher as a crooner through a mixture of ballads and up-tempos, incorporating musical genres of dance-pop, hip hop and crunk. The album's themes generated controversy about Usher's personal relationships; however, the album's primary producer Jermaine Dupri claimed the album reflects Dupri's own personal story.

Now and Forever: the Hits is the first compilation album by American R&B/hip hop girl group TLC. Via Arista Records, it was released on September 30, 2003, in Japan, November 24, 2003 in the United Kingdom and with a late release on June 21, 2005 in North America.

Mama's Gun is the second studio album by American singer Erykah Badu. It was recorded between 1999 and 2000 at Electric Lady Studios in New York and released on November 21, 2000, by Motown Records. A neo soul album, Mama's Gun incorporates elements of funk, soul, and jazz styles. It has confessional lyrics by Badu, which cover themes of insecurity, personal relationships, and social issues. The album has been viewed by critics as a female companion to neo soul artist D'Angelo's second album Voodoo (2000), which features a similar musical style and direction. Critics have also noted that while Badu's first album Baduizm contained its share of cryptic lyricism, Mama's Gun is much more direct in its approach, and places the artist in a subjective position more than its predecessor.

Toni Braxton received generally mixed to positive reviews from music critics. Ron Wynn from Allmusic found that her debut had Braxton, "an elegant and earthy songstress, nicely balancing those seemingly divergent sentiments [...] Braxton's husky, enticing voice sounds hypnotic, dismayed, and disillusioned [...] but she's never out of control, indignant, or so anguished and hurt that she fails to retain her dignity." He rated the album four and a half stars out of five. Los Angeles Times critic Connie Johnson gave Toni Braxton three ouf of four stars, and wrote: "Sounding like an unlikely hybrid of Phyllis Hyman, Anita Baker and Tracy Chapman, Braxton’s sultry, earthy delivery makes her a standout in today’s R&B arena." Similarly, People found that "when Braxton slides into her lower register she echoes Anita Baker, and when she skips around the higher notes there’s also a hint of Whitney Houston. The influences are there, but Toni Braxton is most definitely her own woman. On this sophisticated, stylish and soulful album, she slates her case."

CrazySexyCool is the second studio album by American girl group TLC. Released by LaFace Records on November 15, 1994, the album peaked at three on the Billboard 200 and spent over two years on the Billboard album charts, The album spawned two Billboard Hot 100 number one singles, including the worldwide smash hit, "Waterfalls", and earned them two Grammy Awards.

8701 - третий студийный альбом американского певца Ашера, выпущенный лейблом Arista Records 7 августа 2001 года в Северной Америке.

The album was initially planned to be more "energetic" than his previous work, but ended up presenting a wide range of styles such as R&B, pop, reggae, rock, disco, funk and soul music. Lyrically, Unorthodox Jukebox revolves around the theme of relationships, incorporating more explicit lyrics and subjects than his previous material. Critical response to Unorthodox Jukebox was generally favorable; many reviewers compared Mars's work to that of his previous album, while others deemed its lyrics shallow.

Unorthodox Jukebox is the second studio album by American singer and songwriter Bruno Mars. It was released on December 7, 2012, by Atlantic Records and was made available to listen to in its entirety for a week before its release. It serves as the follow-up to Mars's debut record Doo-Wops & Hooligans (2010). Mars's writing and production team, the Smeezingtons, composed the whole record and worked with several past collaborators, Jeff Bhasker and Supa Dups, while enlisting new producers, such as Mark Ronson and Emile Haynie, and no guest vocalists.

Doo-Wops & Hooligans is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Bruno Mars. It was released on October 4, 2010, by Atlantic and Elektra Records and was made available to listen before its official release on September 24, 2010. After the release of the EP It's Better If You Don't Understand, Mars's writing and production team, the Smeezingtons, began working on the album with Needlz, Supa Dups and Jeff Bhasker as producers. The album title was chosen to reflect simplicity and appeal to males and females.

The Writing's on the Wall is the second studio album by American girl group Destiny's Child, released on July 27, 1999, by Columbia Records. The album was produced by Missy Elliott, Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, Rodney Jerkins, and Beyoncé Knowles among others and included guest appearances from rapper Missy Elliott and R&B trio Next. The Writing's on The Wall spawned four singles, including the US number one-hits "Bills, Bills, Bills" and "Say My Name" as well as "Bug a Boo" and "Jumpin', Jumpin'". This is the last album with the group's original line-up. The album saw the group taking creative control from writing and producing their own tracks working closely with producer and singer-songwriter Xscape member Kandi Burruss. "Bills, Bills, Bills" and "Bug a Boo" were among the first songs written and produced by the group.

Mind Adventures is the debut album by British soul singer-songwriter Des'ree. It was released on 17 February 1992 on the Sony Soho Square record label, and features the UK top 20 hit, "Feel So High". The album became Des'ree's first top 40 album, peaking at number 26 on the UK Albums Chart.
The album was not released in the USA at the time. It got a belated release on 4 April, 1995, after Des'ree's second album I Ain't Movin' had been released there the previous year and the artist was achieving success with the single "You Gotta Be". Since "Feel So High" had been included on the USA edition of I Ain't Movin', the USA edition of Mind Adventures excluded it from its track list.

Ignore the silly "Mr. D.J." intro and you'll discover that Haddon is a bright new presence in the realm of hip-hop gospel who seeks to blend old-school musical values with funky modern production. The thumping grooves and smooth backing vocals behind Haddon's passionate pleas on "D.D." summarize the overall vibe here. Secular audiences can enjoy the beats and his rangy, soulful voice, but he's definitely Christ-centered in his themes. He's not always overly preachy. On the dreamy light funk ballad "Ain't Got Nothing," he's a little more general in his spiritual message, simply explaining that material gain without true love is meaningless.