1 on the pop charts and sparked the repackaged EP Versus (“DJ Got Us Falling in Love,” “Hot Toddy”).įor a man whose music draws so much from his personal affairs, separating what’s real from what’s simply a good song can be challenging. Lately he’s re- emerged as an important pop figure partially thanks to the Euro R&B boom engineered by producers like David Guetta (Kelly Rowland’s “Commander”) and will.i.am, whose infinite synths thrust “OMG” to No. 1 singles, the 2004 disc was the last album to receive the RIAA’s diamond (10 million records sold), making Usher the final relic of the music industry’s golden era. The album’s salacious appeal was fueled by fans’ fascination with Usher’s real-life breakup with TLC sexpot Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas. If 8701 was his Off the Wall, then Confessions was his Thriller. There were 26 million albums sold to prove it. Through it all, the artist widely considered MJ’s heir apparent stubbornly insisted that he knew what he was doing. Album five, 2008’s Here I Stand, was an age-accelerating mood killer. Has R&B’s biggest triple threat since Michael Jackson lost his sex appeal? Ever since shattering his playboy image in 2007 by marrying his stylist Tameka Foster (a mother of three, almost eight years his senior), Usher has struggled to reclaim his relevance. They’re more interested in having “OMG,” a club single off his latest album, 2010’s Raymond V Raymond, as their ringtone than Usher as their wallpaper. He’s still dropping jewels (“There Goes My Baby”), still restlessly pimping (“Lil Freak,” featuring Nicki Minaj). The 32-year-old divorced father of two sons (Usher Raymond V, age 2, and Naviyd Ely, 1) is no longer the biggest star on the planet that would be Lady Gaga or Justin Bieber. Usher Raymond IV retreats here often, though these days there’s hardly much need to. It’s a modest West Hollywood hotel, con- temporary with plenty of angles. In the Zen-like garden, or perhaps in a villa. Y ou could hide out here at the Sunset Marquis. HE’S LEARNED THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FIDELITY AND MONOGAMY, BUT CAN THE SOUL MAN RECLAIM HIS LEGACY AS MICHAEL’S HEIR APPARENT?
AFTER BATTLING DRAMA, DIVORCE AND A MIDLIFE CAREER CRISIS, THE FORMER SEXED-UP SUPERSTAR IS A DADDY WITH ISSUES AND A THREE-LETTER SMASH HIT. USHER HAS COME A LONG WAY SINCE HIS JUNIOR MACK DAYS.
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