Long a cross between
Brian McKnight and
R. Kelly, R&B's smooth -- but chiseled -- operator
Tank tips the scales toward the Kels side on his 2012 release, filling the album with dreamy, lush productions and "adults-only" lyrics that sometimes reach the level of "shameful adults only." Case in point, the pillowy soft "Compliments," which is filled with sweet nothings that escalate to innuendo, that escalates to a (puritans leave now) "camel toe" compliment when guests
T.I. and Kris Stephens join in. "I know that you cool/But what we gonna do about mine?" is the sentiment behind the misdirected bundle of bedroom encouragement called "Don't Give Up," and when
Chris Brown talks of the 100 women who want to sleep with him but "only your ass can get to me," the album is either the first bedroom effort made exclusively for guys or one of the more risky couples albums, where frank talk could either heighten or kill the mood. Still, it's in this environment that lyrics like "Since you don't appreciate her/I'm gonna please her later/Let me take that off your hands" sit comfortably, because with
This Is How I Feel, doing wrong feels so right when you drop your inhibitions. ~ David Jeffries