Creatively, R. Kelly came a long way since 1992. The Chicago singer started out his career with catchy, if conventional, new jack swing, but as the '90s progressed, he evolved into one of more interesting, risk-taking male singers in urban contemporary and neo-soul. It would be a stretch to say that Kelly is in a class with Al Green, Donny Hathaway, Stevie Wonder, or Marvin Gaye -- he's a product of a different generation and a different era, and he needs to be evaluated on his o...   [ read more ]

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R. Kelly was hardly a stranger to controversy in the early 2000s. In addition to being hit with 21 counts of child pornography in Chicago and 12 more in Polk County, FL, the beleaguered singer/producer faced various sex-related civil suits. All those scandals have, at times, overshadowed his music, which is regrettable because Chocolate Factory has a lot going for it. Emphasizing romantic slow jams, and not as ambitious or risk-taking as 1998's R. -- which is arguably Kelly's best, most essenti...   [ read more ]

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With the salacious 12 Play, R. Kelly established himself as one of the top R&B hitmakers of the mid-'90s, rivalled only by Babyface and Dr. Dre for overall consistency. 12 Play was marred by occasionally slight tunes which were obscured by the explicit sexuality of the lyrics. R. Kelly isn't hampered by those flaws, although it isn't a perfect record by any means. Throughout the album, Kelly relies on melody and grooves instead of overtly carnal imagery. But that doesn't mean he has...   [ read more ]

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