Exclusive (CD - 2007)

Personnel: Bryan-Michael Cox, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermanson, Rob Knox, State of Emergency, The Underdogs (various instruments); Ced "Keyz" Williams, Espen Lind (guitar); James Burt (piano, organ); Loren Dawson (keyboards); Chuck Prada (conga drum); DJ Premier (scratches); James Fauntleroy, Steve Russell, Luke Boyd (background vocals).

Additional personnel: Kanye West, Lil Wayne, The Game, will.i.am, Big Boi, T-Pain.

With its muscle-flexing attitude, thumping beats, and guest spot from T Pain, "Kiss Kiss," the club single on Chris Brown's EXCLUSIVE, announces that the teenaged singer is growing up fast. He's graduating from the province of cutesy `tween pop to big league urban contemporary, joining the ranks of Usher and R. Kelley with his sexy, slinky jams.

Part of EXCLUSIVE's grown-up sound comes from top-shelf production, courtesy of Scott Storch, the Underdogs, and Will i. Am, and its roster of guests, which includes Game, Big Boi, and Kanye West. But it's Brown's command of breezy, mid-tempo ballads ("With You"), head-nodding, slow-rolling grooves ("Down"), and hands-in-the-air bangers ("Wall to Wall") that makes EXCLUSIVE a first-rate R&B ride.

The instant number one hit "Run It!" proved to be no fluke. Two other songs from Chris Brown's debut album were moderate to major hits, enabling the entertainer to become a popular music star with platinum sales, not just a brief crush for thousands upon thousands of tween-aged females. Brown's second act, released almost exactly two years after his first, takes a "don't fix it if it ain't broke" approach, offsetting the innocent and age-appropriate material with a handful of songs that are squarely placed within lil' Lothario territory. When he works with Johnta Austin and Stargate, out comes young courtship fodder that is boyish enough to be reinterpreted by squeaky clean American Idol contestant David Archuleta ("You're my sweetheart and I'm so glad that you're mine"); switch the collaborators to Jazze Pha and Lil Wayne, and you get come-ons like "You like 28s on a Hummer/'Cause you the number one stunner" and "That's it, babygirl/Put it on my zipper." The two modes have had a popularity-maximizing effect, to say the very least. Falling into the relatively edgy category, the T-Pain collaboration and lead single "Kiss Kiss" duplicated the chart success of "Run It!," and perhaps only someone as likable and harmless as Brown could get away with "And I get a little mannish, and you see the bandanna hangin'/That means I'm like a bandit." You've got to credit Brown and his songwriters and producers for cranking out another handful of easy to remember hits that cover the bases, from upbeat and carefree numbers to go-to mixtape ballads that push all the right target-demographic buttons. ~ Andy Kellman minimize