Keith Sweat

New York is the capital of hip-hop, a factory town for the dance and rap records that are
its musical identity. It is also the capital of black balladry: Dionne Warwick, her niece
Whitney Houston, her musical heir Luther Vandross and his heir Freddie Jackson are all
stylistically of the Apple. What seemed inevitable has finally begun to happen: the
crooners, who seek to escape the rattle of subway cars in a martini cloud of Ma... More >

For credentials the next big love man proffers beats on the slow ones and lyrics whose seduction strategy is never to offend. The lyrics don't define either, which is no surprise, just the usual disappointment; the beats prove Teddy Riley New York's answer to Jam & Lewis. So the fast ones are fine. They're also outnumbered. (Grade: B)