Confessions (Usher album)
Confessions is the fourth studio album by American singer Usher. It was released on March 23, 2004, by Arista Records. Recording sessions for the album took place during 2003 to 2004, with its production handled by his longtime collaborator Jermaine Dupri, along with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Lil Jon, among others. Primarily an R&B album, Confessions showcases Usher as a crooner through a mixture of ballads and up-tempos, incorporating musical genres of dance-pop, hip hop and crunk. The album's themes generated controversy about Usher's personal relationships; however, the album's primary producer Jermaine Dupri claimed the album reflects Dupri's own personal story.
"Superstar (Usher song)" redirects here. Not to be confused with Superstar, which was also recorded by Usher.Confessions
March 23, 2004
2003–2004
- 60:30
- 77:22 (special edition)
In the United States, the album sold 1.1 million copies in its first week. To boost sales amid threats of bootlegging, the special edition for the album was issued, which includes the single, "My Boo"; a duet with Alicia Keys. Confessions earned Usher several awards, including the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Album.
According to Billboard, it is the second-best selling album of the 2000s decade in the United States, behind NSYNC's No Strings Attached. With over eight million copies sold in 2004, the album was viewed as a sign of recovering album sales in the US, following three years of decline. It was also exemplary of urban music's commercial peak and dominance of the Billboard charts in 2004. Confessions has been certified fourteen-times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and, as of 2006, has sold over 10.3 million copies in the US and over 15 million copies worldwide;[4] making it the best-selling R&B album of the 21st century by a male artist.
Confessions' concept, production and Usher's vocal delivery received acclaim since upon its release, and in 2020 the album was ranked number 432 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list.[5]
Background and recording[edit]
When he began recording Confessions in 2003, Usher claimed he did not want to work with any new producers.[6] Production began between Usher and Jermaine Dupri, who produced his last two albums, My Way (1997) and 8701 (2001).[6] In spite of his vision, Usher stated, "With this album I chose some new producers who I figured would definitely allow me to really articulate myself in a different way ... Every album you gotta grow. You gotta look for something different."[7] Dupri also invited his frequent collaborator Bryan-Michael Cox. The album features productions by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Just Blaze, Usher's brother James Lackey, Dre and Vidal, among others.[8]
When Usher felt that the album was completed,[8] with forty recorded songs, he submitted the album to his record label, Arista.[9] However, he and the company's then-president, L. A. Reid, who listened to the record, thought something was missing in it. "You know what, there's like one or two more records that we just gotta get."[8] Usher was displeased with the decision; he felt returning to the studio was the hardest part and needed to re-motivate himself.[9] He went on recording a few more tracks with help from fellow Atlantans Lil Jon and Ludacris. Eventually, the team was able to produce songs like "Red Light" and "Yeah!". He also recorded songs with P. Diddy and The Neptunes during one of those sessions, but those songs were not released.[9]
Public reaction[edit]
After Usher and his label held a few listening parties for the album,[26] controversies spread about the mistress-impregnating concept of "Confessions Part II".[9] Although Usher did not foresee such a reaction to the album,[26] Dupri already guessed, while making the album, what the public's reaction would be: "People are gonna question [Usher] on a couple of little lyrics ..."[10] Coincidentally, Usher ended his relationship with Chilli early in 2004.[27] People speculated about their breakup given the content of the album and Usher's early interviews about its themes. With lyrics Usher admitted to have written because of his guilty conscience, people assumed that he and Chilli broke up because he was unfaithful.[27] In a February 2004 radio interview, Chilli claimed that Usher "cheated" on her, and that caused their relationship to split.[28]
Amidst widespread rumors, Usher stated, "People assume things, because as I said, I pull from my personal experiences to make my music."[10] He added that he loved Chilli, however, "... it just didn't work out. But cheating is not what caused the relationship to collide and crash ..."[27] Although "Burn" is a reference to his dying relationship with Chilli[12]—hence the title—Usher answered the press that the impregnating issue was not taken from a specific situation in his life.[11] He also revealed that his friends who went through similar situations inspired him to write those songs: "... it's just something that I collectively got energy from everybody around me that had been through it."[26] In early 2006, Dupri revealed that the story behind the album is his: "... me cheating on my steady girlfriend, having a baby with that other woman and having to confess to everything that happened to my main girl."[12]
Commercial performance[edit]
Confessions was commercially successful, selling 1.096 million copies in the United States in its first week of release.[52] It became the highest-ever first week sales by an R&B artist,[52] the second-highest first week sales for a male artist, and the seventh-highest first week sales of the recorded album charts history by SoundScan at the time of its release.[9] It also equates the combined first-week sales of his four previous album releases, including his live album called Live.[53] The feat also carved history in Arista records having the first in any of their released albums to reach such sales. The success of the thirty-year-old record label, however, was attributed to its merging with Zomba Records.[53] As of March 2013 it has the tenth highest first week album sales in history.[54]
The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, becoming Usher's first number-one album.[53] Confessions also hit number-one on the Canadian Albums Chart and the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.[55] Its early, and successive, progress on the chart was said to be partly sustained by its strong single releases and plenty of press appearances and promotions.[53] With "Yeah!" propelling the album's debut atop the chart,[53] "Burn", the second single off the album, facilitated Confessions's continuing dominance as well.[56] The first two released singles were competing on the Billboard Hot 100; the latter ended the twelve-week number-one chart run of the former.[57] As the album's third single, "Confessions Part II", was about to top the chart and Usher to join with English pop and rock group The Beatles as the only acts to achieve three consecutive number-one singles, American R&B singer Fantasia Barrino's debut single "I Believe" prevented it from happening.[58] Despite this, Usher became the first artist to top the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay with three consecutive number-one singles.[58] "Burn" achieved only eight non-consecutive weeks on the Hot 100 after "Confessions Part II" topped the chart; it became Usher's second time to replace his own single at the top.[58] "Yeah!" and "Burn" were 2004's top best-selling singles in the United States, placing at number one and two respectively on the Billboard Chart Year-Ender. Again, it honored Usher being the first act to achieve the feat since 1964 with the Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" and "She Loves You".[59]
The album continued its dominance on the chart. D12 World by D12 ended its five consecutive weeks run at the top spot;[60] however, Confessions reclaimed the position the following week.[61] The album spent a total 9 non-consecutive weeks at number one on the Billboard 200, becoming the longest-running number one album of the millennium until 2009, when country singer Taylor Swift spent 11 weeks atop the charts with Fearless.[62] Over one month after its release, Confessions was certified triple-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for three million US shipments.[63] Confessions topped the list of the most-shipped albums of 2004 in the United States and was the best selling album of the year with 7,978,594 copies sold.[64][65] Confessions was the sixth best-selling album of the 2000s decade in the US.[48] In February 2024, it reached 14 million shipments in the US, according to the Recording Industry Association of America.[66]Confessions sold over 15 million copies worldwide, making it the best-selling album by a Black artist in the 21st century.[4]
Notes
Sample credits