NEW YORK (AP) – The last time Keri Hilson put out an album, Barack Obama was in the second year of his first term as the United States (US) president, the iPad was released and Instagram was brand new.
“On some days, I’m like that was just a blink away. But for the most part, yeah, it feels like a long time because I’ve been waiting. I felt stagnant, I felt stuck for a while, and conflicted,” said the two-time Grammy-nominated artiste. “I’m very much approaching this like I’m starting over because that’s how it feels to me. I’ve lived nine lives since I last released … I’m a whole different person.”
Hilson, the 42-year-old R&B star known for late 2000s hits like Knock You Down, featuring Kanye West and Ne-Yo. and Pretty Girl Rock released WE NEED TO TALK: LOVE on Friday.
It’s her third album, following 2010’s No Boys Allowed, and is the first of a trilogy set for release this year. Led by the sultry single Bae, the nine-track album delves into romance and introspection.
“I feel resolved, both with the art and within about stepping back into the light. So, I think that resolve kind of had to be found before I felt confident enough to release the body of work and also unleash myself to the world again,” explained Hilson, who said she’s never stopped recording. “There were songs in my past that I felt were political moves, songs I didn’t really love that I had to sing … I didn’t want to feel like that this time around.”
THE DISAPPEARANCE
One of those songs was a leaked remix to her popular 2009 single Turnin Me On featuring Lil Wayne, which peaked at number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100. Lyrics included a diss fans perceived to be aimed at Beyoncé.
Hilson, who had yet to drop her introductory album, In A Perfect World, which debuted at number four on the Billboard Top 200 and number one on Top R&B albums, claimed that she was forced to sing the lines, “She can sing / But she need to move it to the left, left,” assumed to reference Beyoncé’s Irreplaceable. She says she was threatened her album might not be released if she refused.
Last week, Hilson trended on social media following an interview with iHeartMedia’s The Breakfast Club after recalling the incident. While she has talked about it several times in the past, during that interview, the singer publicly named those involved, including producer Polow Da Don who she was signed to. She did not name singer-songwriter Ester Dean. However, after social media users tagged Dean in posts, she later identified herself.
The ending of a decade-long relationship, a lack of control over her career and the intense, never-ending backlash from the BeyHive triggered depression and led to her retreat from music.
THE COMEBACK
During her time away, the Georgia native embarked on a journey of healing that included therapy, journaling and spiritual retreats.
“There were some perspectives that I needed to uncover … untruths, beliefs that I kind of picked up or inherited about myself,” said Hilson, who shifted to acting.
Her comeback has included very selective press, avoiding what she describes as “new media” outlets such as social media-driven platforms, saying monetisation can reward the promotion of gossip or incentivise the creation of lies. The salacious blog culture of the 2010s was a driving force in fanning the flames of her perceived beef with Beyoncé, who has never publicly commented on the situation.
Hilson “can definitely operate and navigate within the realm of R&B. She has a fan base,” said founder Keithan Samuels of the popular website RatedRnB.com. “Her core fan base has matured … she can navigate within this new era of R&B where there’s a lot of diversity and sound.”
THE MUSIC
Crafted with unofficial writing camps and records created throughout the years, WE NEED TO TALK: LOVE finds Hilson delivering vulnerable lyrics over a wide range of R&B sounds.
Writing on all but one song, she avoided current R&B trends that developed during her absence, citing individuality as a key to her early success. She also believes algorithms have created a culture of musical homogeny, rather than creativity.
There are quintessential Ms Keri Baby songs like the fun, Pop&B styled Somethin (Bout U), but there’s also the introspective Naked (Love), and Say It, in which she expresses, “I won’t say I love you / ‘til you say you love me.”
“I’m very ‘girl boss’ in my life, right? When it comes to relationships, I prefer to be a lady. I prefer to be approached. … I prefer for the man to say ‘I love you’ first. I just prefer for a man to lead,” said Hilson. “I’m really a damsel – without the distress.” The bedroom mood is set on the sexy slow jam Scream, while the bright Whatever floats with beautiful stacked harmonies.
“I feel like it’s something I would have written for Whitney. And I actually wrote a song for Whitney that she never was able to record,” said Hilson, who began her career as an in-demand writer whose credits include songs for Chris Brown, Mary J Blige, Jennifer Lopez and Britney Spears. “This reminds me of a Whitney Houston record, where I think she would be now.”
Samuels of RatedRnB.com says this project is evident of the newfound control Hilson has over her career.
“It’s definitely not, to me, an attempt to have this commercial comeback … it feels more personal,” said Samuels. “The other two albums, I feel like were more catered to what was current then.”
THE FREEDOM
Hilson said she’s still open to writing for other artistes and giving away songs that may not fit her current musical era. She also has a new Lifetime movie, Fame: A Temptations Story, co-starring Keshia Chanté, premiering on April 26. Hilson said acting is now an equal part of her career. – Gary Gerard Hamilton
