BILLBOARD也来： CHRIS BROWN - THE KING OF POP？

MkGenie · 发表于 2007-6-18 00:26:18

从USHER到JUSTIN到现在的CHRIS BROWN。 KING OF POP真是用滥了

The Real Deal: Chris Brown He's always bouncing, singing, dancing, just moving in one way or another—this is well-known to anyone who's spent more than a few minutes in his presence. Recently, the young singer channeled that energy in Atlanta with songwriter/producer Sean Garrett. The two were at work recording a track for Brown's follow-up to his self-titled debut album. As Brown played with Diamond, his pitbull puppy, the two tossed around ideas for tracks. Twenty minutes later, Garrett had written a hook that popped into his head, and the two were well on their way to finishing the song "Wall to Wall." Then it was Brown's label Jive's turn to be fidgety (the album will be released on Jive/Zomba). In early May, a few weeks after the recording session—nearly four full months before the Aug. 28 street date of Brown's next album, "Exclusive"—"Wall to Wall" leaked to New York's WQHT (Hot 97). "I didn't know we were going to surprise [Jive] like that," Garrett says of "Wall," which unexpectedly became the "Exclusive" first single. "But it's giving us a great kickoff. Chris was ready to go. He's antsy." So was radio—to start playing the single. The song has climbed for five straight weeks on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, placing at No. 22 this issue. Acknowledging that the Jive team wasn't exactly thrilled by the leak, manager Tina Davis says, "My thought was to get my artist in here and go. It's not like Chris was on the same date as [labelmates] R. Kelly or T-Pain. But if we had waited three to four weeks longer, he would have been on top of another release. Look at all the male artists out now. It's more about the record than having a big launch." When Brown's first album was released, the label had a pretty clear playing field on which to develop the new artist. Justin Timberlake was still working on sophomore set "FutureSex/LoveSounds" as was Ciara with "Promise," both of which were released last year. Besides Brown, Jive boasts an enviably hot plate between Kelly (May 29) and T-Pain (June 5) followed by rising rap newcomer Lil' Mama—not to mention fourth-quarter projects by Usher and Britney Spears. That's not counting key releases from other labels, including Kelly Rowland (July 3), Mario (July 31) and Kanye West (August). In a music industry climate where the term "career artist" is becoming a rare commodity, Brown and Davis are fervently committed to bucking that notion by way of a methodical game plan, geared to propel him from teen singer to songwriter/producer to all-around adult entertainer. The early signs, thanks to "Wall to Wall," are good—little surprise to those who watched Brown burst on the scene in November 2005 with the runaway R&B/pop crossover hit "Run It!" Six weeks after its debut, his self-titled solo album struck platinum; the album went on to yield four top 10 hits (see sidebar, page 25). On one hand, Jive is pleased with the early success. "We were at a point where we would have had to be putting out a single within the next several weeks," Jive VP of urban marketing Lisa Cambridge says. "This definitely put us on an accelerated timeline. But opposed to his starting out two years ago, Chris is now playing the anchor to a lot of things that have already been set up." Of course, things weren't totally copacetic with the label. Jive had to push the recording deadline up a few weeks, to June 29. "It helps and at the same time it puts more pressure on us to get everything else completed," says Mark Pitts, president of urban music for Zomba Label Group. "Instead of six weeks we've got three weeks to get the final record." "We're at the mercy of the big producers' schedules now," Davis says of completing songs with Pharrell, Kelly, Justin Timberlake and Timbaland. "But we'll figure it out." Sitting still isn't on Chris Brown's to-do list. At one point early on a February night, he and a friend are playing a football videogame on the wall-mounted TV screen adorning a side room in Los Angeles' Chalice Recording Studio; manager Davis' miniature pinschers, Yoshi and Yoko, scamper in and out. The next moment, Brown is busy trying on custom-designed hoodies by a local entrepreneur named Smoek who also happens to cut hair and will later tend to Brown's mini-Mohawk. With the arrival of songwriter/producer Bryan-Michael Cox, an assemblage of 10-12 folks—including Davis and Cox's frequent writing partner Adonis Shropshire—saunters into the recording studio. Brown, who's on vocal rest, is previewing for Billboard several tracks being considered for "Exclusive." If first-time nominee Brown is disappointed about not winning a Grammy Award a few days before, it doesn't show. Once the rock-edged bass of the Cox-produced submission "Fallen Angel" fills the studio, Brown morphs into a dancing machine. Stationed at the far end of the studio, his tall, lanky frame gyrates and whirls in a smooth sequence of slides, twists and turns as he mouths the song's lyrics. Grabbing someone's felt hat off a table, the urban-styled Fred Astaire in low-slung jeans slickly incorporates it into his impromptu routine, alternately donning and tossing it up without missing a beat. Once the run-through of about 10 songs ends, a still wound-up Brown bounces back into the hallway and flips into a series of handstands. If infectious romp "Wall to Wall" and the other incubating tracks are any indication, Brown will skip over the dreaded sophomore jinx. Brown himself dismisses the notion of such pressure. "I'm doing this to the best of my ability, just having fun. It's like a family reunion." That's because early into the process, Davis and Pitts decided to reteam Brown with many of the same producers from the first album before stretching out a little more to the left. "The first thing we discussed was that regardless of the first album's success, Chris is still a new artist," says Pitts, who A&R'd the first project. "We didn't want to go too far left into a whole different vibe." Back onboard, in addition to Cox and Garrett, are Dre & Vidal, Scott Storch and the Underdogs. Coming in as part of the expansion team are Will.i.am, T-Pain, Stargate, Timberlake and Timbaland, Kelly and Pharrell. Containing elements of rock and go-go—the latter a nod to Brown's Virginia/Washington, D.C., roots—the previewed tracks definitely display Brown's juggling act between edgy/more mature while still satisfying the radio programmers and fans behind his success. The mix of uptempos and ballads is in keeping with Brown's energetic fusion of R&B, hip-hop and pop. The final decision as to which tracks will make the cut won't be made until after the label's recording deadline. But aside from "Fallen Angel" (co-written by Brown and Shropshire), several songs elicited praise from the studio gallery that L.A. night. One was another Cox-produced joint, "Diagnosed With Love," a midtempo number whose piano intro segues into spirited bass and hand-clap accompaniment. Calling the Underdogs-produced (and Brown co-penned) midtempo cut "Take You Down" his "grown record," Brown then jumps back into dance mode on the frenetic, syncopated drum, bass and horns that comprise Will.i.am's production of "Picture Perfect," which Brown co-wrote with Tank and Will.i.am. Brown also played a rough cut of a gospel-oriented message song, "Save Me," co-produced by David Banner and Warryn Campbell. Co-writer Brown envisions adding Mary Mary and a gospel choir on the song, which he says "made me cry" after he finished penning it. Whatever songs make the cut, Brown—signed to Universal Music Publishing Group—says he's not trying to be too grown (he turned 18 on May 5 with a celeb-dotted party at the 40-40 Club in New York). "I'm trying to be a little more mature in my songs, talking about sexuality and other subjects. But I'm not going overboard." Indeed, Brown exudes heartthrob sex appeal that is raw enough to keep young female fans screaming yet safe enough to win over their parents. Factor in his eye-catching footwork and the result is a total package that early on drew comparisons to Michael Jackson and Usher. "He was a real 15-year-old when I signed him," Pitts says. "He wasn't trying to be 21 or older. He represented something that was refreshing." It was Brown's real-deal essence that caught the attention of Davis. When she met the 15-year-old Tappahannock, Va., native, she was working as senior VP of A&R at Def Jam. "The first thing that hit me was his unique voice," Davis recalls. "There was nothing like that on the radio. And he was a handsome young man who could dance his butt off. I thought, 'This kid is a star.' " After nailing an audition for Island Def Jam chairman Antonio "L.A." Reid, Brown was set to sign with the label when a staff restructuring left Davis without a gig. When Brown asked her to be his manager, Davis began shopping him to other labels, including Warner Bros. and Atlantic. Jive, thanks to a proven promotional track record with teen acts (Spears, 'N Sync, Backstreet Boys) and a provision for Brown's schooling, sealed the deal. Pairing Brown with savvy songwriter/producers was the next step in Davis' game plan. Drawing on relationships cultivated during her 10-year tenure at Def Jam, she enlisted Storch, the Underdogs, Cool and Dre and Dre & Vidal as well as Cox and Garrett to capture—but not straitjacket—Brown's charismatic energy. "Run It!," produced by Storch, who co-wrote the dance ditty with Garrett, became a Billboard Hot 100 multiple-week chart-topper. It led off a parade of hit singles from Brown's first album: "Yo (Excuse Me Miss)," "Gimme That" and the ballad "Say Goodbye" (later featured on the "Step Up" movie soundtrack). Though "Gimme That" was a favorite of Brown and Davis, she says they went with "Run It!" because they felt it had more crossover potential. " 'Gimme That' was more hip-hop but 'Run' was the bigger record. And we chose Juelz Santana, one of Chris' favorite rappers, over a higher-profile rapper because we didn't want Chris to be overshadowed as 'that new kid' with the big-name artist." Live performance was the next step in cementing Brown's foundation. For a young artist, he has spent an inordinate amount of time on the road honing his live stage presence—an art that's largely become lost in R&B/hip-hop. Talking last year about being on the road (Billboard, June 24, 2006), Brown said, "I love it. I can't even complain; that's the main thing I love to do." Repped by Dennis Ashley at ICM, he quickly graduated to co-headliner status last year for the national Up Close & Personal tour, a 32-date package also featuring Lil' Wayne, Ne-Yo, Dem Franchize Boyz and Juelz Santana. It went on to become one of the most successful urban tours in 2006. Between May 1 and Sept. 30, 2006, 25 Brown shows netted $7.2 million and attracted 219,905. The next closest act after that during the same time period was the Black Eyed Peas with 23 shows earning $5.8 million and attracting 154,927 attendees. The result is an artist who, in a short time, comes off as a seasoned vet and knows how to entertain his audiences. "There was a commitment early on to build Chris as a live act," Jive's Cambridge says. "He's been doing an hour to 90 minutes on just one album." Davis adds, "If he's breathing heavy and tired, he's still going to give it to you natural and raw. He wants to sing so it sounds like the record." Imagewise, Davis kept it simple and clean-cut. The idea was to fill in what was missing from other younger artists without doing what everyone else was. "So he wasn't wearing a lot of jewelry. Or gold teeth. And it wasn't about Cristal and cars, which sends a wrong message in a lot of ways. Chris was the boy next door whom kids could relate to." The strategy paid off. Emblazoned with a close-up of Brown in white pants and casual jacket accented by a black T-shirt, black tennis shoes, black-trimmed white fedora, a watch and a plain silver chain, the debut album became a multiplatinum success. Capping the fast-moving year were his first Grammy nominations for best new artist and best contemporary R&B, additional primetime exposure as a performer on the Grammys telecast and forays into TV and film (see story, page 24). When Billboard catches up with Brown again, a couple of weeks after the L.A. studio listen, he is off vocal rest and in New York to meet with Zomba chief Barry Weiss and Pitts about the progress on "Exclusive." In addition to doing more songwriting, Brown has created a video concept for "Wall" that he declines to divulge. Set to begin shooting the video June 5 in L.A. with director Eric White, Brown writes his own video treatments and co-directs all his videos. "What I fought for most was for him to be part of the creative process," Davis adds. "I'm 38 and don't profess to know what teens are thinking. So why would I make all the decisions? Sometimes we bump heads, but I want to hear his opinion." The next step right now is finishing all the songs. After that, Brown, Davis and Pitts will sit down and sift through the recordings to figure out which 12-14 songs will make the album. Promotional efforts are already coming together. A fall tour promoted by Live Nation will start in October. Selected as one of People magazine's "World's Most Beautiful 2007" Brown is doing an eight-page spread in GQ and will be featured in stories for Glamour and Vanity Fair. Between bouts in the recording studio, he has finishing shooting a major role in his November-slated second feature film, "This Christmas" (see story, page 24). An appearance at the Essence Music Festival (July 5-7) in New Orleans is booked while a performance on the June 26 BET Awards is a possibility. It's a slightly hoarse Brown who gets back on the phone with Billboard in mid-May. He's been placed on vocal rest once again following performances in Australia and stateside at Atlanta radio station WVEE's spring fest. The non-lip-syncing perfectionist ("I don't like to do any of that") is still learning how to pace himself. "I'm just trying to be quiet as much as possible and not talk right now," he whispers. But that relentless energy still filters through as he talks about the sophomore bar he and labelmate T-Pain are trying to raise. "My last album was rocking. I just want to keep moving and building. T-Pain and I are the underdogs who have something to prove. We're the dynamic duo coming hard." As for what else the future holds for Brown, Cox says the young talent has kicked the door wide open. "I haven't seen someone as enthused and energetic about work since Beyoncé," the superstar producer says. "Chris Brown at 25 is going to be... I'll be scared to see him." (Source)