Self Explanatory 2022 Album

Ne-Yo

I think this is better than his last couple of albums. The best here, while not getting near his amazing best of list (edit: on further listens 'Handle Me Gently' isn't far off), beat anything I remember 'Non-Fiction' and 'Good Man' having. 'Handle Me Gently' is my pick with its dope chorus and variety in production that means it never gets boring and will be one I can see playing a lot moving forward. 'After Party', is worth mentioning as it borrows lyrics and the chorus from Tupac's 'Thug Passion'. That pre-chorus and chorus elevate that song nicely. 'Push Up' is my least favourite song with the untalented and annoying Trippie Redd feature being the main reason. The following 'Proud of You' doesn't do enough and is another letdown. The best R&B builds up and changes, just like 'Handle Me Gently' does and the low points here don't do that as well. BLEU on 'Stay Down' is another average featuring appearance, but the production change up 1:30 into it, make the song feel like two separate songs and is bubbling under the best. The opener, 'Layin' Low', isn't the greatest way to kick-off the album. The production is boring, again, the autotune mumble rap feature isn't great, however; the chorus is likeable. This is still a far cry from his best albums, 'Year of the Gentleman' and 'In My Own Words', but there is enough on 'Self Explanatory' to make is a worthy R&B album. Best Tracks: Handle Me Gently, Don't Love Me, Call Me Up, What If, Want It All or Nothing, Stay Down