R&B soul singer returns with his new single “Mr. Midnight” feat. The Colleagues from his forthcoming eighth studio album What A Time To Be In Love. The grown man’s low jam is written by Mr. DeVaughn and features production by 812LABS Media Group and L’indcis. When I heard the track’s opening instrumentation, I didn’t know where the song would go.
Thankfully once the self-proclaimed “Love King” beings to croon his way through the music, I was impressed.
DeVaughn sings lyrics such as, “Let me be your Mr. Midnight. In the midnight hour, Just call me up and I’ll satisfy you ’til tomorrow. Just call me Mr. Midnight, and that’s who I’ll be all your dirty little thoughts and your freaky little fantasies.”
Instead of coming off as crass or corny, DeVaughn is smoother than a fine cognac. The early word is that Raheem will embrace social issues on the project. If DeVaughn’s past work with Washington D.C., emcee Wes Felton on their The Crossrhodes project, I expect some great music.
What A Time To Be In Love is due for release on Friday, November 20th, via the SRG/ILS imprint.
In the meantime, “Mr. Midnight” and “Marvin Used To Say,” which will also appear on the singer’s new album, are available on all streaming platforms.
Final Grade A
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There are some albums you revisit because of nostalgia, and then there are albums you return to because they remind you just how high the standard used to be. Anita Baker’s Rapture falls into that second category. Released in 1986, the album did more than make Baker a star. It helped define what sophisticated, grown R&B could sound like without losing any soul, sensuality, or personality.
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