Soul artist Eric Benét will perform at The Birchmere, the renowned music hall in Alexandria, VA, on Wednesday, June 12. Before attending the show, I would like to express my admiration for one of his most renowned ballads, “I Wanna Be Loved,” in observance of this week’s Slow Jam Saturday.
Following the considerable success of his acclaimed wedding ballad ‘Spend My Life With You,’ featured in his second album in 2001, Eric Benét faced a significant hurdle in his career. His intended release of his third studio album, ‘Better and Better,’ under the Warner Bros. Records label was met with a setback. The label opted not to proceed with the project and stipulated adherence to the R&B genre. This creative roadblock led Benét to Friday Records, a label distributed by Reprise Records, where he found the freedom to create his subsequent album, ‘Hurricane,’ which hit stores in the summer of 2005.
Benét divorce from Halle Berry was finalized in January of that year. I’ve always felt that “I Wanna Be Loved” was therapy for the singer. Benet wrote and produced the record with Demonté Posey. The production is somewhat nuanced, and the lyrics show the desire for deep, authentic love and the willingness to take risks despite past heartbreaks.
Singing in his signature falsetto, Benét pours his heart out and delivers a song. The song’s theme revolves around the yearning for authentic and lasting love. The lyrics reflect the hiss readiness to embrace love despite past difficulties and their eagerness to find a partner who will unconditionally love and understand them. As the song closes out, listeners encouraged listeners to be open to the possibilities of love and not to let past experiences hinder their pursuit of happiness.
I’ve seen Mr. Benét thrice, and “I Wanna Be Loved” always brings down the house. I look forward to hearing it live again.
Final Grade: A
“I Wanna Be Loved” is available on all streaming platforms.
After months of anticipation, Showtime returns viewers to the Windy City for one last hurrah as “The Chi” kicks off its final season. In the past, viewers longed to escape from characters disappearing and drifting storylines. However, the show has always kept me invested.
Picking up after Coop (Jon Hamm) narrowly avoids prison, the season finds him still navigating moral gray areas, even after realizing that Sam (Olivia Munn) framed him for murder. His relationship with ex-wife Mel (Amanda Peet) remains complicated—emotionally unresolved yet intentionally restrained. The show avoids easy resets, allowing its characters to grapple with the discomfort they’ve created.
Writer-director Taylor Sheridan continues to expand his creative reach into “The Treasure State” with his latest series, “The Madison”, for Paramount+. Initially conceived in 2023 as a sequel and spinoff of “Yellowstone”, the project has since evolved into a standalone story centered on the Clyburn family and their journey through grief in Montana.