| 8701 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | July 9, 2001 (2001-07-09) | |||
| Recorded | 2000–2001 | |||
| Genre | R&B | |||
| Length | 57:09 | |||
| Label | Arista | |||
| Producer | ||||
| Usher chronology | ||||
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| Singles from 8701 | ||||
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8701 is the third studio album by American singerUsher, released in the United Kingdom on July 9, 2001, and in the United States on August 7, 2001, byArista Records. Recording was handled by several producers includingThe Neptunes,Jermaine Dupri,Babyface, Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs,Mike City,Bryan Michael Cox,Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis. Although intended for an October 31, 2000 release under the titleAll About U, the album was delayed numerous times, following the leak of several tracks onto theonline music storeNapster. Usher subsequently recorded new tracks and released the album under the new title,8701, which is derived from Usher singing for the first time in his local church in 1987 and the album's US release date of August 7, 2001. The single "Can U Help Me" was supplied withWindows XP Service Pack 2 and later Windows versions to showcaseWindows Media Player 11 and higher WMP versions.
8701 takes inspiration from multiple artists, includingDonny Hathaway,Stevie Wonder,Marvin Gaye, andMichael Jackson. It follows the theme of Usher's relationship experience, along with the emotions oflove and heartache. Usher promoted the album by embarking on the supporting tour,8701 Evolution Tour in 2002, his first concert tour, to which it he performed in forty-four shows across North America. He also made appearances in television shows, includingLive! with Regis and Kelly andTotal Request Live.
8701 produced twoBillboard Hot 100 number one singles, "U Remind Me" and "U Got It Bad", along with the top three single "U Don't Have to Call". The album debuted at number four on the USBillboard 200 chart, with 210,000 copies sold in its first week.8701 has since been certified five-timesplatinum by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and has sold eight million copies worldwide as of 2010.8701 received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised Usher's vocals and development as an artist, but were ambivalent towards some of the album's material. The album earned Usher numerous awards, including aBET Award, twoGrammy Awards, and threeBillboard Music Awards.
Usher had initially planned to release the album entitledAll About U, as his third studio album on October 31, 2000. The album was to follow his successfulMy Way (1997) which to date, has sold over seven million copies.[1][2] On March 13, 2000, multiple tracks from the album had leaked on to online music storeNapster several months prior to its release, including "T.T.P.", "U R the One" and "Pop Ya Collar".[1] Following the event, the album's release was delayed twice, on December 5, 2000, to July 17, 2001.[1] During the taping ofMTV IconJanet Jackson special, Usher explained that he returned to the studios to record new songs, stating "I didn't want that to be the way my record was remembered or the way I would present that to myfans [...] It turned out a lot better" while adding that tracks that were available fordownload on the site were not going to be included on the new album.[1] With new tracks produced, Usher'spublicist announced a new name for the album, under the title8701, who claims that it is "practically a new album".[3] The origin of its new name was initially unknown, with speculation that it subsides with its US release of August 7, 2001 (8/7/01), though Usher's publicist claimed that this was purely coincidental, and was not the reasoning for the title.[3] Usher hinted that it was derived after something significant to him, and he would disclose it in the upcoming months.[3] Eventually, his spokesperson revealed that the '87' segment of the title refers to the year 1987, when Usher sang in public for the first time at his church in Atlanta, with the '01' referring to the year 2001.[4]
8701 was recorded in the United States, in the cities of Los Angeles, New York, Minneapolis and Atlanta.[3] The album's production was handled by several producers includingThe Neptunes,P. Diddy,Jermaine Dupri—who had produced the majority of Usher's previous album,My Way—Babyface, Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, Mike City,Bryan Michael Cox andJimmy Jam & Terry Lewis.[3][5] Both Jam and Lewis were asked by Usher's mother, and then manager, to contribute to8701's production, during the2000 MTV Music Awards. According to Jam, his mother had said "Oh my God, Usher's got this track and we thought you guys would be perfect to produce it".[5] Several months later, Jam and Lewis produced the song "Separated", along with multi-platinum producers Ric Atari & Daron Jones (who also wrote the record) to which the producers then turned in toL.A. Reid, who liked the track, and asked them to produce more.[5] Following this, Usher asked both producers to create a song similar to their 1985 "Tender Love", performed by R&B vocal groupForce MDs. Though he wanted it to be his own unique record, which contains a small similarity, to which Jam and Lewis created "Can U Help Me".[5] Following the completion of8701, Jam and Lewis were sent back to the studio by Reid to revamp the album's second single "U Remind Me", explaining "we already know he can dance, and he's got the style and that whole thing. But I want people to just go, he can sing.[5]
In an interview withMTV, Usher commented that lyrically,8701 represents his "soul", and elaborated by explaining that he was inspired by love and heartache; "I listen to a lot ofDonny Hathaway's,Stevie Wonder's,Marvin Gaye's andMichael Jackson's earlier records, thoseMotown greats. There's a little bit of all of that in the album. I really appreciate what music was back then as well as in the early '90s when you had artists likeTroop andJodeci, and Michael Jackson was in his prime."[6] Usher explained that the album's lyrics also reflect on what has been going on with his relationship;[7]8701 is predominantly anR&B album.[8] "Can U Help Me", is about a deep relationship to which Usher experienced.[7] "U Don't Have to Call" is ahip hop song inspired by Jackson, while "U Got It Bad" is an R&B slow-jam.[7][9][10] About "U Got It Bad", Kyle Anderson of MTV wrote that it makes use of theacoustic guitar and a "slow-burning bassline" throughout.[10] The album's lead single "U Remind Me" is also an R&B track,[11] and its lyrics is based on meeting a woman who reminds Usher of an ex-girlfriend, and therefore cannot date her.[11][12]
"Pop Ya Collar" was released from Usher's previously intended third studio albumAll About U as the first single. Following the song's leak on online music storeNapster, along with several other tracks, it was added to some editions of8701. It entered and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart,[13] but was less successful in the United States, peaking at number 60 on theBillboard Hot 100[14] and number 25 on theHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[15]8701's first official single was "U Remind Me", released on May 22, 2001.[16] The song sold nearly 100,000 copies in its opening week[4] and received positive reviews from most critics, who cited it as a highlight from the album. The song topped theBillboard Hot 100, for four consecutive weeks.[14] "U Remind Me" also reached the top five in several countries, includingFrance,[17]Belgium (Wallonia),[17]New Zealand,[17] theUnited Kingdom[18] andAustralia.[17] It has been certified platinum by theAustralian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) and gold by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ).[19][20] "I Don't Know", featuring rapper-producerP. Diddy, was planned as the album's second single. It received radio play prior to the release of "U Remind Me",[3] peaking at number 68 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and a video was to be produced in Los Angeles, directed by Diddy.[4]
The album's second single was instead "U Got It Bad", released on August 21, 2001.[21] Like its predecessor, the song topped theBillboard Hot 100 chart.[14] It was number one for a single week, before being replaced byNickelback's "How You Remind Me" for four weeks.[10] The song then returned to the top, replacing the latter song for four more weeks.[10] "U Got It Bad" also achieved chart success in other territories, reaching the top five in New Zealand,[22] Australia[22] and the UK.[23] The song has been certified five-times platinum by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[24] "U Don't Have to Call" was released as the third single on January 18, 2002.[25] It impacted the Hot 100, peaking at number three,[14] and the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, at number two.[15] It was released with P. Diddy's "I Need a Girl (Part One)" in the UK as a B-side single, and reached number four.[26] "U-Turn" was released as the album's fourth single on March 11, 2002, as an international single.[27] It reached the top ten in Belgium and Australia.[28] "Can U Help Me" was released as the album's final single on August 20, 2002.[29] It peaked at number 57 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and number 30 on the Rhythmic Top 40 chart.[30]
Usher initially planned to release his third studio album on October 31, 2000, under the titleAll About U, but due to the leak of multiple tracks several months prior to the date, it was delayed.[1] First to December 5, 2000, it was delayed again to June 17, 2001.[1] In regards to this, Usher commented that "Pushing the record back was a risk, but I thought it would build anticipation".[6]8701's final release date was July 9, 2001 in the United Kingdom[31] and August 7, 2001, onArista Records, in the United States,[32] Australia and Canada.[33][34] On the day of release of the album in the United States, to which Arista labelled as "Usher day", Usher performed the album's lead single "U Remind Me" on the showLive! with Regis and Kelly.[6] He also performed the single during the2001 BET Awards and theUnited We Stand: What More Can I Give concert atRFK Stadium in Washington D.C., which was held in tribute to the victims of theSeptember 11, 2001 attacks.[6][35] Usher appeared onTotal Request Live, attended an auto-graph signing session in aVirgin mega store, and a listening session for the album in thePlanet Hollywood restaurant.[6] Usher performed "U Got It Bad" at the2002 American Music Awards,[36] and again on June 16, 2002, at theTweeter Center along with "U Don't Have to Call" during his concert.[37]
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 67/100[38] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [8] |
| Blender | [39] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B−[40] |
| NME | [41] |
| Q | [42] |
| Rolling Stone | [43] |
| Slant Magazine | [44] |
| Vibe | 3/5[45] |
| Yahoo! Music UK | 7/10[46] |
8701 received generally positive reviews frommusic critics. AtMetacritic, which assigns anormalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received anaverage score of 67, based on 11 reviews.[47]NME's Lucy O'Brien commended Usher for producing a more mature album, that "reflects his emotional experience" writing "Versatility is the key here: staccato beats with mellifluous melody, richslow-jams and edgy harmonies – but woven through with Usher's own perspective. A winner."[41]BBC Online's Christian Hopwood also favoured the album, commenting on how Usher has developed "his producing, singing and song writing skills to a new level" noting his contribution to twelve of the seventeen tracks.[48] Dan Leroy ofYahoo! Music declared the album an improvement "over Usher's "old" new album"—All About You—and depicted it as hisbest work to-date. Leroy credited the production groupsThe Neptunes andJimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, depicting that they have done "some of their best work" on the album.[9]J. D. Considine ofBlender commented that the album "does what it's supposed to, giving Usher a grown-up R&B sound without reducing his boyish charm".[39] Kathryn McGuire ofRolling Stone described Usher's vocals as "velvety" and further wrote that "Amid all the playboy pouting and preening, Usher's vocals are impressively adaptable [...]. McGuire noted the album's primary fault is that "Usher never surrenders his meticulously groomed veneer", with every track being formulaic, or "radio-safe".[43]
Sal Cinquemani ofSlant Magazine noted the distinction between several of the album's songs with Janet Jackson's, while comparing Usher's vocals to that of another Jackson member, Michael Jackson "[...] bring out the other Jackson in Usher, bolsteringfalsetto vocal bridges on "I Don't Know" and "U Don't Have to Call" that are undeniably Pop Royalty."[44]Vibe's Jason King complimented some of the material on the album, but was disappointed with the "heavyweight producers" not producing any "masterpieces".[45] Stephen Erlewine ofAllMusic gave a positive opinion on Usher's development, writing "He looks good, his material is smooth and seductive, and he has a nice voice, even if he tends to favormelisma". Erlewine also labelled the album as "a classy, seductive affair" but was ambivalent towards its material, due to the lack of memorable tracks.[8]Entertainment Weekly'sJosh Tyrangiel said that the tracks "blend harmlessly together", but was ambivalent towards the quality of the songs produced after Usher's four-year hiatus.[49]
The album earned Usher numerous accolades. At the44th Grammy Awards he won his first Grammy, forBest R&B Vocal Performance Male (for "U Remind Me"). The following year, at the45th Grammy Awards, he won the award again, for "U Don't Have to Call". As an act Usher won several awards, including threeBillboard R&B/Hip-Hop Awards in 2002, for Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Artist, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Male Artist and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Artist,[50] and aBET Award forBest R&B Artist.[6] At the2002 Soul Train Music Awards, the album earned him an award for Male R&B/Soul Album. In December 2009, the album and its single, "U Got It Bad", were ranked as some of the best records of the 2000–2009 decade. The former was positioned at number sixty-three and the latter at number fifteen, respectively, on theBillboard 200 and Hot 100 Decade-End Charts.[51][52] In 2008, "U Got It Bad" was ranked as one of the all-time Hot 100 songs, positioned at number ninety-nine.[53]
The album debuted at number-four on the USBillboard 200 Chart selling 210,000 copies in its first week;[54] it was the second highest debut of the week, behindIsley Brothers'Eternal.[55] The album exceeded its predecessor's sales,My Way (1997), which debuted at number fifteen selling 66,000 copies in its opening week.[54] Eighteen weeks after the release of8701, it had sold 1.94 million copies, and was predicted to be on pace to out-sellMy Way, which sold 1.32 million units during the same period.[54] On the week of February 25, 20028701's total sales stood at 3.2 million and it was charted at number eleven on theBillboard 200.[56] By March 9, 2010, the album had sold 4.7 million copies in the United States, and had received a 4× platinum certification from theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[57]
The album debuted atop theCanadian Albums Chart, and spent three weeks on the chart.[58] It topped theUK Albums Chart on the week ending July 21, 2001,[59] and spent a total of 59 weeks on the chart.[60] The album was certified platinum by theBritish Phonographic Industry (BPI).[61] On theAustralian Albums Chart,8701 peaked at number seven, and remained on the chart for forty-three weeks.[62] It was certified 2× platinum by theAustralian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). The album debuted in the top five on theDanish Albums Chart andBelgium Albums Chart (Wallonia).[62] It debuted in the top ten in several countries, includingNew Zealand,The Netherlands,Switzerland andNorway.[62]8701 was the 18th best-selling album of 2001, shipping 4.4 million copies worldwide in that year according to theInternational Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI).[63] By November 2010, the album had sold over 8 million copies worldwide.[64]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Intro-Lude 8701" | Usher Raymond IV |
| 0:44 |
| 2. | "U Remind Me" |
|
| 4:26 |
| 3. | "I Don't Know" (featuringP. Diddy) |
| The Neptunes | 4:26 |
| 4. | "Twork It Out" |
| Jam & Lewis | 4:42 |
| 5. | "U Got It Bad" |
| 4:07 | |
| 6. | "If I Want To" |
| 3:46 | |
| 7. | "I Can't Let U Go" |
|
| 3:28 |
| 8. | "U Don't Have to Call" | Williams | The Neptunes | 4:29 |
| 9. | "Without U (Interlude)" | Raymond |
| 0:53 |
| 10. | "Can U Help Me" |
| Jam & Lewis | 5:35 |
| 11. | "How Do I Say" |
|
| 5:39 |
| 12. | "Hottest Thing" | Michael Flowers | Mike City | 3:49 |
| 13. | "Good Ol' Ghetto" |
|
| 4:00 |
| 14. | "U-Turn" |
|
| 3:09 |
| 15. | "U R the One" |
| Soulshock & Karlin | 3:56 |
| Total length: | 57:09 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Intro-Lude 8701" | Raymond |
| 0:44 |
| 2. | "U Remind Me" |
|
| 4:26 |
| 3. | "I Don't Know" (featuring P. Diddy) |
| The Neptunes | 4:26 |
| 4. | "Twork It Out" |
| Jam & Lewis | 4:42 |
| 5. | "U Got It Bad" |
|
| 4:07 |
| 6. | "Pop Ya Collar" | Briggs | 3:35 | |
| 7. | "If I Want To" |
|
| 3:46 |
| 8. | "I Can't Let U Go" |
|
| 3:28 |
| 9. | "U Don't Have to Call" | Williams | The Neptunes | 4:29 |
| 10. | "Without U (Interlude)" | Raymond |
| 0:53 |
| 11. | "Can U Help Me" |
| Jam & Lewis | 5:35 |
| 12. | "How Do I Say" |
|
| 5:39 |
| 13. | "Hottest Thing" | Flowers | City | 3:49 |
| 14. | "Good Ol' Ghetto" |
|
| 4:00 |
| 15. | "U-Turn" |
|
| 3:09 |
| 16. | "T.T.P." |
|
| 3:38 |
| 17. | "Separated" |
|
| 4:24 |
| Total length: | 64:55 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18. | "U Remind Me" (KC's Smooth Remix) (featuringChemistry) |
|
| 4:32 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Pop Ya Collar" (G-Force Double Bass Flex) |
|
| 5:54 |
| 2. | "U Remind Me" (Remix) (featuringMethod Man andBlu Cantrell) |
| 3:56 | |
| 3. | "U Got It Bad" (Soulpower Remix) |
| 4:03 | |
| 4. | "U Got It Bad" (Tee's Latin Remix) |
| 7:58 | |
| 5. | "U Got It Bad" (Tee's Dub) |
| 5:22 | |
| 6. | "U-Turn" (Almighty Mix) |
| 7:22 | |
| 7. | "U Don't Have to Call" (Pound Boys Boogie Vocal) | Williams |
| 6:47 |
| 8. | "U R the One" |
| Soulshock & Karlin | 3:57 |
Notes
Sample credits[65]
Credits for8701 adapted fromAllMusic.[66]
|
|
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
Decade-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[106] | 2× Platinum | 140,000^ |
| Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[107] | Platinum | 20,000‡ |
| France (SNEP)[108] | Gold | 100,000* |
| Germany (BVMI)[109] | Gold | 150,000‡ |
| Japan (RIAJ)[110] | Gold | 100,000^ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[111] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[112] reissue | Platinum | 15,000‡ |
| South Africa (RISA)[113] | Platinum | 50,000* |
| Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[114] | Gold | 20,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[115] | 2× Platinum | 600,000* |
| United States (RIAA)[116] | 5× Platinum | 5,000,000‡ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
| Region | Date | Format | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands[117][118] | July 1, 2001 | Arista Records | |
| United Kingdom[31] | July 9, 2001 | ||
| France[119][120] | July 10, 2001 | ||
| Germany[121][122] | July 30, 2001 | ||
| Australia[33][123] | August 7, 2001 | ||
| Canada[34][124] | Sony Music Entertainment | ||
| United States[32][125] | Arista Records | ||
| New Zealand[126][127] | August 13, 2001 |
{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link).Rolling Stone. Retrieved on November 7, 2010.| Studio albums | |
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| Concerts and tours | |
| Related | |
