There’s nothing sexier than a vulnerable man. “They say that a man aint’ supposed to cry but I am crying out for you coz I see me with you forever,” he sings. He’s neither the player in “This Luv”, the man begging for forgiveness on “What you want”, threatening to leave like in “Better start talking” or the heartbroken “Where I wanna be” singer but a man thankful for the 22 years he’s spent with his wife. Here, the smooth crooner is at the peak of maturity (lyrically speaking). What a wonderful ballad befitting the album’s title. The short a capella into the intro is nothing short of a Jodeci/Shai harmonies reincarnated. There could never be a more perfect intro for an R&B album than a sexy song (complete with lazy beats) about making love. The 12-tracked album is ultimately an ode to die-hard R&B/old-school-music-ethic lovers. “Beautiful” questions love that doesn’t run skin deep, with the soulful “Sorry I Hurt You” acting as an ideal ‘Please forgive me’ song if you’re having relationship trouble. With only one outside singer featured in the entire album this is Donell’s playground where he choses to host an orgy of odes: to his mother, wife and his inspiration, Michael Jackson-all outstanding and well-done. The flow and coherence of this album (in terms of musical styles/instrumentation, mostly sweet-sounding or edgy guitar riffs) from start to finish is superb. While interviewing him in 2011, Donell talked very passionately about his home “studio sessions” and soon returning to songwriting (He’s in the past penned songs for singers like Usher and Silk). But then, they wouldn’t know that all this independence was always part of him and the grand plan. Seeing as it’s been released/produced via his label imprint CandyMan Music, anyone would say that Donell has come of age. Apart from countable R&B albums from Boyz II Men, Mint Condition, Monica and Joe I can’t point you towards a truer and more exclusive R&B album released in the past decade than Donell’s seventh studio album Forever (July 2013). At least as represented by Donell Jone’s consistency while keeping it real for the genre.
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