Chris Brown
X
Release Date: Sep 16, 2014
Genre(s): Pop, R&B, Dance-Pop, Contemporary R&B
Record label: RCA
Music Critic Score
How the Music Critic Score works
Buy X from Amazon
Album Review: X by Chris Brown
Satisfactory, Based on 9 Critics
Based on rating 3.8/5
Review Summary: Drown in it, "like a male mermaid. " The standard edition of Chris Brown's sixth studio LP, X swells at 17 tracks, despite the notable exclusion of "Fine China. " That song, which showcased CB at his best (i.
Based on rating 7/10
Over two years in the making, a period that involved a multitude of revisions and delays, anger management therapy, drug rehabilitation, and a jail stay for parole violation, X surfaced as Chris Brown's sixth full-length studio release in September 2014. In a way, the album is a corrective. The influence of European dance-pop, which resulted in some of Brown's most forgettable material on Fortune, is all but eliminated in favor of contemporary R&B and pop productions that tend to suit the singer better.
Based on rating 3.0/5
Regardless of their more recent failures or successes, some celebrities remain inextricably linked to a past incident instead of their craft. Names such as Ike Turner and O.J. Simpson come to mind as transcendent talents who crossed the line separating fame from infamy. There are moments on his sixth studio album X that would lead you to believe Chris Brown can vie for the title of the best pop vocalist of the current lot hoping to be considered as a modern heir apparent to Michael Jackson.
Based on rating 2.5/5
The “rule of three” refers to the number of times you multiply or divide the quantity of sexual partners a woman or man, respectively, claims to have had, since, the principle implies, ladies don't want to sound like sluts and guys don't want to sound like losers. It also sometimes refers to the universe's apparent insistence that notable events occur in groups of three, like the deaths of beloved public figures, or, say, incidences of high-profile domestic abuse. And while a new Chris Brown album isn't exactly an act of abuse (though this one's 75-minute running time and inclusion of an R.
Based on rating 2/5
Chris Brown's sixth album is adventurous musically and a total mess lyrically – it's almost defiantly oblivious to his past as a domestic-abuser. Throughout, Brown plays the victim: He pretends he's a spurned lover ("X"), claims he was lied to ("Stereotype," which opens with the line "Why are my hands bleeding?") and only engages in self-reflection on a set of sad-sack EDM tracks. It's a shame, because X is full of great beats: Brown rides a monster Diplo groove on the title track, waxes mathematical on Danja's Stevie Wonder-in-space pulse ("Add Me In") and even attempts Avicii-style folk house ("See You Around").
Based on rating 2/5
On his new album, Chris Brown gets by with a lot of help from his friends. “X,” the star’s sixth solo work, features no fewer than 12 guest stars, more than double the number Brown usually allows. Some of the artists, who range from Usher to Akon to R. Kelly, get more than just a cameo. Some ….
Opinion: Excellent
For the past 10 years, fans all around the world have literally watched Chris Brown grow from a boy into a man. Since launching his music career in 2004, the 25-year-old singer has maintained a steady career, releasing five chart-topping studio albums thus bringing us to his sixth studio effort, X. With a heap of relationship woes, stints in rehab and jail, legal battles and growing pains alon his musical journey, C.
Opinion: Very Good
“I swear to God I’m moving on!” Chris Brown shouts midway through the opening title track of X, backed by a massive Diplo drop to underscore his conviction. Of course, Brown has made this promise before without following through. Since assaulting his then-girlfriend Rihanna in 2009, his albums have continually returned to the crime, in permanent search of somebody—anybody—else to blame for the fallout.
Opinion: Mediocre
Chris Brown begins “X,” his new album, in a buck-passing mood. The opening song, the title track, begins, “If you’re only as good as the company you keep/Then I’m-a blame you for what they say about me.” For a man for whom accountability hasn’t been a strong suit, this pronouncement is both extremely troubling and completely obvious, a position statement of shrugging and deflecting. The majority of Mr.
'X'
is available now