Versus (Usher EP)
Encyclopedia
Versus is the first extended play
by American R&B
singer Usher
. It was released on August 24, 2010 on LaFace Records
and Jive Records
in conjunction with the deluxe edition of his sixth studio album Raymond v. Raymond. Several producers from Raymond v. Raymond helped produce the EP, including Polow da Don
, Jim Jonsin
, Rico Love
, Drumma Boy
, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
, Tha Cornaboyz
and Max Martin
.
The EP debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200
chart, selling 46,000 copies in its first week. It became Usher's sixth top-ten album in the United States, and has produced two singles that achieved chart success, including the US top-thirty hit "Hot Tottie
" and international hits "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love
" and the Enrique Iglesias
collaboration "Dirty Dancer
". Internationally, it gained moderate success, with a top-twenty peak in the Canadian Albums Chart
, top-thirty and forty peaks in the French Albums Chart, German Albums Chart and Belgium Albums Chart (Flanders) and outside the top-forty in other territories. Despite some criticism towards its pop-oriented material, Versus received generally positive reviews from most music critics.
", and the Billboard number-one R&B hit "There Goes My Baby
". The EP's
track listing and album cover was revealed on July 21, 2010.
", for mainstream audiences, and "Hot Tottie
" for urban audiences. Versus tracks are included on a deluxe edition of Raymond v. Raymond, which was released in the United States conjointly with Versus, and was released in the UK on September 20, 2010.
The international version of Versus was not released as an EP, but instead as a full album on October 1, 2010. It includes the original tracks from Versus, Enrique Iglesias
collaboration "Dirty Dancer", and singles from Raymond v. Raymond, including "More", "OMG
", "Lil Freak
", "Hey Daddy (Daddy's Home)
" and "Papers
".
", featuring Pitbull
, produced by Max Martin, is the first single off the album. It was released to iTunes on July 13, 2010 and was officially sent to radio on July 20, 2010. Since its release, it has gained international success, peaking in the top 5 and 10 in the UK, Canada, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. The song received positive reviews from critics, who complemented the club vibe and the songs chorus. It became Usher's sixteenth Billboard Hot 100 top-ten hit of his career; it has reached a current peak of number-four on the Billboard Hot 100
, and number two on the US Pop Songs Chart.
"Hot Tottie
", featuring Jay-Z
, produced by Polow Da Don and written by Usher, Shawn Carter, and Ester Dean
, is the second single. It was released for urban radio on August 9, 2010. Ciara was originally reported to be on the song, but did not appear on the final track. The song received very positive reviews from critics, being considered one of the two highlights of the EP, the other being "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love
". It has currently peaked at number 9 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
chart, and number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100
.
"Lay You Down", is the third single and was sent to urban radio on September 28, 2010.
chart, with first-week sales of 46,000 copies, becoming Usher's sixth top-ten album. In its second week of release it sold 22,450 copies, and dropped to number thirteen on the Billboard 200. It then sold over 17,000 copies in its third week of release, and fell two positions to number fifteen. In its fourth week of release the album dropped one position, and sold 18,000 copies crossing the 100,000 sales mark. In its fifth week of release, the EP sold 13,000 copies, and fell to number twenty-five on the charts. This brought its total sales in the United States to approximately 117,000 copies.
The EP gained moderate to high charting positions in other countries, peaking in the top-20 in Canada
, the top-40 in Belgium
and below the top-40 in other territories.
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 65, based on 6 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Mikael Wood of Entertainment Weekly
gave the album an A- rating and commended its sexual themes, stating "'Love 'Em All' describes an egalitarian sexual appetite, while 'Lingerie' offers prime faux-Prince
boudoir
funk. The Max Martin-produced 'DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love' shows 'OMG' didn't satisfy Usher's dance-pop Jones, but he's hardly gone soft: 'Hot Tottie,' with Jay-Z, is nasty in all the right ways." Sarah Rodman of The Boston Globe
complimented its "compact running time" and stated "Instead of ho-hum filler, Versus offers the strongest arrows in Usher’s quiver". About.com
's Mark Edward Nero wrote that Usher has "regained his mojo" and stated "The bottom line is that if you're an Usher fan, this album's worth adding to your collection; nine songs - seven of them new - clocking in at 38 minutes is a good deal for this solid package of music." Steve Jones of USA Today
called Versus "an abbreviated batch of fresh songs that can stand alone or as part of a deluxe original", and complimented its "seductive club-ready jams in which [Usher] takes pleasure in the chase and, well, the pleasure". Billboard
s Gail Mitchell commended the album's guest artists and wrote that it "alternately bumps and throbs as a reinvigorated Usher further paves his comeback path"
Los Angeles Times
writer Jeff Weiss gave Versus a generally positive review, commending the song "Hot Tottie
" as "intoxicating as its namesake", but disapproved of some of the EP's generic points and pop efforts. The Washington Post
s Sean Fennessey expressed a negative response towards its pop-oriented tracks, stating "Usher works best in emotional hailstorms, not candy rain", and viewed that it "finds him in Peter Pan
mode, digging for remnants of a younger self that never existed". Andy Kellman of Allmusic noted its productions as "innocuous Euro-pop, merely passable contemporary R&B" and wrote that the EP "mostly resembles a batch of leftovers from his weakest album, even though it functioned as a momentum maintainer". Slant Magazine
's Erich Henderson panned the EP and described it as a "wretched collection of failed club-sex jams".
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
by American R&B
Contemporary R&B
Contemporary R&B is a music genre that combines elements of hip hop, soul, R&B and funk.Although the abbreviation “R&B” originates from traditional rhythm and blues music, today the term R&B is most often used to describe a style of African American music originating after the demise of disco in...
singer Usher
Usher (entertainer)
Usher Terry Raymond IV , who performs under the mononym Usher, is an American singer-songwriter, and actor. He is considered around the world to be the reigning King of R&B. Usher rose to fame in the late 1990s with the release of his second album My Way, which spawned his first Billboard Hot 100...
. It was released on August 24, 2010 on LaFace Records
LaFace Records
LaFace Records is an American record label, owned and operated by Sony Music Entertainment.-Company history:LaFace was formed in 1989 as a joint venture between the producing duo Antonio "L.A." Reid & Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, and Arista Records. The combined nicknames of the duo's successful...
and Jive Records
Jive Records
Jive Records was a record label based in New York City, operating under RCA Music Group. Jive was primarily known for a string of successes with hip hop artists in the 1980s, and in teen pop and boy bands in the late 1990s. The word "jive" was inspired by Township Jive, a form of South African...
in conjunction with the deluxe edition of his sixth studio album Raymond v. Raymond. Several producers from Raymond v. Raymond helped produce the EP, including Polow da Don
Polow Da Don
Polow-Freache Jamal Fincher Jones , better known by known by professional name Polow da Don or Awesome Jones, is an American record producer, songwriter, rapper, and singer. His cousin is Atlanta singer Monica. He has produced for a variety of artists including Usher, Nelly, Christina Aguilera, T.I...
, Jim Jonsin
Jim Jonsin
James Scheffer, better known by his professional name, Jim Jonsin, is an American Grammy award winning record producer, songwriter, record executive, and entrepreneur...
, Rico Love
Rico Love
Richard Preston Butler, Jr. , better known by his stage name Rico Love, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. Love wrote and produced hit records such as Usher’s "There Goes My Baby" and "Hey Daddy ”, Nelly's "Just a Dream" and "Gone", Beyoncé Knowles' "Sweet Dreams"...
, Drumma Boy
Drumma Boy
Christopher James Gholson, better known by his stage name Drumma Boy, is a multi-platinum award winning record producer and rapper from Memphis, Tennessee.-Early life:...
, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
James Samuel "Jimmy Jam" Harris III and Terry Steven Lewis are an American R&B and pop-music songwriting and record production team...
, Tha Cornaboyz
Tha Cornaboyz
-Production credits:*Usher - Lay You Down*B5 - So Incredible, U Got Me*Ciara - Respect *Keri Hilson - High Heels, Outta My Mind, Perfect World, What Love Can Do -Production credits:*Usher - Lay You Down*B5 - So Incredible, U Got Me*Ciara - Respect (Written with Keri Hilson)*Keri Hilson - High...
and Max Martin
Max Martin
Martin Karl Sandberg, known professionally as Max Martin, is a Swedish music producer and songwriter. Raised in Stenhamra, a suburb of Stockholm, Sweden, he broke through as a producer and songwriter in the mid to late 1990s after crafting a string of hits for pop artists like the Backstreet Boys,...
.
The EP debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart, selling 46,000 copies in its first week. It became Usher's sixth top-ten album in the United States, and has produced two singles that achieved chart success, including the US top-thirty hit "Hot Tottie
Hot Tottie
"Hot Tottie" is a song by recording artist Usher. It was written by Usher, Ester Dean, Jay-Z and Polow da Don, with the latter producing it. The song features guest vocals from rapper Jay-Z and background vocals by Ester Dean. It is the second single in the United States and Canada from his EP,...
" and international hits "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love
DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love
"DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" is a song by recording artist Usher and features guest vocals from American rapper Pitbull. It was written by Savan Kotecha, Pitbull, Shellback and Max Martin, with the latter two producing it. It is the first single from Usher's EP, Versus...
" and the Enrique Iglesias
Enrique Iglesias
Enrique Iglesias is a Spanish pop music singer, a son of singer Julio Iglesias.Enrique started his musical career on Mexican label Fonovisa...
collaboration "Dirty Dancer
Dirty Dancer
"Dirty Dancer" is a song by Spanish recording artist Enrique Iglesias and American recording artist Usher, recorded for Iglesias' sixth studio album, Euphoria, and included on Usher's EP Versus. A remix of the song, which features American rapper Lil Wayne, was released on May 9, 2011 by Universal...
". Internationally, it gained moderate success, with a top-twenty peak in the Canadian Albums Chart
Canadian Albums Chart
The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS...
, top-thirty and forty peaks in the French Albums Chart, German Albums Chart and Belgium Albums Chart (Flanders) and outside the top-forty in other territories. Despite some criticism towards its pop-oriented material, Versus received generally positive reviews from most music critics.
Background
Usher announced on July 8, 2010, a follow-up album to his sixth studio album Raymond v. Raymond called Versus. Versus, called "the last chapter of Raymond v. Raymond", will explore the subjects of being newly single and a father. The EP contains 8 new tracks, a re-produced remix of "Somebody to LoveSomebody to Love (Justin Bieber song)
"Somebody to Love" is a song performed by Canadian recording artist Justin Bieber. The song served as the second single from his album, My World 2.0. It was written by Bieber along with Heather Bright and The Stereotypes, and produced by the latter. The song was originally recorded as a demo by...
", and the Billboard number-one R&B hit "There Goes My Baby
There Goes My Baby (Usher song)
"There Goes My Baby" is a song by American recording artist Usher. It was written by James Scheffer, Frank Romano, Danny Morris, and Rico Love, with the latter producing the song with Jim Jonsin. The song was first released as the second promo single for his sixth studio album, Raymond v...
". The EP's
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
track listing and album cover was revealed on July 21, 2010.
Release and promotion
The album was released on August 24, 2010 in the United States. The set was preceded by the singles "DJ Got Us Fallin' in LoveDJ Got Us Fallin' in Love
"DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" is a song by recording artist Usher and features guest vocals from American rapper Pitbull. It was written by Savan Kotecha, Pitbull, Shellback and Max Martin, with the latter two producing it. It is the first single from Usher's EP, Versus...
", for mainstream audiences, and "Hot Tottie
Hot Tottie
"Hot Tottie" is a song by recording artist Usher. It was written by Usher, Ester Dean, Jay-Z and Polow da Don, with the latter producing it. The song features guest vocals from rapper Jay-Z and background vocals by Ester Dean. It is the second single in the United States and Canada from his EP,...
" for urban audiences. Versus tracks are included on a deluxe edition of Raymond v. Raymond, which was released in the United States conjointly with Versus, and was released in the UK on September 20, 2010.
The international version of Versus was not released as an EP, but instead as a full album on October 1, 2010. It includes the original tracks from Versus, Enrique Iglesias
Enrique Iglesias
Enrique Iglesias is a Spanish pop music singer, a son of singer Julio Iglesias.Enrique started his musical career on Mexican label Fonovisa...
collaboration "Dirty Dancer", and singles from Raymond v. Raymond, including "More", "OMG
OMG (song)
"OMG" is a song by American recording artist Usher. The song features will.i.am, who also wrote and produced the song. It uses the auto-tune effect in several lines, as well as Jock Jams-esque sports arena chanting. It was released on March 22, 2010 as the first worldwide single off his sixth...
", "Lil Freak
Lil Freak
"Lil Freak" is a song by American recording artist Usher, taken from his sixth studio album, Raymond v. Raymond. Featuring guest vocals by Trinidadian recording artist Nicki Minaj, the song was written by her, Usher, Ester Dean, Blac Elvis and Polow da Don, the latter two producing the track...
", "Hey Daddy (Daddy's Home)
Hey Daddy (Daddy's Home)
"Hey Daddy " is a song by American R&B singer, Usher. The song is the first single in the United States from Usher's sixth studio album Raymond v. Raymond, following the buzz single "Papers". The song was written by longtime Usher collaborator Rico Love, Usher, Plies and The Runners and it was also...
" and "Papers
Papers (song)
"Papers" is a song by American recording artist Usher. The song was a buzz single for his sixth studio album Raymond v. Raymond. It was written by Usher, Alonzo "Gorilla Zoe" Mathis, Sean Garrett and Zaytoven, and was produced by the latter two. Although it was never identified as a track from the...
".
Singles
"DJ Got Us Fallin' in LoveDJ Got Us Fallin' in Love
"DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" is a song by recording artist Usher and features guest vocals from American rapper Pitbull. It was written by Savan Kotecha, Pitbull, Shellback and Max Martin, with the latter two producing it. It is the first single from Usher's EP, Versus...
", featuring Pitbull
Pitbull (rapper)
Armando Christian Pérez , better known by his stage name Pitbull, is an American rapper, singer-songwriter and record producer. His first recorded performance was from the Lil Jon album Kings of Crunk in 2002, after which he released his debut album in 2004 titled M.I.A.M.I. under TVT Records...
, produced by Max Martin, is the first single off the album. It was released to iTunes on July 13, 2010 and was officially sent to radio on July 20, 2010. Since its release, it has gained international success, peaking in the top 5 and 10 in the UK, Canada, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. The song received positive reviews from critics, who complemented the club vibe and the songs chorus. It became Usher's sixteenth Billboard Hot 100 top-ten hit of his career; it has reached a current peak of number-four on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, and number two on the US Pop Songs Chart.
"Hot Tottie
Hot Tottie
"Hot Tottie" is a song by recording artist Usher. It was written by Usher, Ester Dean, Jay-Z and Polow da Don, with the latter producing it. The song features guest vocals from rapper Jay-Z and background vocals by Ester Dean. It is the second single in the United States and Canada from his EP,...
", featuring Jay-Z
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter , better known by his stage name Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is one of the most financially successful hip hop artists and entrepreneurs in America, having a net worth of over $450 million as of 2010...
, produced by Polow Da Don and written by Usher, Shawn Carter, and Ester Dean
Ester Dean
Ester Renay Dean is an American singer and songwriter, and record producer signed to Zone 4 Records/Interscope Records. She is most notable for her dual appearance on Rio: Music From The Motion Picture and her 2009 US hit single "Drop It Low", which featured singer Chris Brown...
, is the second single. It was released for urban radio on August 9, 2010. Ciara was originally reported to be on the song, but did not appear on the final track. The song received very positive reviews from critics, being considered one of the two highlights of the EP, the other being "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love
DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love
"DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" is a song by recording artist Usher and features guest vocals from American rapper Pitbull. It was written by Savan Kotecha, Pitbull, Shellback and Max Martin, with the latter two producing it. It is the first single from Usher's EP, Versus...
". It has currently peaked at number 9 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
chart, and number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
.
"Lay You Down", is the third single and was sent to urban radio on September 28, 2010.
Commercial performance
The EP debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart, with first-week sales of 46,000 copies, becoming Usher's sixth top-ten album. In its second week of release it sold 22,450 copies, and dropped to number thirteen on the Billboard 200. It then sold over 17,000 copies in its third week of release, and fell two positions to number fifteen. In its fourth week of release the album dropped one position, and sold 18,000 copies crossing the 100,000 sales mark. In its fifth week of release, the EP sold 13,000 copies, and fell to number twenty-five on the charts. This brought its total sales in the United States to approximately 117,000 copies.
The EP gained moderate to high charting positions in other countries, peaking in the top-20 in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, the top-40 in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and below the top-40 in other territories.
Critical response
Versus received generally positive reviews from most music critics. At MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 65, based on 6 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Mikael Wood of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
gave the album an A- rating and commended its sexual themes, stating "'Love 'Em All' describes an egalitarian sexual appetite, while 'Lingerie' offers prime faux-Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
boudoir
Boudoir
A boudoir is a lady's private bedroom, sitting room or dressing room. The term derives from the French verb bouder, meaning "to be sulky" or boudeur, meaning "sulky".- In architecture :...
funk. The Max Martin-produced 'DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love' shows 'OMG' didn't satisfy Usher's dance-pop Jones, but he's hardly gone soft: 'Hot Tottie,' with Jay-Z, is nasty in all the right ways." Sarah Rodman of The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
complimented its "compact running time" and stated "Instead of ho-hum filler, Versus offers the strongest arrows in Usher’s quiver". About.com
About.com
About.com is an online source for original information and advice. It is written in English, and is aimed primarily at North Americans. It is owned by The New York Times Company....
's Mark Edward Nero wrote that Usher has "regained his mojo" and stated "The bottom line is that if you're an Usher fan, this album's worth adding to your collection; nine songs - seven of them new - clocking in at 38 minutes is a good deal for this solid package of music." Steve Jones of USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
called Versus "an abbreviated batch of fresh songs that can stand alone or as part of a deluxe original", and complimented its "seductive club-ready jams in which [Usher] takes pleasure in the chase and, well, the pleasure". Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
s Gail Mitchell commended the album's guest artists and wrote that it "alternately bumps and throbs as a reinvigorated Usher further paves his comeback path"
Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
writer Jeff Weiss gave Versus a generally positive review, commending the song "Hot Tottie
Hot Tottie
"Hot Tottie" is a song by recording artist Usher. It was written by Usher, Ester Dean, Jay-Z and Polow da Don, with the latter producing it. The song features guest vocals from rapper Jay-Z and background vocals by Ester Dean. It is the second single in the United States and Canada from his EP,...
" as "intoxicating as its namesake", but disapproved of some of the EP's generic points and pop efforts. The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
s Sean Fennessey expressed a negative response towards its pop-oriented tracks, stating "Usher works best in emotional hailstorms, not candy rain", and viewed that it "finds him in Peter Pan
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie . A mischievous boy who can fly and magically refuses to grow up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the small island of Neverland as the leader of his gang the Lost Boys, interacting with...
mode, digging for remnants of a younger self that never existed". Andy Kellman of Allmusic noted its productions as "innocuous Euro-pop, merely passable contemporary R&B" and wrote that the EP "mostly resembles a batch of leftovers from his weakest album, even though it functioned as a momentum maintainer". Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine is an online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York Film Festival.- History :...
's Erich Henderson panned the EP and described it as a "wretched collection of failed club-sex jams".
Track listing
Sample credits- "Get in My Car" samples Leon RussellLeon RussellClaude Russell Bridges , known professionally as Leon Russell, is an American musician and songwriter, who has recorded as a session musician, sideman, and maintained a solo career in music....
and Marc BennoMarc BennoMarc Benno is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Benno was a member of The Asylum Choir with Leon Russell in the late 1960s, and launched a solo career in the early 1970s, with his 1972 effort Ambush being the most commercially successful...
's song "Mr. Henri the Clown". - "Lil Freak" samples Stevie WonderStevie WonderStevland Hardaway Morris , better known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and activist...
's 1973 "Living for the CityLiving for the City"Living for the City" is a 1973 hit single by Stevie Wonder for the Tamla label, from his Innervisions album. Reaching #8 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart and #1 on the R&B chart, the record is driven by a slow bass synth groove that manages to exude a certain amount of tension, an appropriate...
".
Personnel
Credits for Versus adapted from Allmusic.- The Avila Brothers - Producer
- Bobby Ross Avila - Synthesizer, Bass, Guitar, Strings, Composer, Vocoder, Fender Rhodes
- Issiah J. Avila - Composer
- Walid Azami - Photography
- Marc Benno - Composer
- Charlie Bisharat - Strings
- Benny Blanco - Drums, Keyboards, Programming, Remix Producer, Remix Engineer
- Heather Bright - Composer
- Al Burna - Vocal Engineer
- Shawn Carter - Composer
- Dru Castro - Harp
- Lysa Cooper - Stylist
- Tom Coyne - Mastering
- Ian Cross - Engineer
- Lisa D. Dandlinger - Strings
- Paul Dawson - Composer
- Esther DeanEster DeanEster Renay Dean is an American singer and songwriter, and record producer signed to Zone 4 Records/Interscope Records. She is most notable for her dual appearance on Rio: Music From The Motion Picture and her 2009 US hit single "Drop It Low", which featured singer Chris Brown...
- Composer - Aubry "Big Juice" Delaine - Engineer
- Aubry Delaine - Composer
- Lamar Edwards - Keyboards
- Lauren Evans - Vocals (bckgr)
- Bernard Freeman - Composer
- Serban Ghenea - Mixing
- Christopher "Drumma Boy" Gholson - Composer, Programming, Producer
- Matty Green - Assistant
- John Hanes - Mixing
- James Harris III - Composer
- Jennifer L. Heilig - Strings
- Patrick Hewlett - Assistant
- Sam Holland - Engineer
- Bob Horn - Mixing
- Hot Sauce - Keyboards
- Jimmy Jam - Strings, Producer
- Jaycen Joshua - Mixing
- Jamal Jones - Composer
- Jim Jonsin - Keyboards, Programming, Producer
- Josh Mosser - Engineer
- Savan Kotecha - Composer
- Songa Lee - Strings
- Jeremy "J Boogs" Levin - Remix Production Coordinator
- Terry Lewis - Composer, Producer
- Giancarlo Lino - Assistant
- Rico Love - Composer, Vocals, Producer
- Ryon Lovett - Composer
- Marjan Malakpour - Stylist
- Rob Marks - Engineer, Mixing
- Matt Marrin - Engineer
- Max Martin - Composer, Producer, Instrumentation
- Thurston McCrea - Assistant
- Andrew Mezzi - Assistant
- Danny Morris - Composer, Keyboards
- Dwayne Nesmith - Composer, Keyboards, Programming, Producer
- Alec Newell - Engineer
- Anthony Palazole - Assistant
- Joel Pargman - Strings
- Alexander "Prettyboifresh" Parhm, Jr. - Composer, Producer
- Nicole Patterson - Make-Up
- Jonnetta Patton - Artist Development
- Armando C. Perez - Composer
- Mark Pitts - Executive Producer
- Polow da Don - Producer
- Shawn Porter - Groomer
- Usher Raymond - Composer, Executive Producer
- Jeremy Reeves - Composer
- Tim Roberts - Assistant Engineer, Mixing Assistant
- Frank Romano - Guitar, Composer
- Ray Romulus - Composer
- Leon Russell - Composer
- Lisa Rydell - Art Direction, Design
- James Scheffer - Composer
- Shellback - Composer, Producer, Instrumentation
- Rob Skipworth - Engineer
- Brian Stanley - Mixing
- Mark "Spike" Stent - Mixing
- The Stereotypes - Vocal Producer
- Jay Stevenson - Composer, Engineer, Mixing
- Jeremy Stevenson - Engineer
- Keith Thomas - Composer
- Usher - Vocals (bckgr)
- Jason Wilkie - Assistant
- Tremaine Williams - Engineer
- Evan Wilson - Strings
- James Wisner - Engineer
- Emily Wright - Engineer
- Christine Wu - Strings
- Andrew Wuepper - Assistant
- Jonathan Yip - Composer
Charts
| Chart (2010) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgium Albums Chart (Flanders) | 38 |
| Belgium Albums Chart (Wallonia) | 59 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
12 |
| Dutch Albums Chart | 58 |
| French Albums Chart | 26 |
| German Albums Chart | 35 |
| German Downloads Chart | 7 |
| Greek Albums Chart Greek Albums Chart International Federation of the Phonographic Industry Greece or IFPI Greece is the Greek branch of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry and is the official charts provider and recording sales certification body for Greece. Currently two charts are compiled, one for sales of... |
60 |
| Italian Albums Chart | 91 |
| Mexican Albums Chart AMPROFON Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas is a non-profit organization integrated by multinational and national record companies in Mexico. Established on April 3, 1963, it groups phonographic companies that represent more than 70 percent of the market in Mexico... |
92 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 61 |
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
4 |
| US Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
3 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (2010) | Position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
186 |
Release history
| Region | Date |
|---|---|
| United States | August 24, 2010 |
| Canada | |
| Germany | October 1, 2010 |
| France | October 25, 2010 |
| Brazil | November 15, 2010 |
External links
- Versus at MetacriticMetacriticMetacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...