BY HANNIBAL ALEXANDER

If you feel like the current R&B scene is just recycled beats, concepts and hooks, you are not the only one! In the midst of all the tired “up in the club” tracks and sophomoric bedroom anthems, there are some R&B acts that want to progress on the R&B sound that was created in the late 80’s and 90’s. Baltimore’s up and coming R&B phenom, CR, is a singer, songwriter, producer and engineer that has gained a massive following locally with his hit singles “Know You Better”, “Dirty After Dark” and his first full length project “Show and Tell”. He describes his sound as a mix between “James Brown, Stevie Wonder, Prince, a little bit of D’Angelo and Jodeci or Boyz II Men”. CR has many influences and has managed to make his sound unique. Now collaborating with Hakim Najm, brother of T-Pain and founder of Dream Star Nappy Boy Entertainment, CR is set to make his name nationally known, and when he does he vows not to reuse the current formula for R&B success. CR wants to be the new sound everybody flocks to and he’s more than equipped to follow through.

CR, a shortened version of his DJ name Crazy, grew up in a musical home. His mother and, now minister, father performed in the D.C. singing group Brute. He has fond memories of sitting in on their rehearsals, and from a very young age he always knew he wanted to be an entertainer. From as early as 11, inspired by films like “Krush Groove” and albums like “Tougher than Leather”, CR started his move to the top by becoming a DJ.  “I didn’t wanna be the Run, I wanted to be Jam Master Jay really” he says. DJ’ing led him into rapping. “My mom sings and my dad sings so I’ve always been fiddling with singing a little bit” but by the time he decided to transition into singing, he had also gained the skill of production which became most important to him. “When I was in high school I started getting into singing but I wanted the music to sound good as well. I started with a little group, but kind of laid off that as far as singing and got real head strong into mixing and mastering. When I found out that I could really do everything myself, and I don’t need anybody else to do it, that was kind of my major push toward it”.  Ever since CR realized his gift, he hasn’t turned back.

CR released his first album “Show and Tell” in 2008, after years of doing feature work and constantly coming up with new productions. The album received critical acclaim, and spawned his first hit single “Know You Better” which at one point was the #5 most played song in Baltimore. The albums success led to other opportunities like opening concerts for the likes of Raheem Devaughn and Tank. In hindsight, CR has just a few gripes with the album and he constructively criticizes himself, “It’s a little immature as far as production level, especially compared to my new stuff”. CR’s second single, “Dirty After Dark” caught the ears of Dream Star Nappy Boy Entertainment founder Hakim Najm and through “good friendships, my manager and my publicist” a collaboration between the two came to be.

The multi-talented artist is currently hard at work on his second effort which he hopes will be out by the middle of 2011. “I’m particular about my music, so out of all the songs I have, I can say I have a good six, like an undeniable six, like I know that everyone will love the six” and the rest of the album is shaping up. CR is going for hits on this album, he explains, “I’m going for every song to be single worthy on this album”. When he steps into the R&B field he already knows how he’ll stand apart from the current line up of acts, “I see myself just focusing on being the best me that I can be and still be better than my competition”

Staying one step ahead of that competition shouldn’t be hard for CR. When asked about the current state of R&B he’s a little underwhelmed: “There’s something missing from today’s music” he starts “there’s a lot of carbon copies nowadays. To be totally honest, I miss the old days where a track had organic sounds and richer mixes and real vocal skills, not just saying something to get people to buy a drink”. Being such a hands on and meticulous artist himself (who is known to spend from 6-15 hours mastering just one song), his frustration is understandable, “let’s put some effort into this, let’s show the people what we’re really made of. Let’s expand their minds instead of the same old thing that any 2 year old can sing!” He laughs, “I mean… It’s cool that 2 year olds can sing all these songs it’s just not helping.”

Once he does make that change in the industry, CR has big dreams. His 5 year goals include “two albums, a couple of Grammys for both of those, and maybe retirement after that and then just going straight into production.” CR says he does produce “for a couple cats here out in Maryland, some in Virginia and Jersey”, but has recently been way too focused on his own efforts, though he enjoys collaborating with other artists because they give him “the freedom to do what I want and that’s the best part”. He says in the future he would love to collaborate with Boyz II Men, Stevie Wonder, Kanye West, Jay-Z, K-Ci & JoJo, Beyonce and Prince. 

CR is definitely someone our readers should take note of. His varied talents and knowledge of music makes him a perfect candidate to shake things up in the industry. His most important goal is to use his multiple talents to make a huge impact. “I love soulful music so when I sing my style basically is more like watching a dancer that can really dance, just dance freestyle… You’re amazed that they can do the stuff that they do and it seems effortless, but it’s really hard. They practice so much that they can just do it without a problem, and that’s really kinda how my music is, it’s simple to understand but difficult to do.”

Be sure to check out CR da Show’s single, “Dirty After Dark” and much more on his web site.