Music
Chris Brown
Chris Brown is a sixteen-year-old Virginia soulster riding a hot single, "Run It!," a de-crunked "Yeah!" that gets by thanks to a slinky synth beat and the mix of smooth seduction and cunning come-ons in Brown's baby-mack vocals. The rest of his debut is less provocative — full of puppy-love heartache and doe-eyed laments about being too young to hit the club, Chris Brown is innocuous enough for the Teen People set, which is part of the problem. Brown's voice suggests both Usher and a young Jacko, but his charms are often lost in the album's plush, listless production and undercooked songs.