I'll always prefer the paper-thin euphemisms of modern R&B over bottle-poppin, Cristal-sippin hip hop. Yes, I know that R&B post-1980s is created in the hip hop idiom -- and I love hip hop -- but to me, R&B is uniquely innocent and seductive. Just listen to the smooth rhythm of Aaliyah's classic, seasoned with one-and-a-half-entendres like "work the middle" and "change positions." Not altogether subtle, but her sensual voice and delivery create the perfect storm of sex, humor, and groove. And "you get me where I'm going" will never not be a clever line.
I confess that I didn't really "get" Aaliyah for a long time. Her death at age 22 was tragic and horrible. But I didn't always understand why her music career was mourned so profoundly. Surely she was talented, and she had some great songs, but her voice couldn't rival Mariah, Monica, or even a young Beyonce, right? How could I have been so wrong?! So ignorant? One day last year, it just clicked. I heard this song on the radio and I finally got it: a little of R&B perished that day with Aaliyah. After she died, smooth jams like this were largely relegated to urban radio, and "lover man R&B" (and lover woman, too) was ghettoized. Urban music superstars like Mary J. Blige and Usher had more success with pop songs. If you want to remember just how bleak mid-2000s mainstream music was, check out some of the top artists of the era: T-Pain, Nickelback, Chris Brown, Flo Rida, and Black Eyed Peas. (This is to say nothing about the pop music scene today, dominated as it is by Euro-dance-pop napalm that destroys all of the subtlety in its path.) I think we should thank our lucky stars for Mariah's "We Belong Together," Mary's "Be Without You," and Beyonce's first three albums.
It's not that R&B disappeared with Aaliyah. Many female artists were still recording great stuff, especially Jill Scott, Angie Stone, Bey, Erykah Badu. But there was no replacement for a sexy-smart woman with a silky voice who could kill a sex jam to DEATH like Aaliyah. After all this time, I miss her confidence, her sweet and gentle voice, and great songs like this one.
