Tyrese Is Done As A Solo Artist & Nobody Cares

I have a soft spot for R&B. I love it all, from the Jodecis to the Ty Dolla $igns. Music listeners are often so caught up in the moment that they don’t pay attention to everything around them. It’s actually an issue all music listeners have to some degree. As an R&B singer, it’s hard to fall off. I witnessed the end of Sisqo with his Last Dragon album earlier this year. I experienced a whole K-Ci & JoJo album that doesn’t even exist on my iPod anymore. And yes, even Jodeci’s reunion fell short. Other artists like Tank, Jagged Edge, and Tyrese have all put worthy albums to listen to and never received the attention it deserves.

Tyrese’s Black Rose is his final solo album. With that wording, it’s nice to know that the doors are still open for a TGT part two, or even some weird combination like Black Ty and Snoop Dogg’s Watch The Throne-like album. At the same time, it’s unfortunate that Black Rose is flying under the radar. The most press seems to be coming from his ridiculous, comedic videos promoting to the homeless and in the subway.

In the recent years, Tyrese has become more known for his role as Roman Pierce in the Fast & Furious franchise than his musical efforts. He’s in the same category we place Ice Cube, LL Cool J, and Ludacris. Unlike when The Rock leaves Hollywood to return to the squared circle for a moment, fans aren’t always welcoming an artist back when they decide to drop a new album. By then, they’ve moved on to the next thing.

His 2011 Open Invitation album has sold only 130,000 copies to date. That was with “Stay,” his hit single that peaked at #11 on the Billboard’s US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The slept-on Three Kings album between Tyrese, Ginuwine and Tank sold 76K first week, which is the same amount as Tyrese’s previous project. The projection for Black Rose is set at 50–55K. A significant drop from both his last solo and the collaborative albums, but not a drop in quality.

There’s a mix of love, lust and heartbreak on Black Rose. It’s a perfect soundtrack for love making. “Gonna Give You What You Need” has a chorus that coins it “leave it in music.” Songs like “Addict,” “Leave” and “When We Make Love” showcase Tyrese’s voice and songwriting at their finest hours. Assistance from Tank, Brandy, Snoop Dogg, Marsha Ambrosius, and more only enhance the overall experience. None of the features are necessary, instead adding toppings to the ice cream that makes up Black Rose.

I went a step further to try and spark conversation. Taking to Social media to ask past fans of Tyrese’s music if they’re checking for him in 2015 and if not, why? Twitter and Facebook were both quiet on the matter, reiterating that my circles aren’t concerned with him in this day and age. One reason could be his social media presence making him look goofy, like when he didn’t know what Pandora was. Also, both Bossip and The Urban Daily have lists of Tyrese’s worst tweets.

The biggest reason is simply that music fans move on quickly. Tyrese isn’t a consistent artist. He’s an actor who takes years to finish an album. It results in a better product, but this isn’t how people want their music most of the time. In the four years between solo albums, we’ve seen rise to The Weeknd, Jhene Aiko, August Alsina, PARTYNEXTDOOR, and countless other R&B acts. Keeping listener’s attention is a chore in this internet era.

Black Rose is an extraordinary album. They say go out on top, but it’s always a bittersweet feeling. Tyrese is only halfway leaving on a high note. The music is the best quality, and maybe even his best, complete album. The reception doesn’t feel like a grand finale, though. Tweets about Tyrese’s run as a solo artist being over are scarce. There is no #PleaseDontGoTyrese hashtags claiming the trending topics. There is just… a black rose.

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Check out some of my other pieces: OG Maco’s Intelligence, Social Media & Being Outspoken, From One Love To Another, Future’s Codeine Inspired Run, An Open Letter to Lil Wayne, and Vince Staples’ ‘Summertime ‘06’ Disappointed Me.