Joe Discusses The Making Of His Album, Ain’t Nothin’ Like Me

Joe

New Jersey-based singer/writer Joe has been one of the top-selling R&B/pop artists for the past decade, releasing two platinum albums, All That I Am and My Name is Joe, plus two gold albums, Better Days and And Then. He’s had such major chart hits as “Stutter,” “I Wanna Know,” “All The Things (Your Man Won’t Do)” and “Don’t Wanna Be A Player.” And Joe is also known for having sung

with Mariah Carey on her hit ballad, “Thank God I Found You.”

This month (May 2007) Joe has just released his sixth album, Ain’t Nothin’ Like Me, on Jive Records. The album is already off to an impressive start, debuting at #2 on the Billboard Pop chart and #1 on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart. The 14-song CD includes the uptempo hit “Where You At” (featuring a rap appearance by Papoose) and the classic soul ballad, “If I Was Your Man.” Ain’t Nothin’ Like Me maintains Joe’s romantic, gospel-influenced R&B style, while also mixing in more hip-hop elements. Besides Papoose, the album also features guest rap performances by Nas, Fabolous, Dre, plus Tony Yayo & Young Buck from the group, G-Unit.

In a new interview, Joe talked about his new album, and how he worked with top writer/producers such as Bryan-Michael Cox, Sean Garrett, Stargate (Tor Erik Hermansen & Mikkel Eriksen), Tim & Bob and the Underdogs (Harvey Mason Jr. & Damon Thomas). He also discussed his current U.S. concert tour with fellow R&B star Brian McKnight, and how he will also be touring Japan, Australia and Africa later this year. Lastly, when asked, he gives advice to young artists who are trying to break into the music business.

Ain’t Nothing Like Me is Joe’s first album release since And Then in 2003. “I think the album shows me reaching a new maturity level,” explained Joe. “With this new album, I want people to feel how real it is, and how much respect I have for the music. Hopefully, the music will inspire new generations of music fans and artists.”

Although Joe is also known to be an accomplished songwriter and producer (he did co-write five songs on this CD), he mostly decided to focus on his singing and just making the best possible album. “I look at what the record ultimately needs,” he said. “It’s about making a great record, not about how many songs I have on the album. A lot of artists get into writing too much, and the album starts to sound the same. I like working with several different producers who can bring their own sound to the record. It gives the album more variety and dimension.”

Two of Joe’s favorite songs on the album, “If I Was Your Man” and “It’s Me,” were written by the Norwegian duo Stargate, who are known for co-writing and producing hits for Ne-Yo (“So Sick”), Beyoncé (“Irreplaceable”) and Rihanna (“Unfaithful”). “It was a blast working with Stargate,” said Joe. “They are doing something great for R&B, creating strong midtempo and uptempo songs and tracks. There’s normally a lot of slow ballads in R&B, but they bring in more uptempo grooves and sounds.”

Other favorites on the album include the title cut “Ain’t Nothin’ Like Me,” which Joe co-wrote with the Underdogs. “I also really like the ballads on the album, and I like the songs I did with Bryan-Michael Cox (“My Love,” “Go Hard” and “Feel For You”).

Now with the release of his album, Joe has launched a major U.S. tour, sharing lead billing with another acclaimed R&B vocalist, Brian McKnight. “The tour with Brian is going well,” he said. “Our managers got together and came up with the idea for this tour. It kind of reminds me of some of the [concert pairings] of the past, when Nat King Cole and Marvin Gaye used to be on one great show.”

Joe will also be undertaking an extensive, international concert tour. “I will be on tour in Japan this summer – I usually travel there for shows two or three times per year. Then after Japan I will be touring in South Africa, then to Australia, and to countries in Northern Africa.

Lastly, when asked what advice he would give to young artists who trying to break into the music business, he said: “Come in with a full package that you can control yourself. If you can write and produce your own songs, that’s great. Or be already hooked up with your own great camp of songwriters and producers. If you sign with a label and then you have to work with new people to come up with your sound and style, it’s harder. Be a leader - get in the game. Learn the business as soon as possible. A lot of artists made one great record, but didn’t have the business savvy to maintain their career.”