If Musiq's first CD encouraged us to tread the line between friendship and relationship, his new CD, "juslissen," explores what happens after the line is blurred.

Several songs on the new album are essentially sequels to songs in his previous CD. "Caughtup," a song about dating a young woman who he had passed over when she was still a minor, seems a sequel to "Seventeen," the song on his first CD about a minor who kept telling him that her age "didn't mean ****." Now that she's legal, it appears he's sweatin' the same girl. Musiq also remixes his own song "Girl Next Door" from his first CD.

Perhaps the most beautiful song on the CD is "halfcrazy," an apparent sequel to the hit single "Just Friends," on his debut album. Back then when he simply wanted to chill, he told his female friend "you ain't even really got to be my girlfriend." But we all know what can happen when two people who are attracted to each other become friends. They eventually crossed the line and now "things are strange."

Most of the songs portray Musiq as the sensitive-man-type. The first song, "Newness." talks about the excitement of those days when we first meet and date someone we really like. In "dontchange" Musiq professes his unconditional love for his partner even if her hair turns gray or if she gains a "little" weight. "Stoplaying," a mellow song with a catchy hook, is about a woman who's playing with his emotions. Same feeling in "onenight," and each time he shows himself vulnerable and willing to wait and learn. In fact, "time" shows him maturing to the point where he grows to respect the object of his affection.

He comes across sincere, patient, sensitive, and real. Who wouldn't want a man like that?

Most of the songs seem tailor-made for women's consumption, but "previouscats" seems to be designed to be more of a "man's song," or a song for anyone who's ever been blamed for the hurt caused by someone's previous lovers.

Some tunes take on a spiritual feel. The aptly titled "religious," for example, begins with the sound of a church organ and then converts the romantic experience into a "religious" one. "Motherfather" begins with a similar church sound. "Future," the ninth track on the CD, is an inspirational paean to dreaming. And "solong" shows our hero rejecting an overture from an attractive woman at a party in order to protect his relationship with his girlfriend. (Remember "What Kind of Man Would I Be?")

For now, my favorite song on the CD is "juslissen." Not because of the music as much as the lyrics. It's a song for the haters and others out there who want to judge without understanding. "I'm just a person like you trying to do the best that I can," he says, "and that's real." In an era where it's all too easy to judge others, those are helpful words.

Musiq's new CD is just as soulful and smooth as his first. Fans are sure to enjoy the CD, and neophytes may be lured in as well. I find that his CDs tend to grow on me. I listen to them once or twice with mild enthusiasm, but by the third or fourth revolution, I'm hooked for good.

© Copyright 2002 by Keith Boykin.