Title: Three Kings
Artist: TGT- Tyrese, Ginuwine, Tank
Label: Atlantic Records
Genre(s): Soul, R&B, Pop
Released: August 20, 2013
90s R&B heavy hitters, Tyrese, Ginuwine & Tank, released their first TGT group album, Three Kings, this week. After watching TGT’s televised July performance, expectations for Three Kings were low, to say the least; thus, I was slightly surprised after listening to the album. Three Kings is not a masterpiece but it is not bad at all. Most tracks displayed a level of cohesion, harmony & vocal strength from the crooners.
Three Kings opens in the bedroom with “Take It Wrong,” a lyrically simple track laced, with a heavy dose of auto-tune. Sex is the topic and each man is coming hard with the vocals—no pun intended. The best way to describe the vibe of the track is ratchet-grown-and-sexy.
“Take it Wrong” is followed up by regular ‘ol unnecessary-ratchet with “No Fun.” “No Fun” is a spin-off of Snoop’s classic “Ain’t No Fun” featuring Nate Dogg, Warren G & Kurrupt, on which the rappers rap “ain’t no fun if the homey can’t have none.” Lyrics to the TGT song include: “how was last night? Wait, I already know” and other lines that will leave most grown women shaking their heads and fast forwarding to a different track.
As one moves through Three Kings, the listener will discover mostly sex songs, a few of love songs (“I Need,” “Burn Out,” and “Our House”), and two interludes with Tyrese talking to a couple of women. Listeners will not come across any track that’s simply terrible, but “Hurry” and “FYH” do not showcase the best side of TGT. Other tracks like “Explode” and, especially, “Running Back” will have listeners and concertgoers wanting more. “Running Back” sounds like a 2013 version of Jodeci’s “Cry” and possesses a finale quality. If there was any song on the album that would be played on repeat with the music as loud as possible, it would be “Running Back.”
In short, TGT’s Three King is a solid R&B album—especially considering grown-folk R&B is a rarity these days. The strengths of the album are the chemistry of the fellas and the production quality. The weaknesses include the writing—lyrics seem to be repetitive and basic—and the inclusion of tracks & interludes that have no place on the album.
The best way to describe Three Kings is an album for single women in their late-20s & 30s who are still trying to get it in at the club and are low-key booty calls… and the mid-20-something men that they creep around with. Three Kings will be their pre-game and after the function album. Everyone else will consider the album coo.
Rating: B+
Tracks We Like: I Need, Weekend Love, Explode, Running Back, Burning Out
Track 4- I Need