Unpredictable review

Years before he scored an Oscar Jamie Foxx was already an accomplished pianist

When it comes to film vs. music, Jamie Foxx has a somewhat surprising perspective. His music career is no new project; in fact, it was the opening act of his entire life in show business. In his youthful daydreams, he was collecting gold records, not Academy Awards. Years before he scored an Oscar for his dead-on portrayal of Ray Charles, Foxx was already an accomplished pianist, earning paychecks at fifteen as the musical director of the New Hope Baptist Church in his hometown of Terrell, Texas. Recently – encouraged by his buddy Kanye West – Foxx sang the hooks on two chart-topping singles, Twista's Slow Jamz and West's Gold Digger. Now he hopes to ride that momentum with Unpredictable, a seductive R&B album where Foxx managed to assemble a line-up of guests that reads like a Billboard Top Ten chart – West, Snoop Dogg, Mary J. Blige, Ludacris, and Twista all add their flavors to Unpredictable, with production by Timbaland, Babyface and others. Foxx says that these collaborations all came together naturally. He notes that these artists all share a drive and passion he was able to relate to and learn from.

Foxx co-wrote six songs on Unpredictable

Foxx began recording Unpredictable nearly three years ago between juggling roles in Stealth, the recently released Jarhead, and the just-wrapped Miami Vice. During the recording process, he worked to strike a happy medium between his old-school R&B influences (including Prince and Zapp) and contemporary hip-hop faves (such as Young Jeezy and 50 Cent), without letting the Ray afterglow overwhelm the proceedings. The album is led by the title track featuring Ludacris, which was penned by Harold Lilly and produced by Unusual Suspects. West returns Foxx the favor on the Unpredictable track Extravaganza. Mary J. Blige can be heard on Love Changes, while Twista lends a hand on DJ Play a Love Song. Can I Talk You Home features production from Timbaland. Foxx co-wrote six songs on the album, including the introspective Heaven and Wish U Were Here. Produced by Babyface, Heaven is dedicated to Foxx's teenage daughter. Wish U Were Here pays tribute to his beloved grandmother, who adopted and raised Foxx (born Eric Bishop).

Wide range of sounds and emotions, and a breathtaking list of guest stars

Unpredictable should not be lumped with Don Johnson's Heartbeat and Eddie Murphy's How Could It Be as a crappy-album-by-an-actor-who-thinks-he-can-sing. The album reveals an artist ready to play in R&B’s big leagues. It is a thoroughly modern R&B offering with hip-hop beats and shimmering layers. With a wide range of sounds and emotions, and a breathtaking list of guest stars adding to the mix, the one-time music student at San Diego’s United States International University finally fulfills his true dream. Foxx is quick to point out that music isn’t just a sideline to his history-making acting career. There is more Foxx music on the horizon too. He plans to tour and create mini-movies that play out behind the stage and feature well-known actors and music stars. He's also now filming an adaptation of the musical Dreamgirls, due in theaters in late 2006, with Beyonce Knowles, Eddie Murphy and Danny Glover. He also got his first solo Grammy nomination — it was for Creepin’, a song he contributed to So Amazing, a tribute album for Luther Vandross. Not only does the surprise nomination help with his new career course, it put the first-time nominee in the same male R&B vocal category as Stevie Wonder, Usher, John Legend and Mario.