Naked

A member of Immature/IMx, Marques "Batman" Houston debuted as a solo artist in 2003 with MH. Since joining Immature as a young adolescent in the early '90s, Houston has crossed over into television as a recurring cast member of Sister Sister, and he has taken on production duties with some of his IMx mates for B2K and Destiny's Child. Naked followed in April of 2005. During the interim, he appeared in Fat Albert, continued songwriting and production work and popped up on a mix of 50 Cent's Candy Shop. Whenever an album is titled Naked, the odds are pretty strong that it's the second or third release from a young solo artist who wants to get. In Marques Houston's case – a solo artist with a debut behind him – the odds are pretty strong that he means "naked" in the physical sense, not the emotional sense. Naked is no deeper than 2003's MH, which most of his fans will find perfectly acceptable. It offers a similar mix of earnest slow jams and sexually frank club tracks.

The best moments involve adequate production facsimiles of Just Blaze (12 O'Clock's marching band punch), Kanye West (the blissful All Because of You, laced with a smart Whispers sample), and The Neptunes (Something Else, where Houston's falsetto is more Michael Jackson than Pharrell Williams). Another thing that works to Houston's benefit is the shorter running time: Naked's 11 songs are a lot easier to digest than MH's 17, which also means that there's better quality control. Naked is an interesting and intriguing listen. From the slow burning feel of Sex With You to the pure honesty of Everything, Marques offers up everything we've come to expect on a typical R&B release. Listening to this album seems like it may be an attempt to outgrow his reputation as an R&B pin-up boy. By titling his album Naked Marques is coming off more as an Usher/R. Kelly lothario.

Solo artist Marques Houston has done what others said was impossible, he has created a quality, mature, and intriguing album. Despite his constant battle with breaking out of the kiddy pop circle, Naked has stimulated quit a buzz within the R&B/Hip-Hop circuit. The 23 year old from California surpasses his previous endeavors with group Imx by growing vocally and lyrically. Marques Houston has come a long way, from being the boy who wore Batman underwear on his head to sexy crooner with a fan base all cross the world. The album itself speaks volumes Marques is basically letting his fans know he has grown up and its time to bring the level of his game up. Naked is another job well done for the next in line for the Prince of R&B.