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It’s been a long time coming for Ryan Leslie.

If you are like me, you’ve probably got at least one previously leaked version of what was suppose to be Ryan Leslie’s first CD on your iPod.  The one I got–a label copy–was a myriad of hen pecked songs with good intent. Lucky for us, RLes’ official effort, released today, trumps all expectations I had of him.

The lead single “Diamond Girl” was released way back in 2007. Despite its synthy, bass heavy bounce and Ryan’s rapsinging. It didn’t quite catch on. I latched on to the production but could give a damn about the vocals. [View video here.]

Album delayed.

Fast forward to 2008 and the project’s second single, “Addicted” featuring Cassie and rapper Fabolous, caught fire on urban radio because although Ryan scored on the addictive track, Cassie made it sexy and Fab gave it street cred. [Peep that video here.]

Album delayed again.

So now that we’ve got the official project in our hands, what are we to make of Ryan Leslie? After one listen I was sold. When I’d heard “How It Was Suppose To Be” on the radio, I thought it was Bilal. But to later have it revealed that the subtle falsetto with a touch of funk achieved in this soulful little ditty was this dude. I figured it couldn’t be all bad, so I put it on repeat for a few days.

Skill wise, Ryan’s vocal skills are above average (“Quicksand”, “I.R.I.N.A.”). His rap skills are passable as long as they aren’t too frequent (“You’re Fly”). But mix them together along with his ability to produce songs with the perfect blend of R&B smoothness and layers of pop-like synth and it instantly becomes interesting enough to listen to.

Seemingly, Ryan’s degree in economics from Harvard served him well with on his self titled debut because he took inventory of his strengths and dispersed them at the appropriate places and times, never singing in ranges beyond his reach and never drowning you in electronica.

After running Ryan Leslie on repeat for a few days, I gotta say it’s the most interesting music I’ve heard since T-Pain… production wise.

Cop that.

Tracklisting:

1) Diamond Girl

2) Addiction feat Cassie & Fabolous

3) You’re Fly

4) Quicksand

5) Valentine

6) Just Right

7) How It Was Supposed To Be

How It Was Supposed To Be (Military Version) from Ryan Leslie on Vimeo

8) I-R-I-N-A

9) Out Of The Blue

10) Shouldn’t Have To Wait

11) Wanna Be Good

12) Gibberish

*All Tracks Written & Produced By Ryan Leslie

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