Just like You (Keyshia Cole album)

Just like You is the second studio album by American singer Keyshia Cole. It was released by Geffen Records on September 25, 2007 in the United States. Cole started work on the project shortly after the release of her debut album, The Way It Is (2005). She consulted a variety of producers and songwriters to work with her on the album, including Missy Elliott, Bryan-Michael Cox, Scott Storch, Rodney Jerkins, The Runners, J. Wells, Pete Rock, and Soulshock. Guest vocalists include Elliott, Lil' Kim, Too $hort, Amina Harris, Anthony Hamilton, Young Dro, T.I., Chink Santana, and Piper.

Just like You
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 25, 2007
Genre
Length57:59
Label
Producer
Keyshia Cole chronology
The Way It Is
(2005)
Just like You
(2007)
A Different Me
(2008)
Singles from Just like You
  1. "Let It Go"
    Released: June 19, 2007
  2. "Shoulda Let You Go"
    Released: October 19, 2007
  3. "I Remember"
    Released: December 5, 2007
  4. "Heaven Sent"
    Released: March 27, 2008

Upon release, Just like You received mixed to positive reviews from music critics who considered it one of the better R&B albums of the year, but were critical with the abundance of ballads within the track listing. She was also dubbed by some critics as the "princess of hip-hop soul".[1][2] It was nominated for Best Contemporary R&B Album at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards that was held February 2008, but lost to Ne-Yo's Because of You (2007). As of December 2007, the album has been certified platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and remains Cole's highest-selling album to date with 1.7 million copies sold.

Conception

Cole started work on her second album shortly after the release of her debut album, The Way It Is. About the album, Cole says, "This album is more about you, inside, and how you need to get yourself together, rather than pointing at somebody else and saying, 'You don't treat me right, you don't do this.' I'm truly lovin it, I listen to it myself. The last album, I didn't really listen to until I went on tour. [Because] when you listen to your own experience, it's like, I don't wanna hear it anymore. I do write from my personal experiences, but I think it's very important to young women."[3]

Promotion

The first single off the album is "Let It Go", an upbeat club track that features Missy Elliott and Lil' Kim. The video premiered on BET's Access Granted on July 11, 2007. The second single is the Darkchild-produced "Shoulda Let You Go". The album was promoted with the second season of her reality show, Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is, which premiered on October 30, 2007.[4] "Give Me More" came in at No.1 on The Editor's List inside Cove Magazine October 2007 Issue for the top 5 Soul/R&B recordings for the month of September 2007. The album's title track was the theme for Cole's BET reality series during seasons 2 and 3.

On November 27, 2008, the album was released in Australia, titled Just Like You (International Deluxe Version). This release is a hybrid of Just Like You and The Way It Is and also features Keyshia's collaborations with P. Diddy and Sean Paul. It contains 16 songs and has a different cover to the original version of the album. On May 9, 2008, the international album had been released in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland as well.[5]

Tour

Following the album's release, Cole went on a promotional tour for the album.[6]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic72/100[7]
Review scores
SourceRating
About.com[8]
Allmusic[9]
Billboard(favorable)[10]
The Boston Globe(mixed)[11]
Entertainment WeeklyC[12]
New York Times(favorable)[13]
Rolling Stone[14]
StylusA−[15]
The Village Voice(favorable)[16]
Washington Post(favorable)[17]

Just like You received mixed to positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 72 based on 11 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[7] Album of the Year collected 3 reviews and calculated an average of 67 out of 100.[18]

Allmusic editor Andy Kellman found that "in some ways, Just Like You plays out like an album that could've only been made after Mary J. Blige's Breakthrough, [...] balancing desperation with conviction and mixing lush arrangements with penetrative melodies [...] Despite all this weirdness, this stands as a very good album by Keyshia Cole, also the point where Cole's voice grows from an occasionally powerful emotive device into a versatile instrument."[9] Similarly, Thomas Inskeep from Stylus noted that while the "album isn’t perfect," it proves "that Cole’s capable of some seriously rich, powerful art." He added: "Cole’s still finding her way, but on Just Like You it sounds as if she’s already named and claimed her voice [...] Just Like You is tough and tender like Blige’s sophomore album My Life, and while it may not quite match its predecessor’s legendary status, it’s not so far off—and it sounds like the R&B; album of the year, easily."[15]

Christian Hoard from Rolling Stone called the "album a work of engaging, pop-wise R&B;: The beats stick mostly to jumpy keyboard bounce with string stabs and other minor adornments [...] The ballads are rarely more than snoozy; Cole is at her best when she gives love a kick in the pants [...] Cole is not Mary J. Blige yet, but she certainly sounds older than her years."[14] In her review for The Boston Globe, Joan Anderman wrote that the "songstress could have used a good editor on her second album, which is bogged down by too many ballads and overly lush production. But even though Just Like You doesn't match the raw, anthemic power of her 2005 debut, The Way It Is, Cole's a singer to be reckoned with, particularly in an urban market saturated with imitators."[11] Entertainment Weekly's Neil Drumming felt that "Cole still traffics in heartache. But whereas The Way It Is relied on raw hip-hop beats, Just Like You drips with treacly strings and piano. This counterintuitive lushness smothers Cole’s modest wail on cuts like ”Heaven Sent.” The album’s best tracks are its barest."[12]

Commercial performance

One week after its release, Just like You debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 behind Rascal Flatts's Still Feels Good (2007) and at the top of Billboard's official Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, with first week sales of 281,419 copies, more than quadruple the first week of her first album The Way It Is (2005) and to Cole's best week first weeks sales as of 2018.[19] By December 2007, the album had shipped 1,000,000 copies in the United States and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[19] Just like You went on to finish 87th on the Billboard 200 and 19th on Billboard's 2007 Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums year-end chart.[20][21] As of 2010, the album has sold 1,700,000 copies in the United States.[22]

Track listing

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Just like You.[23]

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Let It Go" (featuring Missy Elliott & Lil' Kim)3:58
2."Didn't I Tell You" (featuring Too $hort)3:51
3."Fallin' Out"
4:27
4."Give Me More"
3:53
5."I Remember"
  • Cole
  • Greg Curtis
  • Curtis
4:20
6."Shoulda Let You Go" (featuring Amina Harris)
3:40
7."Heaven Sent"
  • Cole
  • Alex Francis
  • Jason Farmer
  • Lex
  • J-Vibe
  • Fair[C]
3:52
8."Same Thing (Interlude)"
  • Brown
  • Rey
1:35
9."Got to Get My Heart Back"
  • Fair
4:17
10."Was It Worth It?"
3:36
11."Just like You"
  • Cole
  • Shawn Carroll
4:06
12."Losing You" (featuring Anthony Hamilton)
  • Toxic
  • Donald Alford
3:49
13."Last Night" (featuring Diddy)
4:15
14."Work It Out"
  • Cole
  • Chanz Parkman
  • Raquel Kirby
4:04
15."Let It Go (Remix)" (featuring Missy Elliott & Lil' Kim)
  • Cole
  • Lamb
  • Knight
  • Mtume
  • Jones
  • Elliott
3:40
US iTunes edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
16."Trust (Bonus Track)"
  • Cole
  • Taylor
  • Toxic
  • Ron Fair
3:25
International deluxe edition[24]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Let It Go" (featuring Missy Elliott & Lil' Kim)3:58
2."Last Night" (featuring Diddy)
4:15
3."(When You Gonna) Give It Up to Me" (with Sean Paul)
  • Bennett
4:04
4."Love"
  • Cole
  • Curtis
  • Fair
  • Fair
4:19
5."Fallin' Out"
4:27
6."Was It Worth It?"
3:36
7."I Changed My Mind"
  • West
3:23
8."I Remember"
  • Cole
  • Greg Curtis
  • Curtis
4:20
9."I Should Have Cheated"
  • Jones
5:28
10."Heaven Sent"
  • Cole
  • Alex Francis
  • Jason Farmer
  • Lex
  • J-Vibe
  • Fair[C]
3:52
11."You've Changed"
  • Cole
  • Fair
  • Leonard Huggins
  • Rich Shelton
  • Shelton
  • Kevin Veney
  • Loren Hill
  • Fair[B]
4:17
12."Situations" (featuring Chink Santana)
4:46
13."Shoulda Let You Go" (featuring Amina Harris)
3:40
14."Give Me More"
3:53
15."Let It Go (Remix)"
  • Cole
  • Lamb
  • Knight
  • Mtume
  • Jones
  • Elliott
3:40
16."Love, I Thought You Had My Back"
  • Cole
  • Randolph Murph
  • Ralph Eskridge
  • Clarence Johnson Jr
  • Frederick Taylor
  • Toxic
  • Fair
4:10
UK edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Let It Go" (featuring Missy Elliott & Lil' Kim)3:58
2."(When You Gonna) Give It Up to Me" (with Sean Paul)
  • Bennett
4:04
3."Didn't I Tell You" (featuring Too $hort)3:51
4."Fallin' Out"
4:27
5."Give Me More"
3:53
6."I Should Have Cheated"
  • Jones
5:28
7."I Remember"
  • Cole
  • Greg Curtis
  • Curtis
4:20
8."Shoulda Let You Go" (featuring Amina Harris)
3:40
9."Heaven Sent"
  • Cole
  • Alex Francis
  • Jason Farmer
  • Lex
  • J-Vibe
  • Fair[C]
3:52
10."Same Thing (Interlude)"
  • Brown
  • Rey
1:35
11."Got to Get My Heart Back"
  • Fair
4:17
12."Was It Worth It?"
3:36
13."Just like You"
  • Cole
  • Shawn Carroll
4:06
14."Losing You" (featuring Anthony Hamilton)
  • Toxic
  • Donald Alford
3:49
15."Last Night" (featuring Diddy)
4:15
16."Work It Out"
  • Cole
  • Chanz Parkman
  • Raquel Kirby
4:04
17."Let It Go (Remix)" (featuring Missy Elliott, Lil' Kim, Young Dro & T.I.)
3:40
Notes and sample credits
  • ^[A] denotes co-producer
  • ^[B] denotes vocals producer
  • ^[C] denotes additional producer
  • "Let It Go" samples "Juicy Fruit" performed by Mtume.
  • "Got to Get My Heart Back" contains excerpts from "She's Only a Woman" performed by The O'Jays.
  • "Losing You" contains excerpts from "Sorry" performed by Natalie Cole.

Charts

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[29] Platinum 1,700,000[22]

Release history

List of release dates, showing region, formats, and label
Region Date Format(s) Label
Netherlands September 24, 2007
  • CD
  • digital download
United Kingdom
United States September 25, 2007
Canada
Brazil October 8, 2007
Italy October 24, 2007
New Zealand November 8, 2007
Singapore
Japan
European Union
Germany May 9, 2008
Austria
Switzerland
Australia November 27, 2008

References

  1. https://www.soulandjazzandfunk.com/reviews/just-like-you/
  2. http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20080702/ent/ent3.html
  3. ""The Making of Keyshia Cole's "Let It Go""". Vibe. Archived from the original on June 28, 2007. Retrieved June 25, 2007.
  4. "Keyshia Cole Readies Sophomore Album". Billboard. Retrieved June 11, 2007.
  5. "Diskografie Keyshia Cole Alben". KeyshiaCole.de. Archived from the original on May 27, 2008. Retrieved May 8, 2008.
  6. https://www.prefixmag.com/news/keyshia-cole-readies-album-and-promo-tour/11334/
  7. "Just like You: Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
  8. Nero, Mark Edward. "Just like You (2007)". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on September 1, 2020. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
  9. Kellman, Andy. "Just like You". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Review. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  10. Walters, Barry. "Billboard CD reviews: Fall Out Boy and Keyshia Cole". Billboard. Archived from the original on September 2, 2020. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  11. "Tracking the new sounds of the season". The Boston Globe. October 7, 2007. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  12. Drumming, Neil (October 1, 2007). "Just Like You". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  13. Sanneh, Kelefa (September 24, 2007). "New CD's". The New York Times. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  14. Hoard, Christian (October 18, 2007). "Rolling Stone review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 15, 2007. Retrieved September 2, 2020.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  15. Thomas, Inskeep (October 17, 2007). "Just Like You". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on September 2, 2020. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  16. Linden, Amy (September 18, 2007). "Keyshia Cole's Just Like You". The Village Voice. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
  17. Godfrey, Sarah (October 16, 2007). "Keyshia Cole and Jill Scott, Keeping the Music Real". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 2, 2020. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  18. "Keyshia Cole Debuts at #2 on Billboard 200". Rap-Up. March 10, 2007. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  19. "Billboard 200 Albums - Year-End 2007". Billboard. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  20. "R&B/Hip-Hop Albums - Year-End 2007". Billboard. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  21. "No. 1 or not, Keyshia Cole is still growing". The Jamaica Observer. December 22, 2010. Archived from the original on February 26, 2014.
  22. Cole, Keyshia. "Just Like You" Liner Notes. Geffen, 2007.
  23. "Just Like You: Keyshia Cole: Music". Amazon.com. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
  24. "Keyshia Cole Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  25. "Keyshia Cole Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  26. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2008". Billboard. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
  27. "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2008". Billboard. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
  28. "American album certifications – Keyshia Cole – Just like You". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 7, 2018. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
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