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Keith Sweat’s eponymous 1996 release pulled naïve radio listeners’ heads out of the sand and straight into new jack. Simple, sexy beats and Sweat’s trademark nasal whine slow-jammed all over his fifth album, making R&B fans wonder, “Bobby Brown who?” Urban terms like “shorty” dropped into common usage and cassette singles of the cursedly-catchy “Twisted” flew off the shelves. Sweat was hot. Too bad he didn’t stay that way. 2000’s Didn’t See Me Coming was pasteurized soul with no sign of “Funky Dope Lovin'” anywhere, and Rebirth (2002) was rehash. Sweat can probably still work a room with his unique tenor and overt masculinity–provided he sticks to certified hits like “Just One of Them Thangs,” “Just a Touch” or really, anything prior to 1998’s Still in the Game.
