Wow. I heard "Real Talk" and tought to myself, "Wow, that's a bold move, putting out a comedy album now." Oops. I guess he's serious. I almost changed the song but decided to listen to the rest of it since it was so funny. What an idiot. Isn't this what people in the teens and 20's write about?

Let me start by saying I'm a huge R. Kelly fan. He's probably my favorite R&B artist and undoubtedly the best R&B artist of this generation. But this album was a joke. He's changing in a bad way with the rap industry. As rap gets more commercial and less meaningful Kellz has also. It seems to me he's trying to become a rapper, which isn't a good look.

1) The Champ...terrible a 2 minute song about how everybody is jealous of him and against him. It was nothing more than bragging about being on top and "singing" about how he's on top and everyone hates him due to it. If this was hip-hop, that'd be okay. But it's not, it's r&b.

2) Double Up...He needs to grow up! A song about getting girls "dizzy" in the club and bringing them and their friend home with you. This is a completely meaningless song. Plan and simple. Again, if this was hip-hop you could brag about stealing another mans women or "doubling up" but it's not hip-hop it's r&b.

3) Tryin' to get a number...a pure disgrace. He tried to go pop-ish. Nelly is featured and Kellz does his best to sound like Nelly but realistically it sounds like it's Nelly's song and not Kellz! It's insanely commercial and focuses mostly on "steppin outta Hummer". What happened to songs like Greatest Sex and Strip for You?

4) Get Dirty...a song which features Chamillionair and a horrible effort by both. Again, commercial and meaningless.

Rather than going through the bad songs, the only good song I found were "Sweet Tooth", "Sex Planet", and "The Zoo". Everything else is subpar to average. I hope he bounces back strong. Regardless I will probably buy his next album just because of his legacy. All artists have bad albums, this is on of them.

4

When R. Kelly first came out in the early `90s, he successfully extended the new jack swing movement for a short time. And from his second album on, he started making more mature music with impressive results. But then somewhere around, say, 1998, he started making songs that seemed better tailored for men half his age, and then when he tried to go back, he would try too hard and end up with songs that were corny and overtly sexual at the same time. Such is the case with his latest offering, Double Up.

Kells' last album, TP.3 Reloaded, was garbage, and frankly, this album isn't much better. Now, Double Up IS a suitable title for the album because it's exactly 80 minutes long, which means that some songs could have been left behind -- actually, a LOT of songs (hence the two-star rating). In fact, all the other two-star reviews are pretty accurate (especially K.J. Bryant's review). First you have the filler tracks ("Freaky in the Club", "Tryin' to Get a Number", "Ringtone"); then you have the stories: "Same Girl" is okay, but "Best Friend" (with Keyshia Cole and Polow da Don) is skippable.

There's also the "I'm a Flirt" remix, which is the same story as the "Ignition" remix: you like the song but you have no idea why. And "Havin' a Baby" is pretty self-explanatory, but toward the end when Kells starts talking through the delivery process, it gets a little hard to get into. The necessary we-are-the-world song "Rise Up" is also good, but it feels out of place when compared to the rest of the album (more on that in a minute).

As usual, there are a lot of bad sexual metaphors, like "Sweet Tooth", "Sex Planet" and especially "The Zoo", which is complete with orangutan (and eventually elephant) sound effects. But there are other songs with problems as well. "Real Talk" has Kells goin' off on his girl for suggesting that he's sleeping around, and he's swearing just for the sake of swearing (and why does he keep saying Milton?). The title track boringly details threesomes; and "Rock Star" (with Ludacris and Kid Rock -- although Rock is only playing, so that really shouldn't count as a guest spot) proves that R. Kelly and rock music are like oil and water.

I guess I should be used to Kells aiming at the younger crowd nowadays, but he just isn't as good at it as he used to be; and the sex songs are still way too corny. Yeah, he can still sing, but he should keep his best songs for himself like he did earlier in his career. In short, Double Up is about as good as The Best of Both Worlds, so leave it in the store.

Anthony Rupert

Honestly, i don't know how much can be useful to give to an artist the crown of "king" of a particular musical genre. The musical tastes are surely one of the more complex things to analyze in a public debate...and i could bet that if you gather into the same room ten R&B fans (above all, if they've different ages) probably they could suggest to you at least 20 differents R&B "kings"...in their own opinion.
Personally, i think that the trend of the modern music industry can create big difficulties to everyone try to become a good R&B singer. Another reviewer has mentioned the fact that the best contemporary R&B performers haven't usually a great success on the charts. This is a great truth, and the fact that the promotion of a POP album is an "easier" project to fulfill can be the best explanation about this sad but poignant remark. This explain even why many "potentials" great R&B performers (Beyoncè is the first that comes on my mind, but the list it's longer) have taken the decision to express their skills within a more safe "POP" context...even if their latest albums are still mysteriously stored into the "R&B" shelfs of the music stores (so, we can't complain about the fact that the younger listeners haven't many opportunities to listen and appreciate the traditional R&B singers).
This lack of "competition" into the modern R&B scene could be one of the reasons why R. Kelly can still release and sell albums which are a million miles far from the excellent level of his first productions. I can understand that someone that doesn't know the beginnings of his career can have a positive attitude about this new album...but i've some difficulties to understand how an "old" fan of R. Kelly can think that this material can be even partially compared to his earlier disks. My opinion isn't disrespectful for the many guests involved into this album (actually, i appreciate many of them) but it's simply my personal try to analyze in a quiet way the negative trend of the latest R. Kelly productions.
When i think about the songs that he's been capable to gift us during the first steps of his career, i really feel the need to express my current feelings...and say that, by now, "the king is naked!" (just to quote an old and popular fairy tale). I hope that my regrets will end after the next album...but i must admit that i'm not particularly optimist about this perspective.

Apparently child molestation does not deter other musical artists from collaborating with R. Kelly. Aside from his fascination for underage girls, his lyrics express the same emotional depth of an Adam Sandler song.

THIS ALBUM SHOWED AND EXCELLENT REVIEW IN THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF MUSIC THAT R KELLY CAN PRODUCE

I'll give you 11 adjectives to describe this, and then I will leave:

Disgusting
Disgraceful
Disrepectful
Mindless
Soulless
Talentless
Embarrassing
Rap
Sorry
Trashy
I.Q. Killer

1 star

R. Kelly is acclaimed the King of R&B but evidently, a lot of people don't agree to dat. Almost everybody includin myself completly hated Kellz's ladt CD "TP3 RELOADED" it was horrendous with very little substance. R. Kelly's style back in tha day was true R&B and he was a true G, but lately he has changed from being bald to cornrows, from singing wit feeling , to singing popish with barely any vocal range. I am not that dissapointed wit this album, I'm glad to see R. Kelly makin a comeback after being accused of so many sex trials n s***.

Like the album complies, Double Up meaning that R. Kelly is doin tha same singing while also tryin to rap here and there, and also havin twice as many guest appearances than previous albums. There are 18 tracks each havin its own flavor, My favorite tracks are Double Up feat. Snoop Dogg, Rock Star ft. Kid Rock and Ludacris, Best Friend feat. Keyshia Cole and Polow Da Don, and I'm A Flirt Remix feat. T.I. and T-Pain. I especially like "Best Friend" it has a sick catchy beat with R. Kelly bein in jail and Keyshia bein his wife and Polow being the Best Friend which R. Kelly is accusing him of doin it wit his wife its a conversational song meaning that they are talking to each other while singing. So anyway this isn't a sell out album like people are makin this album to be, it has a lot of hits and while R. kelly isn't back to his prime style yet, this is a pretty good resurgence.

I was a little disappointed with this album. Normally, R. Kelly makes really bangin' hits, but this time he fell short. Don't get me wrong there were some cuts, but not as many cuts throughout this CD like previous ones. I recommend that you listen before you buy, Mr. Kels needs to go back to the lab on this one.

I really like this album. Still miss old school R. Kelly. Been a fan for 15 years. The best songs are I'm a Flirt, Same Girl, Sex Planet, and the Zoo. I also like Having a baby, Sweet Tooth, Real Talk, Double up. Old school R rules. Love the love making music the best.

tp3 reloaded and double up, do not get, complete bogus, his music has gone downhill fast, his music now represents the lame lack of substance of pop culture and teen culture, do not get unless ur a precubescent who knows jack about music and figuring out his/her hormones...actually they shouldnet get it either, it just encourages them to behave like he sings about...this dude should be setting a better example, at least with tp2.com he talked raunchiness with style. now he sounds like a horny 17 yr old begging for sex... get his older albums and you'll see wat i mean, and hear his more qulaity music

THERE IS NOT ANOTHER ONE LIKE HIM!!! HE IS UNTOUCHABLE!!! THERE IS REALLY NOT ONE WORD THAT CAN DESCRIBE HIM!!!

It is amazing to me that people think that if u are 40 years old, you can't relate to an R. Kelly song, but w.t.f. Do u have to be under 30 in order to be able to appreciate good music? I love Luther too-and Maxwell, What age should I be to listen to them? I love R. Kelly's grit..I don't get it, maybe some people are old and washed up and don't ever have a need to move around in their chair. Geez..Get over it...R. KELLY IS the king of r&b/ Listen carefully to the words to Flirt! LOL--people get a life. Kels is going to triumph regardless!

I received this CD as a birthday gift. While it's not the R'uh I am used to hearing crooning out lusty slow ballads it's a welcome change. Had I not gotten it as a gift I definitely would have purchased it.

WOW, some of the reviews that I have read here are the funniest thing I have seen in quite some time. R. Kelly (whether you subscribe to this or not) is one of the most gifted artists in music today. The problem is what he does with his "gifts". I'm not talking about his court cases, his concert skirmishes, or his lifestyle in general. Leave all of that out of it. This album is pure GARBAGE.

At some point in time you would hope that an artist that you listen to gets better with time, but this album is TP3's crack addicted, redheaded stepchild. Even if you love to hear about sex on every track on a album, at some point you have got to say, "Damn this fool is still talking about the same thing on this track too."

All I'm saying is, stop looking at the name R.Kelly and saying, "It must be good, R. Kelly made it." That type of thinking is retarded. He has made some beautiful music in the past, he should have continued to grow, but unfortunately he has chosen to appeal to high schoolers again. Sorry, I could help that last joke, it was too easy (just like some of the women that Mr. Kelly is currently appealing to.) Damn, did it again.......

this brother is a joke.he a 40 year old man acting like a 17 year old it's time to grow up. kelly seem to be stuck in a second childhood. the older he get the younger he's dressing and acting this brother got deep mental issue.it's sad if you really look at him he almost middle age his children must be real proud they got a teenager for a daddy.

kelly's going to hell for real he's a freak, pervert, pedophile claiming he's the pied piper and understands michael jackson yes he's a freak who claims he foubnd god and heaven hug me lord forgive me only to go back to sexing minors and talking about giving girls oral while pouring liqour and claiming he's a gangbanger kelly please stop it I'm sick of you and your music isn't that good anymore do like ike turnwer and rick james and od.

Sure, it sounds like I'm taking a cheap shot, but: I think that this album could play at any NAMBLA rally across the country and be praised! He just sounds like he's going to like high school dances and wanting girls to go to his "Sex Planet". Bleck, he's just nastee. Seriously, he's almost 41! How many guys are getting two girls ("Doubling Up") at once and aren't paying for them?!

R. Kelly is a musical genius. To say that he's anything less is pure FICTION. From Rise Up to Ring Tone to Rollin', this album makes me wanna shake what my mama gave me. I work out to it, and take down the top of my convertible and roll with it. DOUBLE UP is the truth.

I used to joke and say R Kelly sings so well he could sing about a tree and make it sound good, apparently too many people told him he could sing about anything and he believed it. I have always been a huge fan of R Kelly and it pains me to say this is one of the worst CDs EVER. He started to get on my nerves with singing conversations, but now it has hit an all time low. Real Talk was a surprise, but after you got past the shock it was completely awful as well as laughable. I'm not 30 yet and to me this CD should appeal to no one with an ounce of sense. Luckily I didn't buy this I heard it from someone else, this is not even worth burning off the internet, don't waste the CD and definitely don't waste the money buying it.

This album is a symptom of a much larger problem as this is what passes for R&B nowadays. R&B has taken on the worst aspects of Hip-Hop radio style with every track being made to bang in the club rather than touch the soul. As the previous reviewer wrote, I too was expecting a little more maturity from a 40-yr-old with Peter Pan syndrome. Throughout this album I wasn't sure if Kelly was trying to get me to dance or just make me laugh. Tracks like "The Zoo" and "Sweet Tooth" are just to darn juvenile. A concept that you would think a person in his position would be trying to distance himself from. "Sex Planet" is just plain dumb and most of the songs dont say anything beyond the usual Rap themes of party and bull. The only saving grace is the tracks are banging so its okay party music to have in the backround if you can turn your brain off to the lyrics. My wife can do that, I'm cursed with the need for substance so I can't do that. 2 1/2 stars

WE DO LIKE US SOME DOUBLE UP IT IS GOOD!I AM IN THE 35 PLUS AND THEN SOME AGE BRACKET AND UNDERSTAND R.KELLY'S MUSIC. I HAVE BEEN WITH HIM EVERY SINCE PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT DAYS. THIS HOW MUCH I LOVE R.KELLY ALL THE WAY FROM KICKIN'IT OFF OF KING DRIVE AND CICERO AND RACINE ON THE SOUTH SIDE. I CAN TRULY SAY HE IS GOOD!

EVERYONE NEEDS TO STOP HATING ON R KELLY IIGHT IF U ARE 35+ THAN YES THE ALBUM PROLLY IS ISNT FOR U BUT IF U ARE 14-29 YOU WILL LOVE THE ALBUM IT HAS PLENTY OF HITS THAT INCLUDE OBVIOUSLY IMMA FLIRT AND SAME GIRL BUT ALSO HOOK IT UP ROCKSTAR RISE UP BEST FRIEDN SEX PLANET ROLLIN BASICALLY THE WHOLE ALBUM IS TIGHT ANYONE WHO SAYS OTHER WHISE IS EITHER OLD SCHOOL OR THEY ARE FLAT OUT STUPID THERES A REASON WHY EVERYONE IS BUYING THE ALBUM AND IT HAS SOLD 800,000 COPIES SO FAR BUY THE ALBUM THIS IS ONE IF HIS BEST IF NOT HIS BEST CD!!!!!!!JUST GO AND DOWNLOAD A FEW SONGS IF U WANNA MAKE SURE U WILL LIKE IT BUT I BET U WILL!!!!!!

Loved the album. Plain and simple, you listen to R. Kelly for the upbeat club vibes or mellow tracks that provide the perfect background music for intimacy. That's this man's inventory. My personal favorites on the album are Double Up, Hook It Up, Sex Planet, Sweet Tooth, and I Like Love. In my opinion, Kells is still the top 3 best R&B producers and any time he's on a song the stock is automatically raised. Enjoy.

I've always enjoyed R. Kelly's music from day one, back in the '90s. His recent and best album in this century is "TP3". "Double Up"is a little bit of a disappointment. There are a couple of good songs like "Get Dirty" with Chamillionaire, and "I'm A Flirt". The rest of the album is mediocre. One of the reviewers stated that he is 40 yrs old, but trying to pass himself off as a 25 yr old thug. I think a lot of this has to do with the way radio is nowadays. If his music was more mature, it would not get played on Hip-Hop stations, and would largely go un-noticed. Even video channels like BET would not pick it up. It's a pretty sad state-of-affairs if an artist has to try and act young, just to be able to get his album out there on commercial radio. The other thing that seems to be common is older artist featuring young Hip Hop artists on their albums. This is done to try and appeal to a young audience, and get picked up on radio. Nowadays, everyone seems to be fixated on Hip Hop, and great R&B singers seems to get looked over, or not even noticed by the media.

don't usually buy this type of music. I think the songs are engaging. worth a buy.

R-Kelly has been in the game for a minute making hit after hit from i wish to down low from his earlier classics. This cd here is more of the hip-hop side of r-kelly, which is not a bad thing but more r&b cuts would have been nicer. The jams that im feeling include imma flirt remix, same girl, rise up, freaky in the club, the title track, sex planet, leave your name, sweet tooth and havin a baby. R-Kelly could have done without rockstar because the song is just all over the place. Luda's verse is nice though. Even though his scandals may have turn away a lot of his fans, there is no denying that he still makes good music. This cd is definitely better that TP3 RELOADED but not better than his older material. Still a solid effort from the king of r&b. Cop it if you are a fan of r-kelly or like mixtures of r&b and hip-hop

A SONG ABOUT SEX PLANET SOME KIDS CAN BE LISTENING TO THAT SONG AND BE PUTTING BAD WORDS IN THERE HEAD THAT VERY SAD!

Make money for a large record company and you can stay out of prison for ______ing underage girls! He is so immature and just not all that as an artist. R Kelly should change his name to "lucky".

I'm from Chicago so I support the artist from my hometown. This is a nice album, I like most of the songs on there especially "Freaky in the Club," "Leave Your Name," "Double Up," and of course "I'm a Flirt (remix)." This is much better music than most of that rap crap that's coming out now-a-days. This is the only R&B artist that gets played in my ride. Can't wait for Common & Kanye to drop though.

The completely unnecessary use of profanities makes this unsuitable listening to genuine music lovers. Come on Mr Kelly, there are young people out there who look up to you, and expect better. There are a few good tracks but I did not finish listening to this and doubt I will play it again.

What does the R in his name really stand for? RAUNCHY!!! And this Raunchy R&B King has left the building and should not come back after this cd! I used to be a big fan of R Kelly's but after listening to this cd, I could not even get through most of the songs on it. I found it to be so tasteless and it showed that R. Kelly has no CLASS!!! He has reached an all time low with this cd. We all know that R can sing, write and produce, but it seems like he is so consumed with partying and sex, sex, sex. It makes one wonder whether he is confused about who he is and what he really wants to be doing in his life. One minute he is singing about getting you so wet and the next, he is singing about God. He has such a gift that he can even sing gospel music and touch your heart. It makes you wonder, is he trying to serve two Masters?, because you can't. I think that this is the WORST Cd that he has every made! There are a handful of songs on there that are okay. The duet with Usher, Same Girl and why in the heck would he put a song on this cd dedicated to the people of the Virgina tragedy called Rise Up. The majority of the cd is just nasty!!! I think that R Kelly believes that he can sing anything and it will sell and it pretty much has happened whether it goes gold, or platinum. Some of his previous works have been about sex and partying but not to the extend of what he is singing about on this cd. He uses the "MF" and "N" word a lot on this cd and it's like he is saying, "f _ _ _ all ya'll cause I can sing what I want and still get paid"! I would not recommend anyone buy this cd unless they want to hearing about f _ _ __ _ _ _, smoking, partying or fighting. What a waste of money! What a waste of talent and if he keeps this up, he may find himself caught up in a lot more sorted things besides being accused of having sex with minors and making dirty music. If ya wanna be the King of R&B, start singing like one and stop putting your sorted sex life or fantasies on cd's. It would be nice to see him do a REAL R&B Cd without all the cursing and sex acts that he seems to sing a lot about. Kings & Queens lead by example, walk upright with pride and dignity and keep their private affairs and fantasies in their bedrooms. Now, Let's pop the Crystal on that!

Word!

Double Up is right up there with TP.3 as far as being R. Kelly's worst album. Every artist is allowed a foul-up. Kells' foul-up was TP.3, but he's done it again with Double Up. It doesn't appeal to those who came up with him during the time of Born into the 90's, 12 Play, R. Kelly and R. Like many reviewers have stated, R. is 40 now. It's time to make music to reflect it. Double Up has some of the weakest lyrics I've ever heard from an R & B album. You're not 25 anymore, and neither are the majority of your fans. Don't just say you're the "king of R & B". Prove it to us.

I was really looking forward to his album, but once I heard the album I was highly disappointed. The only songs that I really like are Freaky In Club and the Zoo, I like those songs mainly because if the beat. R.Kelly you are very talented, please make your music for the older crowd, because we were all clubbing when we were buying your albums in the 90's.

For the last 15 years I have been a die hard R. Kelly fan...I got a little shaky when the charges came up, But nevertheless I still rocked with him. NOW...I dont know. Its like I'm 24 and even I'm tired of the club songs. I want the R. Kelly that recorded Born in the 90's, 12play, R. Kelly, TP2, R. (2disc) and Chocolate Factory. TP3 and this double up, I can do without. As funny as "real talk" is, its nothing you can sing with...nothing you want to sing 10 years from now like you would "Slow Dance." This is disposable music thats he's putting out right now! COme on now, 40 yr olds in Doo rags in the club poppin bottles is wack!!! Kells its time to let it go and grow into the legend that you are destined to be...dont mess it up trying to conform to what everyone else is doing, you are much better than that. Tisk, Tisk...this is what Mid life crisis is about...