Ask
Grammy winning singer/producer Sleepy Brown why he
called his album For The Grown and Sexy and
he breaks it down in his smooth style. "This album
reflects where I think people are going. I’m tired of
wearing jerseys and throwbacks. Those of us in hip-hop
are getting a little older and people want to change. It’s
a whole grown up sexy movement going on and I wanna be a
part of that whole vibe about to come on."
What is the sound of that vibe?
Definitely Sexy. Funky. Frisky. Soulful. Seriously
sensual. Passionate and pimp-a-delic. Soundtracks for
late night pleasure and day light partying. The songs on
For The Grown and Sexy will compel you to
lick your lips, move your hips and make a lil love.
Sleepy draws inspiration from soul’s golden era,
infuses it with rubbery funk grooves and laces
everything with a touch of hip hop’s strut. Featuring
the smoky, seductive hit "I Can’t
Wait" (featuring Outkast) and contributions from Joi,
Andre 3000, Big Gipp, Bubba Sparxx and Ludacris, For
The Grown and Sexy is what R&B feels like,
right now.
If Sleepy’s cushiony vocals
sound familiar, they should. That’s him providing the
infectious hook on Outkast’s smash "The Way You
Move", off the group’s 2003 Grammy winning album
of the year Speakerboxx/The Love Below. Brimming
with Sleepy’s laid back, old soul appeal "The Way
You Move" allowed millions to experience one of the
Dirty South’s best kept secrets. Because while it’s
true that For The Grown and Sexy marks
Sleepy’s major label solo debut, he has been a
mainstay of Atlanta’s explosive music scene since the
90’s; appearing on countless landmark albums,
producing smashes like TLC’s groundbreaking
"Waterfalls", En Vogue’s Don’t Go",
Ludacris’s "Saturday (Oooh! Oooh!") and
providing vocal ammo on a diverse array of tracks, among
them Killer Mike’s "A.D.I.D.A.S", Jay-Z’s
"Poppin Tags" and Outkast’s "So Fresh,
So Clean". As that list of credits proves, Sleepy
Brown is an established player both in front of the mike
and behind the mixing console.
Sleepy made his bones as a
founding member of the innovative production crew
Organized Noize (TLC, Goodie Mobb, Outkast) and the
R&B/hip hop collective Dungeon Family. In addition,
he’s a versatile artist whose output includes the
critically acclaimed Society of Soul (1995) and his 1998
independent effort The Vinyl Room. After holding
it down for the ATL and backing up some of that city’s
most forward thinking performers Sleepy’s solo CD is
not only highly anticipated, it’s long over due.
"The good thing," Sleepy offers, speaking to
his slow but steady climb into the spotlight, "is
that any success that I’ve had has really come on my
own terms. Just the fact that I stayed down for so long,
I finally had the chance to turn the corner. My whole
thing is thank God that I had the patience and was
willing to go through all the bullshit and make it work
for me… this success and this sort of attention that I’m
getting now feels wonderful. It’s great for people to
finally recognize me and not just say ‘oh there’s
that guy from Outkast’."
The follow up to his first hit
single "I Can’t Wait", is the irresistible
"This Is How I Feel". Percolating and utterly
danceable, the song is a slinky party jam guaranteed to
make you shimmy. Another seductive slice of Sleepy is
the scintillating "Give It Up" which resonates
with Superfly wah wah guitars and an unabashed loveman’s
perspective. Keeping it sexy but sweet is "Till
Your Legs Start Shaking" which offers up a moist
taste of Sleepy’s steez. Inspired by an intimate
moment between a man and a woman, the song is
reminiscent of Marvin Gaye and has a romantic sheen that’s
hard to ignore. Bringing the uncut funk is the thumpin’
"Mr. No Good", featuring Joi on vocals.
Years in the making and hotter
than the fourth of July, For The Grown and Sexy
is more than a new album: it’s Sleepy’s cosmic
vision brought to fruition. As for what his goals are
for the album, he states, "I want people to play
the album, sit back and let it take you"…
