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Backstory: Remember Usher Raymond IV? Started as a kid on “Star Search,” released a massively popular album called “Confessions” in 2004 that had critics and fans alike proclaiming him the next Michael Jackson? Ring any bells?

Why you should care: In the time Usher’s been out of the spotlight, any number of pretenders (Justin Timberlake, Chris Brown, Ne-Yo) have tried to usurp his pop/R&B crown. Now the question is: have they succeeded?

Verdict: Usher’s been laying low, but he’s clearly been following the trends; many of the tracks on “Here I Stand” borrow their electro-pop sheen from Timberlake’s “FutureSex/LoveSounds,” and he roped Ne-Yo into co-writing one of the album’s best ballads, “His Mistakes.” So yes, “Here I Stand” is slick, calculated urban radio fodder—but it’s also flawlessly executed, and the many high points are convincing reminders that Usher’s still really operating at a level that no other male R&B singers (except maybe JT and John Legend) of his generation can touch. From the dirty grind of “This Ain’t Sex” to the corny but endearing role reversals of “Trading Places” to the gorgeous, Stevie Wonder–style harmonies of the title track, “Here I Stand” is modern urban pop at its best.

X-Factor: Guest raps and vocal hooks are commonplace in today’s urban music, and “Here I Stand” sticks to the script, with cameos from will.i.am, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Lil Wayne and Young Jeezy. But what may be even more impressive than all the A-list guests is the fact that not one of them ever upstages the star of the show—although Beyoncé comes close, delivering a witty reply to Usher’s freaky come-on in “Love in This Club, Part II.”

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