Upon its release, My Way received largely positive reviews, with praise directed at Usher's matured voice, and standout tracks such as "You Make Me Wanna...," although some criticism targeted its abundance of downtempo songs and uneven writing. Ann Powers of The New York Times wrote that My Way delivered "only the highest-quality rhythm-and-blues," adding that what set Usher apart from other contemporary soul singers was his nerve and the swagger behind his sexual bravado and the vulnerability he revealed when pleading for affection. Sydney Morning Herald critic Mary Tartaglione praised My Way, highlighting his matured voice, confidence, and youthful energy, and noting that, the album's standout tracks established him as a rising musical force. He gave My Way a one-star honorable mention, signifying "a worthy effort consumers attuned to its overriding aesthetic or individual vision may well like." The Source stated that with My Way, "Usher proves that he's aiming to become more than just R&B music's best kept secret". Asondra R. Hunter of Vibe wrote that Usher was "sensual through his mild and gentle tone and tasteful, refined lyrics." In a mixed review for Rolling Stone, David Fricke criticized the album for its abundance of downtempo material and took issue with aspects of the songwriting and production.

In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave My Way four out of five stars and praised Usher's vocal restraint, but noted inconsistency in quality. In a 2002 review, Q magazine also gave it four stars and wrote that it established Usher's reputation as a young and skillful performer of R&B slow jams. Keith Harris, writing in The Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004), gave it three-and-a-half stars and said that, although Dupri's combination of hi-hat hits, acoustic-guitar arpeggios, and occasional guest raps from him and Lil Kim can inhibit the album, My Way was the work of a significant, enterprising artist. Yahoo! Music's Billy Johnson Jr. credited the album for Usher's breakthrough into the music industry, and lauded the production of the three singles.

Accolades

{|class="sortable wikitable"

|-

! Publication

! Accolade

! Rank

! class="unsortable"|

|-

| Complex

| The Best R&B Albums of '90s

|

|

|}

Commercial performance

My Way solidified Usher's status as a major force in R&B, achieving significant commercial success in the United States and internationally. In the United States, the album debuted at number 15 on the Billboard 200 dated October 4, 1997, with first-week sales of 66,000 copies, eventually peaking at number four. it was upgraded to seven-times platinum, marking seven million units sold in the US alone.

  • <sup></sup> denotes co-producer(s)

Sample credits

  • "Come Back" contains a sample of "Woman to Woman" by Joe Cocker.
  • "One Day You'll Be Mine" contains a sample of "Footsteps in the Dark" by The Isley Brothers.

Personnel

Credits are adapted from Allmusic and album's liner notes.

  • Babyface – executive producer; producer, background vocals, keyboards, and drum programming <small>(tracks 4, 8)</small>; bass <small>(track 4)</small>
  • Butch BelAir – photography
  • Michael Benabib – photography
  • Kyle Bess – mixing assistant <small>(tracks 4, 8)</small>
  • Paul Boutin – engineer <small>(tracks 4, 8)</small>
  • Trina Broussard – background vocals <small>(track 9)</small>
  • Jermaine Dupri – executive producer, producer <small>(tracks 1–3, 5, 6, 9, 10)</small>, mixing <small>(tracks 2, 3, 5, 6, 9)</small>, instruments <small>(tracks 1, 10)</small>, background vocals
  • Nathan East – bass <small>(track 8)</small>
  • Brian Frye – mixing assistant <small>(tracks 1–3, 5, 6, 9, 10)</small>
  • John Frye – mixing assistant <small>(tracks 1–3, 9, 10)</small>
  • Jon Gass – mixing <small>(tracks 4, 8)</small>
  • Şerban Ghenea – engineer <small>(track 7)</small>
  • John Hayes – engineer <small>(track 7)</small>
  • Jagged Edge – background vocals <small>(track 3)</small>
  • Lil' Kim – vocals <small>(track 2)</small>
  • Trey Lorenz – background vocals <small>(tracks 6, 9)</small>
  • Manny Marroquin – engineer <small>(tracks 4, 8)</small>
  • George Meyers – engineer <small>(track 7)</small>
  • Monica – lead and background vocals <small>(track 4)</small>
  • Greg Phillinganes – piano <small>(tracks 4, 8)</small>
  • Herb Powers – mastering
  • L.A. Reid – executive producer
  • Ivy Skoff – production coordination <small>(track 8)</small>
  • Manuel Seal – co-producer <small>(tracks 2, 3, 5, 6, 9)</small>, instruments <small>(tracks 1, 10)</small>, background vocals <small>(tracks 6, 9)</small>
  • Shanice – background vocals <small>(track 8)</small>
  • LaKimbra Sneed – design
  • Phil Tan – engineer and mixing <small>(tracks 1–3, 5, 6, 9, 10)</small>
  • Usher – vocals <small>(all tracks)</small>
  • Randy Walker – MIDI programming <small>(tracks 4, 8)</small>
  • D.L. Warfield – art direction
  • Rob Williams – engineer <small>(track 2)</small>
  • Sprague "Doogie" Williams – producer <small>(track 7)</small>

Charts

Weekly charts

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"

|+ Weekly chart performance for My Way

|-

! scope="col"|Chart (1997–1998)

! scope="col"|Peak<br>position

|-

!scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"| Canada R&B Albums (SoundScan)

| 1

|-

! scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"|European Top 100 Albums (Music & Media)

|style="text-align:center;"|40

|-

! scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"

|-

! scope="row"

|}

Year-end charts

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"

|+ 1997 year-end chart performance for My Way

|-

! scope="col"| Chart (1997)

! scope="col"| Position

|-

! scope="row"|Canadian Albums (SoundScan)

|60

|-

! scope="row"|Canadian R&B Albums (SoundScan)

|10

|-

! scope="row"| US Billboard 200

| 164

|-

! scope="row"| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)

| 63

|}

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"

|+ 1998 year-end chart performance for My Way

|-

! scope="col"| Chart (1998)

! scope="col"| Position

|-

! scope="row"|Canadian Albums (SoundScan)

|67

|-

! scope="row"|Canadian R&B Albums (SoundScan)

|9

|-

! scope="row"| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)

| 88

|-

! scope="row"| US Billboard 200

| 11

|-

! scope="row"| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)

| 6

|}

Decade-end charts

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"

|+ Decade-end chart performance for My Way

|-

!scope="col"|Chart (1990–1999)

!scope="col"|Position

|-

!scope="row"| US Billboard 200

|style="text-align:center;"|91

|}

Certifications

Release history

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"

|+ Release history for My Way

! scope="col" | Region

! scope="col" | Date

! scope="col" | Format(s)

! scope="col" | Label(s)

! scope="col" |

|-

! scope="row" | United States

| September 16, 1997

|

| rowspan="2"|

| align="center"|

|}

See also

  • List of number-one R&B albums in the United States

References

Bibliography

it:My Way (disambigua)#Musica