I hear y'all bashing John Legend freely - (he's nothing special, so what he plays piano, his album is shit) - but givin' it UP for Van Hunt all day long & I can't figure out WHY??

Maybe it's that loathing for traditional R&B that rears its head around here I know everyone has their own taste but really: if you compared these two, can you honestly say that Van Hunt is miles ahead of John Legend in terms of talent? Appeal? Song writing? Musical ability? Good songs? I think they're closer than people make them out to be, but John is more interesting to me. So my choice (obviously) :

John Legend

Cuts start to weaken a bit @ around track #10 but get good again in the end. EVERY song sounded good to my ear

Maybe for me Van Hunt is like Alicia Keys - boring as fuck on record but a stunner live. I don't know but that muufucka puts me to sleep

So choose & defend mofo's Who you wit?

like both, i'd side with john legend actually. i like his voice more.

I have not heard Van Hunt yet, I may check him out.

I really like John Legend though.

Where the f*ck is Maxwell though?

He's my favorite out of all these "neo soul" dudes.
[Edited 4/2/05 6:09am]

Van Hunt... Fuck a John Legend

Lots of people here go on and on about Van Hunt. I gave a listen at the store, tossed it back in the used bin and haven't thought about it since. I'm gonna go with John Legend. I don't think he's doing anything that hasn't been done before, but he's good and I like his voice. I feel a little dirty saying that I like it since Kanye produced it, but so be it.

psykosoul said:

I co-sign what he said.

VAN HUNT

I'll pick John legend because I haven't heard his cd and I've heard Van Hunt.


Van hunt is completely overrated.

Rhondab said:

Exactly. His voice is boring and I'm 'bout to unload his CD on the used record store, right where I bought it from.

i haven't heard anything by van hunt, so i'll have to go with john legend.

Van Hunt, though I'll admit I like him better live than on record.....But then, I haven't seen John live, so

...It's also kinda hard to tell based on one album, which is sometimes all you get in today's music industry...Prince had to grow musically to get from "For You" to "Sign O' the Times"...I'll bet a lot of people heard Prince's first album back in '78, and thought, "It's OK, but it's no big deal...He sure as hell ain't no Stevie Wonder..."

...and there are a lot of people who got a lot of buzz and a great reputation because of live shows , only to put out that first "official" album that fell a little short of people's expectations...(Dwele, Bilal, and Kindred are a few examples)...




...
[Edited 4/2/05 10:46am]

ButterscotchPimp said:

Can y'all elaborate a bit? I wanna understand man

Rhondab said:

AGREED!

paligap said:

Saw John open for Alicia Keys, he was great live

Van Hunt definitely is sexier and I am in love w/his song Seconds Of Pleasure.

Like both voices equally.
Both are good live (tele).
Legend has a bit more groovability.
Truthfully, I'd probably tire of Hunt before I did of Legend.
But then I could just watch him with the audio off....and I'm fine with that.

The next CD will tell but for now...and for
purely superficial reasons: Hunt.

CalhounSq said:

For me, I was familiar with Van's music before he released his debut. Being totally honest, I wasn't completely blown away by the material on his album. He's written and produced much better songs for others: Dionne Farris; Rahsaan Patterson; Cree Summer. But knowing what he capable of, he still blows John Legend out of the water.

John Legend comes across as pre-packaged hype by Kanye West. I know he's talented and whatnot but Kanye's image overshadows his talent. Any album that is full of classic samples and is packaged with a sticker that says "The Best Thing to Hit Soul Music since..." is an automatic turn off. Maybe by his second or third album he might do something to raise an eyebrow. But for now, Legend is not worthy of all the hype he's received since Get Lifted was released.

Van Hunt - He's more convincing to me of trying to push Soul music forward.
[Edited 4/2/05 14:21pm]

John Legend makes me cringe. I haven't heard Van Hunt.

Haven't heard Van Hunt yet, and I've only heard one song by John Legend (which I like a lot), so I guess (for now), I'd have to say John Legend.

Van Hunt is a limited singer, but his songs are way better than Legend's IMO and he actually plays A NUMBER of instruments on his album.

I agree with the post above....

While John Legend's voice is more expressive and versatile than Van Hunt's, there's an attention to detail and an identifiable craftsmanship when it comes to Van Hunt's songwriting skills, as opposed to Legend who seemed to focus solely on one style of writing. But dont get me wrong, Legend's voice is a wondrous thing to behold; I'm focused more on songwriting than anything else right now....

But I dont understand the adverse sentiments caused by Van Hunt's success; people today are beleaugered with trivial and uninspired music, especially the music found in R&B, so why not give this dude the laudation he deserves? Van Hunt is not unlikable, acknowledges his influences earnestly and seems humbled by the warm response his debut has received....

That being said, these two brothers have got to release at least two more lps before we can judge who's music is/was better.
[Edited 4/2/05 15:38pm]
[Edited 4/2/05 15:40pm]

anon said:

He ain't even cute!

chuckaducci said:

yeah, i dig humility in an artist, which is part of why i like hunt's music...there's an honesty.

i'm not sure about what kind of guy Legend is, I've only heard that one song and I don't even remember how it sounds. Until I hear another single that sounds better, I find Van Hunt's music more appealing.

Thanks y'all for explaining your choices

Keep 'em coming, this is a contest

Neither of them are as soulful as R.Kelly, and that’s just real.

CalhounSq said:

They say that Shamar guy is cute. He does nothing for me. That kind of "cute" I can only stand for a second. He exudes nothing.
I never said that Hunt was cute. Haven't really given that much thought but I guess he does exude cuteness.

psykosoul said:

What song/s did he do for Cree? Thought Lenny produced the CD. I heard a few of her tracks. Remember liking them.

Their both good, but they can't fuck with Lyfee.

John Stephens is a truly gifted and talented brother, but his album is seemed to be dumbed down into a typical rnb-hip-hop hybrid that we seem to consistently get from rnb artists these days... I heard his early material and it blows his present album away

Van Hunt is my choice, I like the different moods and colors on his album. I do think he held back a little on his debut, but there is some good playing on this record. Hopefully he'll break loose the next time out