R. Kelly - Trapped in the Closet of Genius

Ok, if you are reading this and have not heard of R. Kelly’s “Trapped in the Closet”, you are way behind. I’m getting a blog entry in about this really late. The CD came out in July and the video has been getting tons of talk. However, since many of you may not know anything about this, I’m going to devote an entry to the “Trapped in the Closet” phenomenon.

To truly appreciate the “genius” of R. Kelly, it is essential that you get some background. This summer saw R. Kelly release his new album, TP.3 Reloaded. This is the third installment of his 12 Play album series. Now, while his original album had the number 12, he chose to call his next albums TP instead of 12P, just a tiny glimpse into how R. Kelly takes into account even the tiniest details. 12 Play was followed up with
TP-2.com. Most musicians would consider ending an album title with .com stupid, pointless, irrelevant, and nothing to do with music or sound of any kind, but R. Kelly showed them all, and has become a guiding light in album names. Also, with three albums called 12 Play, you’d assume that all the albums had 12 songs. While this is true of the first album, the following TP albums have 19 and 15 tracks respectively. Many artists would give up on calling an album 12 Play when it has 19 and 15 tracks, but R. Kelly pushed on, determined not to let the critics or common sense get in his way.

TP.3 Reloaded appears to be his homage to The Matrix series, and it’s obvious in listening to the album that R. Kelly’s luscious, flowin’ style was heavily affected by this sci-fi masterpiece. The Matrix’s bleak but hopeful view of mankind and the future is captured perfectly by R. Kelly in songs like “Sex Weed”, “Sex in the Kitchen” and “(Sex) Love is What We Makin”. It is apparent to the R&B community that Neo is to love and making babies what Scarface is to gansta. I think you’ll see many more reference’s to The Matrix. There is a rumor that Usher’s new album is tentatively titled, Gunfight in Zion (I Love You Too Damn Much).

But R. Kelly hasn’t been water cooler conversation lately because of his album titles. It’s the final tracks of his recent album that has helped his album go almost double platinum in just under three months. “Trapped in the Closet” is a five chapter melodrama about R. Kelly, Kathy, Chuck, Rufus, and many more. The engrossing plot also has an accompanying 15 minute video in which actors lip-synch the lyrics while acting out the situations. And while many musicians would have 5 different songs or some variety in their music, R. Kelly again shows his “genius” by using the exact same minimalist beat, melody, and bass line for all five tracks. He also throws conventional rhyming aside, disregarding rhyme of any kind on many lines, and rhyming “club” with “club”.

I won’t tell any more about the video, as I don’t want to spoil it for those who have not seen it. 

There is a link to the video online provided below. The CD is accompanied by a DVD of “Trapped in the Closet” and the video is in rotation on MTV, so I’m sure if you look you can find it. There are two links below for those already initiated to “Trapped in the Closet”. The second link is a live, solo, lip-synched, edited performance of “Trapped in the Closet” with a bonus 6^th chapter. The third is a digital animation version of the video with audio accompaniment.

Vision like R. Kelly’s is rare, so make sure you experience it. There are also 7 additional chapters already recorded and may be released in the future. I personally can’t wait.

UPDATED:  The R Kelly "Trapped in a Closet" full video.

http://www.r-kelly.com/index_main.html

http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2678799?htv=12

http://www.funkdigital.com/mt/archives/000208sims_r_kellys_trapped_in_the_closet.html