Ace Young

Ace Young seems to be going through an identity crisis: After finishing seventh on American Idol season five, he waited two years to release a debut full of sexy, Stevie Wonder-steeped, white boy funk that would be perfect for Young's buddy Blake Lewis but seems odd coming from the grungey Coloradoan. But appearances can be deceiving, identity crises can be fruitful, and this would-be Idol has got himself a pretty solid first effort here, particularly when he lays off the treacly slow jams and indulges his new jack ("Dirty Mind") and, especially, Princely ("Young Money") tendencies.