New R & B wunderkind on the block John Legend has cut his teeth as a session man for the likes of big names such as Lauryn Hill and Janet Jackson, but it's his most recent work with flavor-of-the-moment Kayne West that seems to have finally paid off for him. West's own success has landed him his own label by way of Sony called Getting Out Our Dreams, and Get Lifted, Legend's first studio album, is it's first release.

Half soulful like Stevie Wonder, and half hip-hop pianist a la D'Angelo, Legend quite simply put is like the male version of Alicia Keys. Seeming to blend both genres with ease, Get Lifted is the kind of album that a phony like a Mario Winans only wishes he had in him. First single "Used To Love U" and the fine "She Don't Have To Know" only hint at what a legacy Legend may be onto here, and it also doesn't hurt that the man isn't above singing his ass off on a track like the mind blowing "Ordinary People."

The only gripe I have with Get Lifted however is Legend's less than stellar lyrics and production at times. Once in a while, he comes dangerously close to falling down that black hole of silliness that R. Kelly frequently does. Case in point the disastrous track "So High," which tries with all its might to be a romantic firecracker, but comes up with queasily hokey lines such as "you made me realize we were born to fly…baby we're so high, walking on cloud nine" (barf!) Maybe your lady would fall for schmaltz like that, but mine would laugh in my face if I played that to try and set the mood.

With Get Lifted, Legend shows plenty of promise for the future, and with a boss like Kanye, I'm sure it won't be too long before we the public see John Legend get lifted to superstar status in the R & B world.