This week, Tank releases his sophomore effort “One Man,” a collection of moving love stories, mixed with some street-smart hip-hop numbers to balance things out. Recently, I spent a couple of days in New York City with the R&B; singer, who was in the Big Apple to preview his new set. It definitely has to be exciting for the Washington, D.C. native to be dropping his second album, after many years of striving to break into the business. "Looking at the business from the outside in, seeing people working on their second or third album, and you think that it’s just a formality, that the contracts say that, so that’s kind of what happens,” explained Tank. “But all in all, it has to do with success and how you really do on your first outing. I was blessed to have some success [with my first album], we were definitely striving for more, but it was enough success to get me to the second album. I think that’s what made it a harder road, trying to outdo the first [album]."

Part of trying to surpass the first album was finding out what worked initially, what did not, and perfecting that which did. His first single “Freaky” from “Force of Nature” was an uptempo hip-hop number that had a shirtless, greased up Tank dancing and looking slightly out-of-place in the accompanying music video. The song was so poorly received that it never made the final track list for “Force of Nature.” “We were happy with our effort, but we were still kind of trying to find who Tank was, and who Tank would be in this whole R&B; thing,” said Tank.

It wasn’t until the second single “Maybe I Deserve” was serviced to radio, and the music video featuring Tank clad in white boxer shorts hit the television, did the star begin to see his album impact the music charts. “’Maybe I Deserve’ kind of set the tone for who I would be, and I didn’t really realize what kind record that was,” admitted the singer. “I knew ladies would feel it because the ladies are sentimental like that. But a lot of guys were like, ‘That’s my record, know what I saying, I feel that.’ Irv Gotti [CEO of Murder Inc. Records] was like, ‘Word to the mother son, that’s it!’ People who never thought would like this record, like [deejay] Kid Capri and people like that, were like, ‘I love where you are going.’”

The self-contained talent has established a formula for future recordings. "I think for me now my blueprint is I always start with ballads,” said Tank. “I can get those out of the way real quick. I like to start with the ballads and keep it real in all of the ballads. All of the ballads tell something that everybody or somebody has been through or is going through. I think that is going to be my signature from this point out, people just being able to relate to my records. The hardest thing for me is to do is an uptempo and that’s because I am a singer, and uptempos require less singing. It’s kind of hard for me to find a track and really find a record that really compliments what I do," he admitted.

Not only have fellow musicians and industry tastemakers taken note of Tank, but the musician has built an enormous following of female fans who label the singer a sex symbol. "I’m normally the aggressor and I’m normally on my p’s and q’s as far as being strong and standing up. But when women start complimenting me to much, it kind of makes me a little shy. I’m like, alright everybody is staring at me. So you know, I am comfortable with it, but the thing is not to abuse it and there are ways to abuse it. I try to stay away from the effects of being a sex-symbol," he explained.

Though Tank has fun with the whole sex symbol thing on some occasions. As we road in our S.U.V. through the streets of Manhattan, the singer rolled down his window and attempted to flirt with a female pedestrian walking down the street. “Hey girl, you over there,” he yelled from the vehicle. The attractive young lady turned and looked at who was calling her, and then continued to talk on her cell phone. “Why are you going to ignore me like that,” laughed the singer. But he remembered, “This is New York City, they could care less about who I am.” Maybe, but I bet that girl went home and turned on BET, saw Tank’s new video, and kicked herself for rolling her eyes at the man yelling from the black S.U.V.

The heartthrob thing is not too-new to Tank. Women pant over him now as an R&B; singer, just as teenage girls and older women in church did when he was a regular on the D.C. gospel circuit. The only difference is now, women do more than just sit in their pews and pray that God forgive them for lusting after Tank. Instead, fans expose body parts, throw undergarments at him, and tear down barricades all in an effort to rub his chest. “It’s not really my thing,” said the modest entertainer. “People appreciating me is one thing, but people chasing me down the hallway is a whole other thing. I just pray to stay me. My mother helps me with that. My grandmother helps me with that as well. I still have to clean the dishes and take out the trash. All of the people around me, even you, you know me from back in the day, you all keep me reminded of who I am, what all of this is really about. The celebrity thing is taking some adjusting to.”

Being reared on gospel music and remaining a diehard fan of Kim Burrell and John P. Kee, it surprises most that Tank doesn’t include the token gospel song on any of his CD’s. "I don’t think a gospel song really has a place on a R&B; album,” conveyed Tank. “I know there are things I shouldn’t do, and there are things I shouldn’t say, and I to be quite honest, some of those things I am doing and some of those things I am saying. It’s kind of hard to put a record like "Jesus, You’re The Center Of My Joy" right after "Slowly." Like, where does that come in the show? What message am I sending? Am I confused within myself or am I trying to confuse everybody else? I promised God that when it was time for me to do [a gospel album], I would do just that. It wouldn’t be no half effort. Right now I am doing R&B; and He’s blessed that door to open for me and he’s blessed me to have success in that genre of music."

Though he doesn’t know when he will record a gospel album, he has thought about it. “[Me and] Dave Hollister have talked about doing a gospel album together,” shared the Blackground recording artist. He went on to share his admiration of Hollister. “Dave is one of the kings out here as far as I am concerned. He’s like one of those cats that I always work with because we share a mutual respect for singing itself, for the art of it, not just the commercialism of it. We’ll do a record that everybody won’t receive but people like us, so they’ll play the record on the radio. That’s, like, my dude, one of the cats I look up to in the business who I’ll work with forever."

For now, the focus for Tank is on “One Man.” With production from Rodney Jerkins, Mannie Fresh, Jazze Pha, and appearances by Sparkle, newcomers Mowett, and the Cash Money Millionaires, the album certainly has star appeal. If the response it received at the listening party at Sabu in New York City was indicative of how the buying public will receive the album, Tank will definitely steer clear of the sophomore jinx. Though for him, the goal is simple. "I hope that this album shows people who I really am, and what I can really do as far as a singer and a songwriter,” he concluded.”

“One Man” is in stores this week!

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This Just In: It’s a done deal! Puffy may have signed New Edition, but 112 has officially left his camp. “Yes, it is official that 112 has signed with Def Soul,” said an Island Def Jam representative. The former Bad Boy Entertainment quartet will now join the label that is also home to Kelly Price, Dru Hill, and Musiq. No word on when their debut album on the Def Jam sister label will bow.

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I Ain’t The Only One: I reported it two weeks ago, and it made Page Six of the New York Post on Saturday, October 26th. The paper wrote: Are Jay-Z and Beyonce Knowles engaged? Music insiders say hip-hop's most potent power couple are telling pals they are set to tie the knot. The two have been shacking up in Jay-Z's West Village pad and just returned from the Bahamas together. "They are tighter than ever," said our source. "He just wants to get married now. He's a one-woman man." Reps for Jay-Z didn't return calls.

All I'm saying is, whether they are or whether they aren't, these two are definitely in love and I am happy for the both of them!

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Mugshot Central: The nasty-looking Florida-based rapper Khia Chambers, who is responsible for the X-rated hit song “My Neck, My Back (Lick It),” should come out with a remix called, “My Arrest, My Mugshot.” Khia (born Khia Finch) is the latest entertainer to make the lineup on the mugshot board featured at TheSmokingGun.com. Between 1994-99, Florida cops busted Khia more than 20 times for a variety of felonies and misdemeanors (larceny, fraud, aggravated battery, carrying a concealed weapon). The rapper appears in more than seven of the 19 posted photos smiling like she was posing for a yearbook picture with hairstyles that could have earned her a role in the film “B.A.P.S.” To view Khia at her finest, just use the following link: http://www.TheSmokingGun.com/archive/Khia1.html. Khia’s debut album “Thug Misses” is certified gold and is in stores now!

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Getting Ready For Christmas: For one night only, pop star Usher is going gospel. The Arista recording artist will perform with The Georgia Mass Choir Thanksgiving night in Atlanta, GA. The multi-platinum superstar will sing with the famed Atlanta-based chorale during the opening selection for the The 55th Annual Lighting of Rich’s Great Tree. The Emmy-winning event will be televised in Atlanta, and other select cities nationally. The event began in 1948 as a holiday gift from Rich’s Department Store to the citizens of Atlanta. The Christmas tree will stand in excess of 70 feet atop the Rich’s Department Store at Atlanta’s Lenox Square Mall. The tree is so large that it will take eight men 22 days to decorate the tree.

Talk about a concert. Comedian Kym Whitley, Flex Alexander (“One On One”), R&B; singer Shanice, and Miguel Nunez Jr. (“Juwanna Man”) have joined forces and are throwing a Christmas celebration in honor of Bishop Noel Jones, pastor of The City of Refuge Church (formally known as Greater Bethany Church) in Gardena, CA. The celebration takes place on December 6th & 7th and features a stellar lineup of gospel talent. Performers on the lineup include Karen Clark-Sheard, Shirley Caesar, Mary Mary, Dorinda Clark-Cole, Vanessa Bell Armstrong, and Vickie Winans.

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Did I Ever Write?: How much I loved the movie “Brown Sugar”….. How I’m glad that New Edition has signed with Bad Boy Entertainment, but I am also ready to hear that SWV and Shanice got new deals too…..How Dave Hollister’s new CD “Things In The Game Done Changed” is off the hook and should finally get him the Grammy nominations he’s been slighted for over the years…..That the “Making The Band 2” show on MTV is horrible, mostly because P. Diddy sucks on TV. Sorry, but he is really bad…..That Heather Headley is the artist that everyone needs to check for right now. Her album “This Is Who I Am” is simply sensational…..That I need to get in touch with Krys Copeland of Boss Magazine who is apparently in some type of seclusion and is greatly missed on the D.C. entertainment scene……That I now have a thing for Tamyra Gray of “American Idol,” since the other love of my life Michelle Williams of Destiny’s Child is apparently dating a gospel musician from her hometown…..How I wish Al B. Sure would drop a new album. You knew I was his #1 fan as a kid, right?…..That I wish the whole Ashanti moment would pass….. How I am sick of people using my stories without giving me credit, especially those tacky enough to read my column verbatim. I can’t wait until my attorney starts serving people legal letters.

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Things That Make You Say Hmm?: “Me and [Lil’] Kim came in at the same time and we made it hard for female rappers to break in. She disses me every chance she gets, but I can't front because she was there also. When me and Kim came out everybody all of a sudden wanted a female in their crew. It's, like, you believed [Biggie] and Kim, you believed me and Jay[-Z]. You believed we carried their guns around in our Chanel purses. You can't believe Eve is doing that for DMX. That's just not believable,” said rapper Foxy Brown in the newest issue of F.E.D.S. Magazine.

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Can’t Say Names: What award-winning pop princess was recently spotted at an L.A. bar having drinks with an adult film star? This sister – whose next album drops first quarter of 2003 – and the porn brother – who has been mentioned in this column before – were apparently there along with a popular music producer. * What comic, with a part-time hosting gig on BET, has rubbed many fellow comedians the wrong way? Said one source: “He will steal your jokes and do them better than you did.” Another source added, “He performed my joke while I was in the audience one night and when I approached him about it afterwards, he said, ‘I wouldn’t have done that one if I would have known you were here.’” Both sources say it is well-known in comedian circles that said comic is a notorious joke thief, and most comedians “hate that nigga” because of his joke-stealing practice.

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Quickies:

~ Apparently the guy that everyone thinks is India.Arie’s boyfriend, is not. Sources say the guy that she has been cuddled-up and looking cozy with in public is her music director Shannon Sanders, who plays the keyboards and organ for the seven-time Grammy nominee. Sources say India is apparently “seeing” someone, but it ain’t the guy that’s been on her arm lately.

~ Rapper Sole is pregnant again! Sources spotted her about town in D.C. recently and they claim the rapper looks to be nearly 6-months or so. Sole lives outside of D.C. in the Maryland suburbs with her boyfriend (rumored to be her husband) Ginuwine. This will be their second child together, but each have at least three children (Ginuwine is rumored to have five) from previous relationships, bringing their approximate total to nearly eight kids. (Can you say vasectomy?)

~ I attended a party thrown by author Omar Tyree recently. The event was held to introduce Tyree’s new tour The Urban Griot, which features spoken word, comedy, and hip-hop performances. The party was help at Club Five in Washington, D.C. during the Howard University homecoming festivities, since Tyree is an alumni. Tyree is also continuing to promote his new book “Leslie.” For more information on the author or his tour, visit him online at TheUrbanGriot.com.

~ I was invited by publicist Eric Richardson to a fashion show for designer Shaka King at his showroom in Washington, D.C., this past Sunday. The show featured King’s new fine luxury menswear from his Fall 2002 Collection. There were some great pieces in the collection, including a black turtleneck sweater with a gray almost transparent front, and vertical gray stitching throughout the nearly shear fabric. It received the most attention from those in attendance. I was shocked because that sweater happened to by modeled by a guy named Joe Koroma, who I went to elementary and junior high school with. Talk about a small world. In addition to his two popular boutiques in New York City and D.C., King has a thriving private clientele that includes Gregory Hines, Chico Debarge, Jay-Z, Boris Kodjoe, and Will Downing, among others. For information on Shaka King New York, contact 202-291-8700.

~ Thanks to Arch Wireless for providing my paging service. For more information on Arch Wireless, visit their website at Arch.com or call 888-534-1397.

~ They have dressed Free from “106th & Park,” Ruff Ryder's deejay Swizz Beats, Jaheim, and even lil’ old me. A special thanks to Aja Imani for keeping me looking good. Aja Imani is located at 9244 East Hampton Drive, Suite #622, Capitol Heights, MD 20743. Contact them at 301-324-8300 or e-mail them at ajaimani@aol.com.

Well I’m Jawn and that’s your Juice! See you next week!

E-mail: GarekNews@hotmail.com

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