Welcome to our newest feature at YouKnowIGotSoul where we’ll examine an artist’s catalog and determine in retrospect which we felt would have been the best choices for singles on each album. First up is Ginuwine, and we’ve examined each of his seven albums and chosen the three songs we would have selected as singles from each project compared to what Ginuwine chose. Let us know if you agree/disagree.

Ginuwine – “Ginuwine…The Bachelor” (1996)

Ginuwine Chose: 1) “Pony” 2) “Tell Me Do You Wanna” 3) “When Doves Cry” 4) “I’ll Do Anything/I’m Sorry” 5) “Only When Ur Lonely” 6) “Holler”.

YouKnowIGotSoul Would Have Chosen: 1) “Pony” 2) “I’ll Do Anything/I’m Sorry” 3) “When Doves Cry”

Analysis: Ginuwine literally had six single releases from his debut album (remember the days when artists had more than one single?), so it was hard for him to make the wrong choices. “Pony” is the obvious choice because is set off his career and was an undeniable smash. We definitely would have went to “I’ll Do Anything”I’m Sorry” which seems to have become an overlooked gem of his career, but the song is one of his best. Follow that up with his dynamic cover of Prince’s “When Doves Cry”, and that’s how we would have set him up to launch his career. All in all, he made the right choices, just ordered differently.

Ginuwine – “100% Ginuwine” (1999)

Ginuwine Chose: 1) “What’s So Different” 2) “So Anxious” 3) “None of Ur Friends Business”

YouKnowIGotSoul Would Have Chosen: 1) “What’s So Different” 2) “So Anxious” 3) “None of Ur Friends Business”

Analysis: If we were able to include “Same Ol G” in here, it definitely would have found its way into the top 3, but even though it was included on the album, its original home was on the “Dr. Doolittle” soundtrack. Looking back at “100% Ginuwine”, the singles he chose were spot on. Starting of with the dynamic “What’s So Different” back with the Godzilla roar, followed by the timeless slow jam “So Anxious” before ending with the mid tempo “None of Ur Friends Business” (aided by the great dance break in the video) is exactly how we would have lined it up. The albums had some great songs like “Final Warning” with Aaliyah, “Two Sides to a Story” and “All Nite All Day” but we’d question if these would perform well as singles.

Ginuwine – “The Life” (2001)

Ginuwine Chose: 1) “There It Is” 2) “Differences” 3) “Tribute to a Woman”

YouKnowIGotSoul Would Have Chosen: 1) “That’s How I Get Down” featuring Ludacris 2) “Differences” 3) “2 Way”

Analysis: When you look back at Ginuwine’s “The Life” album, it’s very hard to fathom how “There It is” was chosen as the first single, let alone a single at all. Especially since it was followed by “Differences” which became one of his biggest singles and a song that has helped define his career. Instead, we would have led off with “That’s How I Get Down”, the only song Timbaland produced on this album after the two had worked extensively on the first two albums. “Tribute to a Woman” is another song we’d question to release as a single, and we’d have gone with the Raphael Saadiq produced “2 Way”.

Ginuwine – “The Senior” (2003)

Ginuwine Chose: 1) “Hell Yeah” 2) “In Those Jeans” 3) “Love You More”

YouKnowIGotSoul Would Have Chosen: 1) “Hell Yeah” 2) “In Those Jeans” 3) “Love You More”

Analysis: On Ginuwine’s fourth album “The Senior”, we don’t take issue with the single choices and the order they were released in. Leading off with the bouncy “Hell Yeah” was a good choice, before slowing it down a bit on “In Those Jeans” and “Love You More”. We love “Stingy”, but that isn’t included since it was housed on the “Barbershop” soundtrack first. As for the rest of the album, we’re not sure if there were other songs with single potential except for “Sex” with his wife Sole.

Ginuwine – “Back II The Basics” (2005)

Ginuwine Chose: 1) “When We Make Love” 2) “I’m in Love”

YouKnowIGotSoul Would Have Chosen: 1) “Secrets” 2) “Want U To Be” 3) “Betta Half”

Analysis: For the “Back II The Basics” album, we would have gone in a completely different direction than Ginuwine. He chose the singles “When We Make Love” and “I’m in Love”, and we would not have put out either of these. Instead, we’d have led off with the fun record “Secrets” before moving onto “Want U To Be” and “Betta Half” which are more of Ginuwine’s bread and butter. “Oh Girl” is another song we had debated on as well.

Ginuwine – “A Man’s Thoughts” (2009)

Ginuwine Chose: 1) “Last Chance” 2) “Trouble” 3) “Get Involved”

YouKnowIGotSoul Would Have Chosen: 1) “Last Chance” 2) “Bridge 2 Love” 3) “Open the Door”

Analysis: For the “A Man’s Thoughts” album there is no denying that “Last Chance” should have been the first single, it’s a bonafide hit. “Trouble” is a good song and we can see why it was chosen, and “Get Involved” seemed a bit forced due to the reconciliation with Missy Elliott and Timbaland, but we would have avoided both. “Bridge 2 Love” was a great duet with Brandy that was tailor made for radio, and “Open the Door” is a standard Ginuwine power ballad that should have done well, with an assist from our friend RL. There were some other great choices on this album as well such as “Orchestra” and “One Time for Love”. We felt these were more in line with Ginuwine’s career than the ones he chose to release.

Ginuwine – “Elgin” (2011)

Ginuwine Chose: 1) “What Could’ve Been”

YouKnowIGotSoul Would Have Chosen: 1) “Heaven” 2) “Drink of Choice” 3) “Frozen”

Analysis: Ginuwine only officially released “What Could Have Been” as a single (although there was an official video for “Drink of Choice” and unofficial video for “Batteries”) from his last album “Elgin”, but the project certainly had potential for more. The Tank penned “Heaven” would have been a strong choice to lead the album, since it was another typical Ginuwine bread and butter love anthem. “Drink of Choice” is arguably the best song on the project and it’s a shame it didn’t get more attention. We could have gone in a number of directions for the third single, but “Frozen” was our choice since it fit Ginuwine’s career well.