Charlie Puth - Voicenotes (2018) [Hi-Res]

The captivating pop songsmith’s vocal chops on full display.

American pop singer/songwriter Charlie Puth began his career with acoustic covers uploaded to YouTube. Ellen DeGeneres was an early supporter and she signed the Berklee College alum -- along with his duet partner, Emily Luther -- to her Warner Bros.-affiliated ElevenEleven label. Though nothing materialized from that deal, Puth eventually signed with Atlantic. In early 2015, he released his debut single, "Marvin Gaye," a duet with Meghan Trainor. Shortly thereafter, he gained greater exposure as the co-songwriter, pianist, and featured vocalist on Wiz Khalifa's "See You Again," recorded as a tribute to actor Paul Walker for the soundtrack to Furious 7. The ballad reached number one in several territories, including the U.S., U.K., Germany, Australia, Italy, and Norway.

"I Won't Tell a Soul" was then released as his second proper solo single, with the EP Some Type of Love appearing in May 2015. However, promotion for "I Won't Tell a Soul" was scrapped as "Marvin Gaye" took off, reaching number one in the U.K. and New Zealand and going multi-platinum in the U.S. "One Call Away," the next single culled from Puth's eventual debut full-length, appeared in August 2015 and was also certified platinum. The full-length Nine Track Mind finally saw release in the last week of January 2016. The album peaked in the Top Ten of the charts in the U.S., U.K., France, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada and spawned another hit, this time with Selena Gomez, on the Top Ten "We Don't Talk Anymore." The single "Attention" followed in 2017, debuting in the Top Ten on Billboard's Hot 100. ~ Andy Kellman & Neil Z. Yeung