Usher Reveals “Confessions” Storyline Really Happened to Him: 'There Is a Great Deal of Truth in That Album' (Exclusive)
The Super Bowl halftime headliner gets candid about past mistakes that made it into his music, and how he found true love again, in this week's cover story
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Usher in the "Confessions" music video in 2004Every time Usher was in L.A., was he, in fact, with his ex-girlfriend?
It's a question R&B fans have debated for two decades now after the superstar and Super Bowl halftime headliner put out his mega hit album Confessions back in 2004. On it, multiple songs detail an embattled relationship rocked by infidelity and the revelation that the man at the center of the story has gotten another woman pregnant.
Fans have long speculated it to be rooted in fact, and a musical account of the downfall of Usher's then-romance with TLC's Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas, whom he dated from 2001 to 2004.
While Chilli has told PEOPLE in the past that the titular songs, both Confessions (Interlude) and Confessions, Pt. II, were not based on their relationship ("I was with him at the studio that whole time"), in this week's cover story, Usher opens up about the creative process behind the album, and how real it actually was.
"There is a great deal of truth in that album," says the star, 45, though he admits that it was not only. his truth. After calling together multiple male friends in the industry, including producer Jermaine Dupri, "We were having real talk sessions," he says of ideating the hit records. "We would sit around and I would say, 'Yo, check your egos at the door, and let's just really be honest. Everybody has to speak their truth.'"
As far as sharing his own truth, Usher says he was inspired by a conversation he'd had with publicist Chris Chambers. "He motivated me to think about who I was and what people knew about me. And the result of that was Confessions," he says. Prior to that conversation, "I had always felt like I would be judged as a result of being vulnerable. Black man, we deal with this."
So just how vulnerable was he on the album?
"Did I have a relationship ever that was exactly what I was saying? Yeah, I did," he admits, stopping short of delving into details. "But the reality of where it landed and the expression of what that was about, it wasn't exactly in order of the way or better yet in the moment when I delivered that song."
He continues, "We go through things in life and sometimes we make decisions based off of what we feel is best or right, and more than likely, will best serve the child. But the reason why I talked about it is because I'm not the only person who will experience that as men."
For more on Usher's life, loves and career ups and downs, pick up this week's issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands everywhere now.
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