That Grape Juice recently conducted an exclusive interview with super producer Rico Love. In our discussions with the hit-maker, who originally broke into the industry as a rapper signed to R&B phenom Usher, elaborated on some of his current projects. Included in his extensive list of works are records for Kelly Rowland, Nelly, Jamie Foxx, Pleasure P and Usher’s highly anticipated forthcoming album, ‘Raymond vs. Raymond’ which hits stores on March 1st, 2010. Peep an excerpt from the interview below:

Which abum have you worked on thus far that you feel has produced your best work (released or unreleased)?

I don’t know but I’m really confident about this Usher project. I did like 6 records on the ‘Raymond vs. Raymond’. This is 360; this is bringing it back to where I got my start. I put everything into every artist I work with – new or old, legend or newcomer – but I go above and beyond for Usher because I have so much to prove. This is the guy who gave me my start, so this album I gave some of my best work; I wrote some of my biggest records.

It goes without saying that Usher’s had a hard time recapturing the success of the ‘Confessions’ era for one reason or another. What can we expect from his upcoming record?

I just want people to know that he sings better than ever. His vocals are better than ever. He is doing innovative, new-sounding music; just a new vibe. Also, he’s not neglecting the classic ‘Usher’ sound. I feel like that’s what happened before. I wasn’t involved in the ‘Here I Stand’ album. I thought it was a great record. I feel like now he’s just capturing what made Usher so great; those classic melodies that we’re tackling; just having him sing like he’s never sung before.

Usher goes in hard; he does vocal training still! After all these years, he still gets his vocal coach and gets better; he works out his voice still. I just feel like he’s got his mind right; he’s ready for war; he feels like his back is against the wall and that’s sometimes the best feeling; the feeling that makes the best records.

This is certainly some welcome news. As an advocate of many of Usher’s earlier records, I am enthused to hear that he is pushing himself both musically and sonically to new heights. Given the current tumultuous nature of the industry, and the fact that his last LP was generally underwhelming, Usher is going to have to give everything that he’s got if he hopes to make a major impact on the charts. With many of his younger contemporaries including Chris Brown and Ne-Yo vying for his top spot, the crooner is truly going to have to prepare for “war”.

Thoughts?