Stream Mack Wilds' Sophomore Album, 'AfterHours'

Mack Wilds is enjoying a level of ubiquity very few people can relate to in pop culture. For fans of The Wire, he’s been in our lives for well over a decade. For 90210 fans, he’s been around for the past five years. Currently, he’s spending time starring in our favorite hip-hop related show, VH1’s The Breaks as well as FOX’s new police drama Shots Fired. But here’s a fact that many a Wilds’ fan may not realize: he’s also a Grammy-nominated singer.

Four years ago, Wilds released his debut New York: A Love Story, an R&B flavored album, built on ’90s nostalgia thanks to Salaam Remi’s production and Wilds’ Staten Island precociousness. The album included a well-received single “Own It”, along with “Wild Things” that featured Method Man and a head-nodding cover of Michael Jackson’s “Remember The Time.” After a brief hiatus from the microphone, Wilds returned last year with his “Love In The 90z” single, still preening in the glow of reminiscing about a by-gone era of music.

His latest album AfterHours cuts away completely from that particular sound, opting more for a modern, sensual take on things. Wilds’ newfound profile and fame aren’t discussed much on this project. He instead chooses to reflect on love, lust and heartbreak. Early singles such as “Explore” place him in a glass case of emotion, trying to figure out why a lover left him on the back burner. To help fill out some of the verses, he tapped the likes of Cam Wallace (“Vibes”), Tink (“Senses”) and Wale (“Bonnie & Clyde”).

This slower, more explicit album feels similar to a number of sophomore releases from R&B acts trying to shed labels, which is a thing Wilds’ has fought against for the majority of his career. To him, AfterHours is about moving past his guest starring turn in Adele’s “Hello” video nearly two years ago. It’s a pure declaration that he’s a grown man with love on the brain.