Jesse McCartney never seemed like the rest of the Disney-approved B-list tween pop stars taking over the industry in recent years. Not only because of acting credentials on non-Cable television programs ("All My Children", "Summerland"), but also because his favorable brand of pop-soul (the Maroon 5-ish "Right Where You Want Me", or "She's No You", which saw co-signs from Fabolous and the Neptunes) hinted that when he reached that "mature" benchmark, he had the potential to become something truly worthwhile.

That moment arrives with new single "Leavin'", a echo-reliant, xylophone-accented midtempo from the hit-making team of Chris "Tricky" Stewart and The-Dream ("Umbrella", "Just Fine", "Touch My Body") that finds Jesse saying "shawty", smoothly lavishing praise on a girl's backside ("Man that thing you got behind you is amazing") and adopting Beyonce phrases ("Just tell him to left left left") without ever inducing cringes.

The pillowy bed of starry-eyed synthesizers belie the boy-man's devilish urge to steal some other cat's girl as he utilizes suggestive mini-mack lines like "Now if I talk it girl/ You know that I will walk it out/ Man I'll put my money where my mouth is" and promises to have her "singin' all night". His polished soul-lite chops (while still a bit lightweight and indistinctive) keeps the tip-toe transition into "edgier" material convincing, while the twinkly production rides a rhythmic radio-aiming fluidity that's definitely ear-soothing.

While nowhere near a defining, breakout performance like "Cry Me A River" or a guarantee that he'll be getting any BET play anytime soon, "Leavin'" does find Jesse McCartney reaching a commendable new plateau that could give Chris Brown some interesting competition (as far as being one kids like and parents can appreciate without total embarrassment) in the near-future.



DL: "Leavin'" (YFH)