BROWN II: Despite all the predictions of...

BROWN II: Despite all the predictions of success, there’s an air of caution at MCA, where no one wants to fall prey to the inflated expectations that surrounded the release last year of the Hammer and Jackson albums.

Even though those collections have sold 3 million and 4 million, respectively, in the United States, they are viewed by many in the industry as disappointments because of the early expectations.

“We feel very strongly that Bobby is the preeminent recording artist out there,” says Randy Miller, MCA senior vice president of marketing. “Still, we’re not going to hype ourselves into believing the album is bigger than it is.”

MCA is tempering its high expectations with what Miller describes as a “relatively conservative” launch for the album.

Still, relatively is the operative word.

The company is positioning Brown as a mature artist but still in touch with his teen hip-hop roots. New publicity shots, for instance, show Brown in a Hammer-esque suit, in a cap and jacket like Arsenio Hall, and the “Humpin’ Around” single cover features him in a menacing backless leather contraption holding a friendly looking Bobby cap.

On Aug. 24, the night before the album will be in stores, MCA will host a release party at Universal Studios, with the event broadcast nationally on more than 200 radio stations across the country. Besides premiering the album, Brown will take calls from listeners.

You can also expect to see a lot of Brown on MTV and BET, plus some major TV talk shows and print interviews. There are also plans for a world concert tour, beginning either late this year or early next, plus a possible stadium tour reuniting Brown with his old New Edition mates Bell Biv DeVoe, Ralph Tresvant and Johnny Gill.

And that’s not even counting the attention from the tabloids since Brown’s marriage last month to Whitney Houston.

And note this: Brown even reportedly addresses the tabloids issue in the new song “Get Away,” and duets with his wife on “Something in Common.”