R&B first emerged during the Great Migration of African-Americans to cities like New York. Louis Jordan with his Tympany Five bandleader was one of its earliest practitioners; their music featured elements that would come to define R&B such as shuffle rhythm and boogie-woogie bass lines.
The origins of R&B
R&B can be traced back to its roots during the Great Migration in US history, when African American families left rural areas for urban centers like New York City and Chicago. Here they fostered a unique genre that blended multiple styles including blues, jazz and gospel into one genre of music known as R&B.
This genre, originally known as race music and later rebranded rhythm and blues, would go on to produce numerous iconic artists over time. Song like Chubby Checker’s I Got a Woman and Sam Cooke’s You Send Me became foundational works that would foster new artists such as crooners that brought a smooth approach to pop music.
As R&B evolved, its characteristics began to share more similarities with rock music, eventually evolving into the soul subgenre. Now, however, its boundaries with other forms of music have blurred further; artists such as Beyonce have released albums more characteristic of hip hop than classic R&B.
The Great Migration
In the 1940s, many African Americans left rural southern areas and relocated to urban centers such as New York, Chicago, Detroit and Los Angeles, in search of higher wages, better working conditions and freedom from Jim Crow laws. This event became known as The Great Migration.
These dense cities with large Black American populations provided a fertile entertainment ecosystem that fostered artists and bands. Southern artists such as Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf found audiences who loved their soulful blues tunes.
Crooners like Etta James and Sam Cooke brought a more commercially polished sound to popular music that blended R&B and rock. This genre began to shift away from raw, acoustic blues towards dance-oriented styles that eventually dominated pop charts in the 1960s. By the ’80s, producers like Teddy Riley and Bernard Belle helped pioneer contemporary R&B that combined blues with jazz, funk, disco hip-hop and electronica music genres.
The 1950s
The 1950s in America saw significant change, as African-American migrants, known as Great Migrants, moved to urban areas due to the Great Migration. Racial tensions existed long before the Civil Rights Movement; music played an instrumental role in this movement with artists like Chubby Checker and Sam Cooke creating rhythm-and-blues style music known as soul music that helped break down barriers by appealing to both white audiences and offering all people access to this genre.
This era also saw the establishment of record label monopolies, which dictated what types of music reached mainstream popularity. Over time, however, this changed when musicians started incorporating church music and African rhythms into their songs – leading eventually to funk, then disco, then contemporary R&B music created by artists like Ike Turner and Tina Turner.
The 1960s
In the 1960s, R&B artists found an amalgam of R&B and rock music. Artists like Aretha Franklin and Tina Turner found success while pushing musical and social boundaries through their music and message. Additionally, female musicians began transitioning from singing about love and heartbreak towards more socially aware lyrics.
Songs from this era often combined elements from both blues and church music into their compositions, including electric guitars, drums, double bass and piano. Louis Jordan pioneered jump blues which later led to classic rhythm & blues music as well as modern rock n roll music genres.
In the 1980s, contemporary R&B combined elements from pop, funk, disco, and hip hop music into a global phenomenon that made Usher, TLC, En Vogue, and Mariah Carey renowned worldwide.
The 1970s
The 1970s witnessed many classic albums being released, such as Led Zeppelin’s IV, Joni Mitchell’s Blue, Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On and Sly & the Family Stone’s There’s a Riot Goin’ On by Sly & the Family Stone and Sly & Family Stone respectively. These releases gave voice to African American life while helping spawn what would eventually become R&B music.
At its origins, rhythm and blues music of this era was heavily influenced by church music and African rhythms; musicians experimented with syncopated beats, heavier bass tones, and piano melodies to produce what we now recognize as contemporary R&B. This blend of styles eventually led to its development into what is today recognized as contemporary R&B.
This period also saw the birth of girl groups such as SWV, Destiny’s Child and En Vogue becoming immensely successful acts. Additionally, this decade saw the emergence of funk music influenced by soul music with elements of psychedelic music; eventually this genre would evolve into disco dance pop electronic music genre.
The 1980s
The 1980s marked an inflection point in R&B music. Members of the baby boomer generation began expressing greater political consciousness; artists like Aretha Franklin became associated with Civil Rights movement activism.
Additionally, jazz began to share more similarities with soul music from Detroit’s Motown label, such as its commercially polished sound featuring glamorous singers and propulsive rhythm sections; as well as elements from southern blues and gospel.
Jump Blues, popularized by Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five saxophonists, was another precursor of modern R&B. It featured shuffle rhythms, boogie-woogie bass lines and short horn patterns or riffs reminiscent of modern R&B music.
R&B artists began to experiment with different moods and atmospheres during this era, which eventually lead to more danceable styles of R&B that eventually evolved into disco and funk music. Furthermore, this decade saw iconic solo artists such as Luther Vandross and Anita Baker emerge, as well as James Brown himself becoming known as “the Godfather of Funk.”
The 1990s
The 1990s witnessed R&B’s relationship with hip-hop evolve as artists like Janet Jackson, Boyz II Men, and Mary J Blige brought new wave R&B into mainstream audiences. New jack swing was instrumental in this development by providing danceable beats with classic soul-inspired vocal harmonies; creating a bridge between R&B and hip-hop genres.
The ’90s saw the return of singer-songwriter music with acts such as Alanis Morissette, Tori Amos, and Sheryl Crow. This movement was led by female artists who introduced more sultry and sexual sounds into their music.
Timbaland developed a production style that combined hip hop with R&B, giving birth to crunk & b and featuring artists like Lil’ Jon and Missy Elliott in crunk & b – this contemporary genre combined pop, soul, funk, disco and hip hop for an exciting sexy sound that launched an entirely new generation of singers. The success of crunk & b helped push classical- or original-R&B into the background and gave way to crunk & b performers like Lil’ Jon and Missy Elliott who featured artists like Lil’ Jon and Missy Elliott who performed crunk & b.
The 2000s
Janet Jackson and Tina Turner pioneered modern R&B in the early 2000s. Musicians started challenging labels that connote race; instead using “R&B” as an umbrella term that encompassed funk, soul and disco-style rhythm and blues music.
At that time, *NSYNC and Backstreet Boys were two popular boy band groups who dominated charts with catchy songs and charismatic personalities. Girl groups such as Destiny’s Child and TLC also were prominent pop culture elements of that era.
Contemporary R&B blends elements from Black traditions with new musical ideas and technologies to form an eclectic genre that remains relevant today. Artists like H.E.R and Snoh Aalegra illustrate this phenomenon while constantly creating their own sounds within R&B genre. R&B remains a major player in today’s music industry influencing other genres while reaching wide audiences globally.
The 2010s
R&B began emerging as an art form and industry in the late 1940s as an artistic response to changes in society such as legally sanctioned segregation, international conflicts and movements for civil rights. While its emotional appeal did not directly address political concerns or agendas, its emotional resonance acted as an affirmation for young Americans who came from various ethnic and racial backgrounds.
R&B music took a strong step closer to rock during the 1950s with singer-songwriters such as Cab Calloway and Harlem Hamfats pioneering sophisticated styles of popular music. Motown Records in Detroit popularised these sounds through glamorous singers with powerful rhythm sections while Stax Records out of Memphis combined southern blues influences with soulful vocalists Otis Redding and Carla Thomas to produce soulful crooning from Otis Redding and Carla Thomas respectively.
Carly Rae Jepsen made her mark with her sweet single ‘Call Me Maybe’ during the 2010s, earning both a Juno Award and world pop domination. Meanwhile, Drake and Lil Nas X’s Hip-Hop influence was transformed into Contemporary R&B music genres during this decade.