R&B music emerged following World War II within Black communities, particularly large urban centers that saw an increase in African American presence as part of the Great Migration. Lyrical themes revolve around freedom and love as well as wider social and economic concerns.
RnB music often relies on melodic vocals as an integral element. Artists such as Luther Vandross and Whitney Houston are known for their incredible melismatic voices.
Definition
R&B music emerged post-World War II among Black communities throughout America. It evolved from various 20th-century Black American musical forms such as soul, gospel, jazz and blues. R&B songs are generally performed by African American artists with lyrics that often refer to their life challenges or relationships.
R&B music gained steam during the 1940s, quickly spreading throughout urban America. Coinciding with segregation’s disintegration, young African Americans identified more easily with R&B than with any other genre or cultural group; therefore, creating bonds that transcended cultural backgrounds or skin tone. Furthermore, its introduction helped a new generation of African American performers thrive within the music industry, previously limited only to white performers.
As R&B developed, it quickly became a hit with both African American and white audiences alike. Its peak popularity came during the 1970s with artists like Sam Cooke and Etta James being recognized as prominent R&B performers at that time. Even today, this genre is widely considered mainstream musical style with superstars such as Usher and Beyonce (formerly of Destiny’s Child) being among its most famous R&B musicians around.
With the rise of hip hop culture in the mid 1990s, many R&B artists began adopting some elements from hip hop music into their own work. This move proved beneficial to R&B as hip-hop’s rebellious nature appealed to younger audiences who had otherwise overlooked R&B music during previous decades.
Modern R&B, also known as contemporary rnb, is the newest iteration of R&B music genre. This style encompasses styles such as pop, dance and electronica music. Modern R&B can often be identified by vocalists performing alongside an instrument like piano or keyboard; many songs also feature emotive singing style with strong bass line or beat that will get people moving!
R&B music in its current era can be seen through the popularity of artists like Frank Ocean, The Weeknd and Jhene Aiko who are shaping its future by blurring genre boundaries between R&B and other forms like alternative rock and rap music. Their artistry gives R&B a renewed identity in today’s musical landscape while appealing to a broader audience.
Styles
R&B music has long been at the center of American culture. Originating as an expression of Black communities’ self-expression in urban areas, R&B quickly rose to become one of the most beloved genres today. Since its initial incarnation as self-expression music for urban Black communities, this genre has gone through significant development; today’s songs often incorporate elements from other musical styles into them and even cross over into genres like funk, disco and pop music!
Contemporary R&B has become increasingly popular as its combination of various musical genres has grown ever-more popular. This genre often incorporates elements of traditional rhythm and blues with hip-hop, electronic dance music, rap and rock; popularized by artists like Beyonce, Rihanna and Drake.
Though R&B music has evolved through time, it still retains a distinctive sound. One major distinction between classic and contemporary R&B is instrumentation – earlier styles relied more heavily on guitars; today many songs utilize keyboards or software loops instead. Some artists such as Alicia Keys still utilize an acoustic piano while most modern musicians favor synthesizers or drum machines instead.
Neo-soul is another noteworthy change to modern R&B music, having experienced a resurgence as the result of influential artists like Erykah Badu and Bilal who have introduced unique sounds into contemporary culture. Additionally, modern artists such as Ella Mai, Janelle Monae, Kehlani have all adopted this genre within their work as well.
Contemporary R&B music has increasingly adopted influences from hip hop. Artists such as Tory Lanez and Lil Baby have made names for themselves by merging hip hop with R&B sounds; you can hear this influence both in production techniques as well as lyrics of contemporary R&B tracks.
R&B music’s development has been driven by the changing needs of its audience. While younger audiences embraced hip-hop and other styles, more mature audiences sought a connection with R&B genre again – this was particularly evident at 2018 Grammys where two predominately R&B albums from Bruno Mars and Janelle Monae were named winners.
Lyrics
R&B music is an immensely popular genre combining soulful vocals with an infectious backbeat, produced mainly by African Americans, often dealing with love, heartbreak and family matters – artists like Usher, Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men have popular songs to encapsulate these sentiments perfectly. R&B can trace its history all the way back to early 20th century African American gospel music merging with secular jazz to produce something completely original – now known as R&B.
Today, R&B music has become one of America’s most beloved genres, according to the Luminate year-end report. R&B boasts the highest number of on-demand streams and holds the largest share of total album consumption; as its popularity soared it produced explicit lyrics as well as increased competition with hip hop; its development was heavily impacted by events such as segregation and civil rights movements.
Contemporary RnB is more sexually explicit than in its past iterations, yet its foundation remains grounded in classic funk and soul – two genres deeply embedded within American black experience. Genre music often mixes traditional with modern instrumentation as well as influences such as psychedelia and neo-soul; its combination with other styles has produced an array of sounds from rock to pop and beyond.
Some of the greatest R&B songs are slow jams that capture the essence of emotion, from pain and heartbreak to joy and love. Many songs by Marvin Gaye like “What’s Going On” serve as protest against police brutality and other forms of social injustices.
New rnb artists are emphasizing albums that tell a narrative and impart a message. 6lack, for instance, explores themes of identity, relationships and spirituality while creating his signature sound with influences from neo-soul and psychedelia – other artists such as Janelle Monae have taken this same approach with their music.
Arrangements
Classic R&B songs typically feature a rhythm section made up of bass guitar(s) and guitar(s), while modern R&B often incorporates more synthesizers and electronic beats. Horns were traditionally popular among R&B musicians; however, many contemporary artists now mix horns in with other instruments for unique arrangements.
R&B music has long been an influential genre that spans multiple genres such as rap, hip-hop, electronic dance music, rock and country. Artists such as Drake, Rihanna and Post Malone may belong to several of these categories, yet all share an inimitable sound fusing classic R&B with other styles.
Mellow tracks that will soothe and relax you – from Tory Lanez, Mahalia, dvsn, Snoh Aalegra Kehlani Ari Lennox Muni Loong Saint Harison Giveon PJ Morton and more!