Rolling R&B Thread 2012

This is actually pretty great.

Have we talked about Emanny's Songs About Her? I know I got it from one of y'all either here or on Tumblr or somewhere. It triangulates Drake, The Weeknd and Ne-Yo basically but it's awesome because he has actual songwriting chops and just uses that post-40 soundscape to really dig into solid songs.

http://www.datpiff.com/Emanny-Songs-About-Her-mixtape.354536.html

That might have been my rec. I'm still really digging it. Seems like he's sort of positioned himself as a more traditionalist Bei Maejor; he embraces a lot of the same post-Anticipation sounds, but usually stays grounded in Mario/Ne-Yo balladry. This one's probably my fav right now

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3hjmRYo_pI

lolling at both the phrase 'post-Anticipation' and its intended meaning

yeah. forever is really pretty.

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/news/a384612/ciara-confirms-new-single-sweat-album-one-woman-army.html

Ciara has revealed the names of her comeback single and album.

The singer confirmed that her new single will be called 'Sweat', while her fifth studio album will be titled One Woman Army.

1) SCREAM
2) good Ciara titles
3) ominous lack of release date

RocaBoi18
YES CISUS! I am ready!!! I'm buying 5 copies of the album!!!!
May 31st 2012 at 1:29pm

Jason Butcher
YESSSSSS!!!!! CiCi is about to slay!!!! people need to remember how talented this woman is!!!! can't wait till shes back in the uk!!!! Csquad STAND UP!!!!!!
May 31st 2012 at 11:41am(+1 like)

ha i know a guy name jason butcher but he is not a british ciara stan

would make more sense if it was him in that case

"Cisus"

RocaBoi18 would later be c-sectioned under the r&b mental health act

reference to slayyyyying reminds me, has anyone else sampled the latest delights at stan wars yet?

http://stan-wars.com/knockdown.html

new jhene aiko - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DREkQjsQnJU

wow that's great

and she's still really freaking hot

huh, jhene aiko and adiah were the same person to me until a minute ago

seriously, k3v? totally different vibes, to my ears.

adiah's stuff is much more, for lack of a better word, tropical? upbeat? i dunno. 'drumz' and that new song are both 'fun' or whatever.

jhene is basically the female sonic equivalent of drake and the weeknd for r'n'b but lex likes her. sometimes. she's also affiliated somewhat with kendrick + the black hippy crew and it sounds like it.

also affiliated w/ miguel + fisticuffs

never been grabbed by her stuff for w/e reason

i mean, they both kind of sound like cassie, i guess, but not even in the same way

yeah i mean in fairness i've heard like 2 songs by each of them and they're both incredibly hot, aiko moreso i think

in fairness

i find jhené aiko really uncompelling actually

it's kind of like someone trying to deliberately recreate the prime cassiefanclub aesthetic (which cassie herself seems guilty of as well these days)

I don't really see the Cassie/Jhene comparison besides the thin voice? Cassie's songs, while sort of detached in performance still have a certain air of either (a) menace a la Me & U or (b) sweetness a la most of the rest of her stuff. It's bubblegum, and it's thin but it's polished and 'pop'. Jhene's stuff seems like Cassie trying to do Drake.

Much closer to the sonic universe of Drake/The Weeknd/this new Emanny album/Anticipation-era MMTS/whatever.

Old-school Cassie was always much tighter, either in her post-Neptunes R-Leslie incarnation or the more actively R&B but also club music era of Connecticut Fever, or King of Hearts, which is straight-up dance music, beautiful-detached-robo-Cassie vocals or no.

god, Connecticut Fever will never not be hilarious

that's why it's my favourite! it was never a real album and it never will be, but it's such a great name and it's the best way to shorthand

i really wish drake would've named a mixtape Toronto Fever

I mean, his first mixtape was called "Room for Improvement" which is almost as great.

"Degrassi Fever" would be better, tbh.

he called himself the Tony Montana of Toronto, that's enough for me

jhene has this kind of subtle jazzy element to her that cassie does not (nor drake/weeknd)

I mean, his first mixtape was called "Room for Improvement" which is almost as great.

― twinkin' and drinkin' and ready to fly (Alex in Montreal), Monday, June 4, 2012 11:06 AM (6 hours ago) Bookmark

wishing it was called Room for Home Improvement, featuring tim allen

SWEAT
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ntfHBPpcon4

CISUS

no this is JUST WHAT I NEED though

the wait for the HQ mp3 is already killing me GIMME THAT BASS

new thread time i think

tweet covering aretha. so soooooo good.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiWLkrAApSU

The new Brandy single is beyond awesome

― Evan R, Thursday, April 26, 2012 4:56 PM (1 month ago) Bookmark

needs to be mentioned again

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTO0GJFYH1k

nguzunguzu played that brandy single at the last night slugs - it's great

but fucking chris brown goddddd

ikr? someone release a brown-less edit asap

ignored kelis demo sounding shit wasnt the tea in 2005 and still isn't today

xp I dunno; I wish Chris Brown all the misfortune in the world and I hate the idea of all Chris Brown guest verses on principle, but he actually brings it on that song

i love the chorus on this and also, surprisingly, the beat

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OL1GcXuP9GM

not so much uncredited and frankly unwanted dude but good song nonetheless

yeah it's okay! gone off it a fair amount since i first posted though, the whirring clunkiness endears then annoys

briefly just flicked thru this usher album, think i'm gonna like it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZgDRRBzZsE

probably not gonna be the best song on there but it pleased meh

I had a real short turnaround when reviewing this one, and I'm a bit bummed b/c it's still growing on me. It's a total grab bag, even by Usher standards, so I actually like it more now that I've heard the bonus tracks, which only make an already sprawling album that much more eclectic. (I really, really wish labels included bonus tracks in early review streams).