rolling r&b 2023

new luna luna!

"dance with u" feat shrt_lyf

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktOkyPQ6tz4

probably the most blatantly pop thing they've yet done. over and done in under 3 minutes and honestly great fluff. hope this means more material is on the way; "talk too much" from last year has yet to leave my heavy rotation!

Damn, the new Summer Walker EP is so nice-sounding….. (it’s 9 tracks, v generous)

this track “Finding Peace”… it’s lush as hell, I can’t even

She’s such a fantastic artist

i love her so much. she posted on IG the other day about how her EPs are the only music she likes making & her albums are “radio bullshit” or some phrase like that. i’m slightly insulted on behalf of ‘still over it’ which is a stone cold classic to me but i do love that she has taste

i really like how you can hear the neo-soul influences coming out on this one… she’s always reposting badu on IG & there’s a few explicit references to her on the project so not a surprise but the way she sings ones like “hard life” or “pull up” are quite reminiscent of early badu. and she kinda extends the continuum to neo neo-soul of the solange era, even aside from the final song

my fav tho is “how does it feel” … there’s something about her really spare, acoustic songs that i love. she’s a bracing lyricist & i her vocals sound amazing to me in that context … “you don’t know me” from the last album is one of my fav songs of the last handful of years. i like how this one adds those little choral flourishes

Yeah she said this to Billboard (last year):

I am hella excited to do Clear 2. The last one was like four songs. This one — I want it to be a lot longer so I can really get that sound out. That’s my favorite type of sound. I make what I got to make for the radio, but I’m very excited for (Clear 2). Hopefully, my budget will be permitted. (If not), we got to protest. (Laughs.)

it’s funny cuz “ex for a reason” is an amazing song to me, like one of the best attempts at honoring that sound (compare to the horrible muni long song that outright samples “my boo”). “no love” is not one of my absolute favs but as far as “radio” music goes it’s also pretty great. and then the album is just classic R&B. but her perception of the world is very unique in general…

there’s something about her really spare, acoustic songs that i love

Two of my absolute favorite songs by her are "Tonight" and "Off of You," from her first album, which both fit that mold (...well, I guess "Tonight" isn't so "acoustic," but it's a spare ballad).

i’m gonna check those out. i also need to listen to the first clear EP

The songs on the original Clear have never connected with me, for whatever reason… I guess they feel somewhat slight or something. The musical approach is cool, though

You treat my love like an option
Bet on these hoes like an auction
Loyalty just ain't that common
But karma's a bitch, the sweetest revenge
Ridin' shotgun
All through the streets with my options
Don't come for me when you got some
Hope it goes straight to your head
How does it feel in the end?

<3

i'm having the same reaction to this as all of her other stuff: it's alright. not displeasureable to hear, just very mid. as usual, some of the beats are really nice. she's very wordy and i kind of want her to just rap the verses and sing the refrains.

Damn ok, looks like she also said this, lol:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FweKiGEX0AU98V9?format=jpg&name=medium

can't be too mad at that level of transparency.

this record does sound different but also still sounds like her

I wonder if she had fun making the Life on Earth EP… that’s my favorite of all.

Looks like there actually is a degree of fan disappointment out there on Twitter… I’m surprised.

Probably the wrong thread for this but…. Song of the summer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqtDXcwX61I
Jorja Smith - Little things

i think i connect with diff summer walker music than most of her fans…

i’ve been stopped dead in my tracks for 36 hours now over “how does it feel”

Did you play those two tracks from Over It I mentioned? Curious to hear what you think

i did! i liked "off of you" tho i think "fun girl" is more what i was looking for. it's a bit of a harsh recording but it feels very true to her mission statement as an artist, lyrically... it's basically the first draft of "unloyal" in a way. i liked "potential" a lot too.

i will say that there is some completely criminal vocal production on that album. after really sitting w/ over it i totally get why she looks at her albums as autotune bullshit she is forced to engage in... bcuz that's exactly what those songs sound like! if you listen to her live vocals during i.e. the performance of "unloyal" at the soul train awards, her entire team should have to stand trial for what they did to her voice on that album. thankfully i assume she wrested some creative control back for still over it? cuz good lord her voice is almost treated w/ disrespect

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdTpQ-URyTw

in going back thru the catalog i think it was "session 32" that really knocked me over

"playing games" could've been a great single if not for the unnecessary detour into destiny's child. i'm kinda incensed at how directly they connected her to turn of the millennium R&B hits at the outset, it's so gimmicky. i guess it worked but i wrote her off at this stage as, essentially, the R&B version of what we're now seeing from saweetie or coi leray. it feels like a miracle to me in retrospect that she was able to transcend that style of songwriting and bend it back towards her own artistry. clearly i'm out of step w/ the larger summer walker fanbase on this one but man does still over it sound so superior to me

you're right that the first 'clear' isn't very good... "riot" is actually great but the rest of have these jazzy affectations that feel very college town open mic to me so i'm glad that's been left in the past

+1 on the Destiny's Child interpolation (even one of the new songs mentions calling up Tyrone, which feels very... on the nose)

(That said – in the interest of self-interrogation – I'm fascinated by how often Lana Del Rey incorporates quotes from / references to other songs into her lyrics, as a core part of her "artistry"... including some of my favorite songs of hers. So not sure why I view it thru a different lens in her case.)

the specific act of trying to blow up in a pop way by rehashing old hits on multiple singles off a debut album leaves a sour taste in a way that lana’s more idiosyncratic, hermetic or even ironic references don’t

summer peformed at some festival a few weeks ago that usher was at & he came out to do his part on “come thru” and the video went viral on twitter bcuz usher came out all hyped and energetic and summer was… summer. but even putting the anxiety stuff aside it’s like… yeah maybe she rightfully thinks this song is corny trash and hates performing it

it’s funny you mention lana tho cuz i was on my 24th straight listen of “how does it feel” the other day & i thought, this woman is to me what lana is to other gay guys….

lol her disdain for some of her music is funny. i love "come thru" too ;_; i can imagine exactly the kinds of calculations that were behind "ex for a reason" but yeah when the results are that good... (tho i remember some fans disliking it)

but yeah this ep is really good + i'm glad she gets to go out there a bit musically. even album tracks on still over it were very much not, like, radio music so i don't entirely get her perspective but oh well

me either tho i think she’s maybe thinking about her live sets where songs like “playing games” and “come thru” still get the loudest responses (at least based on when i saw her in new york but i can’t imagine that being an outlier)

Just rec'd the CD which I ordered from her web store... not only is the cover signed by Summer (or, maybe, by the identically named LVRN employee who famously discovered her... lol), but turns out it includes both Clear EPs on the disc, which I didn't realize it would. Pretty cool!

https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/the-war-and-treaty/old-school-soul-class-is-still-in-session

New albums with old-school soul/r'n'b feel by William Bell, War & Treaty, and Billy Valentine reviewed

lil bit late on this one: i'm really digging the latest daniel caesar album. beats are across the board excellent - kinda really nice MOR neosoul revival sound. and he's in excellent voice throughout; i had no idea of his range. first listen just now but definitely going to dig in a bunch more.

Not familiar with this artist, but this is a fun jam:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRvxWzyb-uE

MK xyz - No Boys Allowed

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OE5gUvkW7U

Ryan Trey - Ain't Even Friends (ft. Mariah The Scientist)

This goes hard!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhlc29n6olw

Kendra Jae - Count Your Blessings

Kendra Jae song is nice ( but alas it’s in the current r’n’b style so it may not have enough distinguishing aspects to reach a broader audience but hopefully she can reach the still sizable r’n’b base )

Mahalia's new album,IRL, is out today... the whole thing is recommended, but check out "Hey Stranger," a terrific ballad:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RR1rnAKglfQ

stormzy and raye team-up

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=094vNTaMtXw

enjoying Mahalia's album, agree "Hey Stranger" is a standout, along with the song right before it -- in a similar mode and featuring... Stormzy

"Lose Lose" is another terrific track on that album...

new Tinashe is hypnotic

"Talk To Me Nice"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVLGp0Ph9lA

really enjoying yazmin lacey's album voice notes, very solid neo-soul

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62KO_n6deZE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiIIIO1vYuY

Thanks, I like this… wasn’t aware of her.

So who were the most important R&B-artist of the 2010s? Asking because I'm not sure if there's really a consensus on this...

― human and working on getting beer (longneck)

i would say there's a strong consensus on the weeknd, frank ocean, beyonce, drake, rihanna, solange, sza, jazmine sullivan, miguel, fka, monae and…chris brown. d'angello and maxwell also solidified their previous positions.

maybe the more interesting question is who's the current/future number one? khalid and ty dolla sign?

maybe the more interesting question is who's the current/future number one? khalid and ty dolla sign?

― gospodin simmel, Tuesday, August 22, 2023 11:23 AM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

brent faiyaz and summer walker

is fka twigs really 'r&b'
is weeknd

why wouldn't they be? not trolling, just interested.

good call on brent faiyaz. how would you rank his projects? how do you rate bryson, 6lack, giveon, roy woods, jacquees, alsina in this context?

I dont mean to be a 'purist,' lol, but its kind of weird to say 'weeknd ran R&B!' and then look at, like, a youtube map of what audiences listen to, say, beyonce vs listen to the weeknd, and insist theyre the same genre

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/08/07/upshot/music-fandom-maps.html

are you asking abt a context of current relevance? b/c uh most of the artists you've listed are either basically inactive recently or their material is mostly being ignored + would be better fits for your list from 2010s. also impactful that decade were jhené aiko, jeremih

to the extent that radio is a barometer of audiences' leanings in the year 2023 (still relevant, tho to a declining degree), weeknd's music seldom gets played on stations w/ an r&b or 'mainstream urban' format these days. arguably a famous artist who's scoring many hits, almost none of which are being played at the radio stations serving the core audience for r&b, could be considered ehhh not rly r&b? literally his song w/ metro boomin, a cover of a major r&b hit from 2 decades ago, limped onto such playlists months after pop and even hot ac stations had already put it into heavy rotation. before "creepin", his last major hit at black radio in america was "the hills" from 2015 ("starboy" also cracked the top 10, tho briefly, at the mainstream urban format, + "i feel it coming" and his 2020 collab w/ calvin harris (lol) went top 10 at the adult r&b format, also briefly)

like should we be considering adele and sam smith among the influential r&b artists of last decade? b/c their track records w/ the core r&b audience are frankly not that dissimilar to weeknd's

weeknd seems to be part of the conversation and all the attempts at canon building on sites and podcasts that focus on r&b and he is as obviously influential in the field as drake, ocean and brown. also, every r&b artists seems to have a weeknd feature so I would say he is recognized as part of the community. i would say adele and smith are r&b but they are both conservatives aesthetically so their impact is harder to spot and less interesting to discuss.

anyway, i'm mostly interested in r&b as cutting edge pop basically. i brought out some names i figured could be worth following in that regard. open to further recommendations and pushback obviously.

Anyone heard the new Victoria Monet? Is it good?

definitely need to listen to that. has anyone seen her on tour? i hear she's a great performer but i don't know if i will be able to make it to any of her shows this time around

Grammys in Feb 2024 nominees-

23. Best R&B Album

For albums containing greater than 75% playing time of new R&B recordings.

Girls Night Out
Babyface

What I Didn't Tell You (Deluxe)
Coco Jones

Special Occasion
Emily King

JAGUAR II
Victoria Monét

CLEAR 2: SOFT LIFE EP
Summer Walker

Grammys in Feb 2024 nominees-

21. Best R&B Song

A Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

Angel
Halle Bailey, Theron Feemster & Coleridge Tillman, songwriters (Halle)

Back To Love
Darryl Andrew Farris, Robert Glasper & Alexandra Isley, songwriters (Robert Glasper Featuring SiR & Alex Isley)

ICU
Darhyl Camper Jr., Courtney Jones, Raymond Komba & Roy Keisha Rockette, songwriters (Coco Jones)

On My Mama
Dernst Emile II, Jeff Gitelman, Victoria Monét, Kyla Moscovich, Jamil Pierre & Charles Williams, songwriters (Victoria Monét)

Snooze
Kenny B. Edmonds, Blair Ferguson, Khris Riddick-Tynes, Solána Rowe & Leon Thomas, songwriters (SZA)

Would love for Summer to win the Album category (even though I imagine it must be handicapped as an EP?)

d'mile also got a producer of the year nom :)

I'm fond of this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sD04RSioKBA

40 Days - Tamera ft. CKay

That's nice .

Nourished by Time is a Pitchfork Best of, Chr*s R*chards in my local Wash Post likes it, and ilxors are mentioning it in that listening to in 2023 thread and the albums of the year one. It's growing on me

For better or worse, this Pitchfork review captures my take on the Mariah The Scientist album really well.

Really like the Nourished By Time even if it drives its schtick into the ground a bit - choice track IMO is “Soap Party”.

the schtick is fine with me on that album because the songs are so well-written and the vibe so inviting

Yeah I agree with that

NBT is better in small doses but keep coming back to it and discovering new things I like about it. Have changed my opinion on what’s my favorite track every time I listen.

huh, didn't expect this year's pleasant surprise to be pm dawn revival, but this is very cool stuff. the beats are stellar.

hi after listening a bit, can you guys expound on what you mean when you say there's a "schtick" at work?

(i don't disagre, just wondering)

"arthur russell does freestyle" basically

or maybe tim f meant something different!

either way, one of my favorite albums of the year!

yeah, it's really getting better the more i play it. "daddy" was the initial standout, even though i'm cooling on it a bit. the whole thing is really unique, but fully reminiscent of old stuff and it has an air of... idk, good taste? it reminds me of pm dawn, you said arthur russell, i saw a review mention soul ii soul - very solid sounds imo.

I think maybe it’s just that his voice and melodies and production are so distinct and consistent across the album - nothing bad about that but it takes some time for the songs to de-merge from each other.

I made a 2 hour playlist of some of my favourite r&b (ish) stuff of 2023 here:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6VeddnKVaaog9TGVO5PMTa?si=D_B0XjfdRxi2q1N8vQ9daQ&pi=a-80k5N1RYTiiy

outstanding tim. tyvm. jammin it now.

and i just have to say, i _ABSOLUTELY LOVE_ this feeling when encountering new music—

voice and melodies and production are so distinct and consistent across the album - nothing bad about that but it takes some time for the songs to de-merge from each other.

just completely immersed. sza named it last year: `feelin lost and i like it`

okay this madison mcferrin - uhm yeah... holy shit. wow, big tune.

Great looking playlist Tim! There’s at least 4 songs in there which are top 20 of the year for me (Tinashe being probably my #1 most played song this year), a lot I love and a lot I don’t think I’ve even heard.

Paste EPs of the year also has some good choices

https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/best-eps/30-best-eps-of-2023

Goddamit wrong thread again

The Naomi Sharon album (Obsidian) is nice; apparently she's the first woman signed to OVO Sound

"Definition of Love":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqYziCG3p1A

"Push" (with Omah Lay):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1GdEwiotDU

New Summer Walker song (or part of a song?), to close out the year: Drown in My Love