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Jan 3, 2024 · Many of this century’s epochal blockbuster albums are R&B records: from Usher’s 10-times platinum Confessions, to Beyonce’s Lemonade, to Mariah Carey’s The Emancipation...
- 4 min
- Rolling Stone
Listen to the best contemporary R&B songs in 2024 on Spotify and YouTube above. Songs from Sza, Summer Walker, Snoh Aalegra, Ari Lennox, H.E.R., Ella Mai, Frank Ocean and more. Check out more of our playlists of the best contemporary R&B, Soul, Neo-Jazz and Hip Hop Soul here.
Play all. A music genre that combines elements of rhythm and blues, soul, funk, pop, hip hop and dance.
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Like urban, contemporary R&B is slickly produced, but many of the musicians -- Maxwell, D'Angelo, Terence Trent D'Arby -- are obsessed with bringing the grit, spirit, and ambitiousness of classic soul (Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Otis Redding) back to contemporary soul and R&B.
- ‘U Remind Me’ – Usher
- ‘7 Days’ – Craig David
- ‘Them Changes’ – Thundercat
- ‘Blue Lights’ – Jorja Smith
- ‘Dumb’ – The 411
- ‘Don’t Think I’m Not’ – Kandi
- ‘Passionfruit’ – Drake
- ‘If You Love Me’ – Brownstone
- ‘Case of The Ex (Whatcha Gonna Do)’ – Mya
- ‘Untitled (How Does It Feel)’ – D’Angelo
There are so many Usher songs that could have made this list but ‘U Remind Me’ is the one for its melancholic soap opera-style tale and for the way it accentuates Usher’s syrupy vocals. Best R&B lyric: “You won’t believe all of the things she put me through/this is why I just can’t get with you“
The garage undertones and recognisable guitar line coupled with Craig David’s smooth-talking account of wooing a lady make ‘7 Days’ a bonafine UK R&B classic. Best R&B lyric: “Monday, took her for a drink on Tuesday/we were making love by Wednesday, and on Thursday and Friday and Saturday/we chilled on Sunday“
Using a sampled beat from the Isley Brothers’ ‘Footsteps in the Dark’ with Thundercat’s bubbly bass riff and woozy vocal lines, ‘Them Changes’ is a sterling R&B groove. Best R&B lyric: “Nobody move, there’s blood on the floor/and I can’t find my heart“
‘Blue Lights’ was our first introduction to the talent that is Jorja Smith, when she posted the track on her SoundCloud back in 2016. Since then, she’s collaborated with Drake, toured with Bruno Mars, won plenty of awards and so much more. Best R&B lyric: “I wanna turn those blue lights into strobe lights/not blue flashing lights, maybe fairy light...
British girl group The 411 might not have been around for too long but ‘Dumb’, released in 2004, was the pinnacle of their time together. Best R&B lyric: “Dumb diggi-diggi-di dumb di-dumb/and ‘though I know it would be fun to get some“
Kandi Burruss might be more recognisable as one of the main cast members of ‘The Real Housewives of Atlanta’ but her debut solo single remains her finest work to date. Best R&B lyric: “When you’re feeling good in somebody’s spot, getting hot, don’t stop/just don’t think I’m not ’cause I’m out getting mine“
Drake’s foray into tropical house was a success with ‘Passionfruit’, with the track giving off carefree, mellow vibes from start to finish, Best R&B lyric:“Passionate from miles away, passive with the things you say/passin’ up on my old ways, I can’t blame you, no, no“
If you’re after an emotional, harmony-filled R&B ballad, you can’t go wrong with Brownstone’s 1995 second single ‘If You Love Me’. Best R&B lyric: “But if you want my heart, then it’s time that you start/to act like you’re mine in the light and the dark“
The pairing of ‘Case Of The Ex’’s dramatic, percussive keyboard and Mya’s sweetly seething vocals give the track just the right amount of rage. Best R&B lyric: “Tell me what is it that she needs?/Did she hear about the brand new Benz, that you just bought for me?“
Originally composed as a tribute to Prince, you can definitely hear the latter’s influence in the soulful style and funky electric guitar of ‘Untitled (How Does It Feel)’. Best R&B lyric: “I wanna stop, silly little games you and me play/and I am feeling right on, if you feel the same way, baby“
This is the space for all that’s new in R&B. Crossover ballads, modern hybrids, fresh sounds that call back to the past—if it’s got that vibe, you’ll find it here. Selections are updated regularly, so if you hear something you like, add it to your library.
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Contemporary R&B Songs (Playlist) | 2019 R&B Soul Adult Comtemporary Love Music Hits (Mix) · Playlist · 41 songs · 100 likes.
