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A global, multilingual list of rhythm and blues and contemporary R&B musicians recognized via popular R&B genres as songwriters, instrumentalists, vocalists, mixing engineers, and for musical composition and record production.
- Ray Charles. Dubbed “The Genius, Ray Charles is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of all time. He stands among the vanguards of those who pioneered and revolutionized the soul and R&B genres, forever altering the course of popular music.
- Aretha Franklin. Also known as the “Queen Of Soul,” Aretha Franklin‘s early years in her career in the late 1950s and early 1960s didn’t have much commercial success.
- Otis Redding. The “King Of Soul,” Otis Redding, grew up in a family with a deep passion for gospel music. His talents were evident from a young age, and he started singing in the church choir and local talent shows.
- Whitney Houston. With her incredible vocal range and technique and a career spanning more than three decades, Whitney Houston is undoubtedly one of the greatest singers of all time.
- Michael Jackson. A dynamic force as the pre-teen frontman of chart-topping family group The Jackson 5, Michael Jackson moonwalked his way into solo superstardom.
- Stevie Wonder. Over the course of his five-decade career, Steveland Morris has often been dubbed the eighth wonder of the world. Blind since birth but blessed with natural gifts as a singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Stevie Wonder is one of the few artists able to successfully transition from teen to adult stardom.
- Smokey Robinson. With his piercing green eyes, sweet falsetto and prolific pen, William “Smokey” Robinson has kept females swooning since the ‘60s when he and his group The Miracles helped put Motown on the map with such love-charged hits as “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me” and “Ooo Baby Baby.”
- Ray Charles. Nicknamed “The Genius” for his skills as a singer, songwriter, musician and composer, Ray Charles set off a firestorm in 1955. That’s when he scored his first No. 1 single, “I’ve Got a Woman” — and simultaneously pioneered the soul genre with his game-changing combination of R&B, gospel and blues.
- Aretha Franklin. 574 votes. More Aretha Franklin. Dig Deeper... You Will R.E.S.P.E.C.T. Aretha Franklin Even More When You Hear About Her Remarkable Life. And Deeper...
- Marvin Gaye. 701 votes. More Marvin Gaye. Dig Deeper... The Best Marvin Gaye Albums of All Time. And Deeper... Famous People Who Were Murdered. #9 of 564 on The 250+ Best Singers Of All Time, Ranked.
- Sam Cooke. 496 votes. More Sam Cooke. Dig Deeper... Rising Soul Singer Sam Cooke Perished Under Mysterious Circumstances In 1964 And The Case Is Still Unsolved.
- Whitney Houston. 624 votes. More Whitney Houston. Dig Deeper... 320 Famous Leo Celebrities. #436 of 1,286 on The Most Beautiful Women Of All Time. #3 of 564 on The 250+ Best Singers Of All Time, Ranked.
- Top R&B Artists of All Time
- Beyoncé
- Mary J. Blige
- Chris Brown
- The Weeknd
- Sza
- Usher
- Whitney Houston
- Mariah Carey
- Alicia Keys
BeyoncéMary J. BligeChris BrownThe WeekndBeyoncé Knowles-Carter is highly regarded as one of the biggest stars of the last two decades, and will likely continue on the same trajectory for the rest of her career. She is affectionately nicknamed “Queen Bey”, she rose to fame with Destiny’s Child. The girl group is the best-selling girl group in musical history and certainly got Beyoncé off ...
The ‘Queen of R&B’, i.e. Mary J. Blige, broke onto the hip-hop-soul scene in the early nineties with her debut studio album What’s the 411? and has since released fifteen other best-selling albums. With nine Grammy Awards among her eighty-eight wins and over two hundred nominations, she has certainly earned her nickname. She was even stated by Bill...
Chris Brown, who has earned the title of the “King of R&B”, is a singer whose music is a mash-up between pop and hip-hop, to form an intriguing sub-genre of R&B. His live performances have been likened to that of Michael Jackson! His self-titled debut studio album shot to number one in the United States upon its release in 2005, and has since been ...
The Weeknd, born Abel Makkonen Tesfaye in Canada, is an extremely popular singer who is best known for his R&B tunes and falsetto register. He has been awarded with one hundred and sixty-six accolades, including four Grammy Awards. His studio albums Beauty Behind the Madness andStarboy, released in 2015 and 2016 respectively, were both awarded 7x P...
New Jersey singer Solána Imani Rowe, better known by her stage name SZA, began her career as an R&B artist when she teamed up with Nicki Minaj and Beyoncé to cowrite “Feeling Myself” in 2014. Her most popular studio album is her 2022 release SOS, which topped the charts in eight different countries and sold over two million copies in the United S...
Usher rose to prominence in the R&B world in 1997, upon the release of his second studio album My Way. It reached the top of the US Billboard R&B/Hip Hop chart and sold over six million copies in the United States! Usher has won an incredible three hundred and thirty-nine awards, including eight Grammy Awards; Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for “U...
Whitney Houston, who has been affectionately nicknamed “the Voice”, was named “the second-greatest singer of all time” by Rolling Stone and is one of the best-selling music artistsin history. She is an R&B legend, known for her powerful vocal range. Her 1987 studio album Whitney has sold over twenty million copies worldwide and has been awarded Dia...
Mariah Carey is an extremely popular female R&B singerfrom New York, who has been affectionately titled “Songbird Supreme” by Guinness World Records. Her signature note is the whistle register, and she is credited for combining pop and hip-hop. She is ranked as the best-selling female artistsince 1991 and has received over fifty-five and half milli...
Alicia Augello Cook, who is better known as Alicia Keys, started composing her own songs at the age of twelve. She has since won two hundred and seventy-two awards, including fifteen Grammy Awards, and is one of the bestselling female artists ever. Her debut studio album Songs in A Minor, released in 2001, was awarded 7x Platinum certification by t...
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Rhythm and blues portal; List of R&B musicians; List of artists who reached number one on the Billboard R&B chart; List of number-one rhythm and blues hits (United States) Music of the United States
May 1, 2024 · Updated May 1, 202463.8K views147 items. Ranked By. 44.4K votes. 4.0K voters. Revel in the soulful allure of rhythm and blues as we journey through the best R&B artists of all time. Ranked by fans and critics, this list spotlights popular music artists and legends who have significantly influenced the spectrum of R&B.
