Genre Tag

Welcome to The State of R&B, ESSENCE’s have a look at the past, present and way forward for rhythm and blues. On this piece, ESSENCE editor Rivéa Ruff reports on the mixing of hip-hop and R&B. With artists like Mary J. Blige and Kehlani currently selling out nationwide tours, the anticipation of SZA’s long-awaited sophomore project and classic producers like Babyface, Bryan-Michael Cox, and Jermaine Dupri refocusing their attention on the genre, R&B appears to be shining—at the least in a front-facing manner. But while R&B is clearly alive and thriving, nobody can deny that the genre has modified drastically within the last 30 years. Hip-hop’s influence stands out as the major difference.  Because the inception of radio and recorded music, charting platforms...