Portal:Rhythm and blues

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Wikipedia's Rhythm and Blues Portal

Introduction

Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within the African-American community in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to African Americans, at a time when "rocking, jazz based music ... [with a] heavy, insistent beat" was starting to become more popular. In the commercial rhythm and blues music typical of the 1950s through the 1970s, the bands usually consisted of a piano, one or two guitars, bass, drums, one or more saxophones, and sometimes background vocalists. R&B lyrical themes often encapsulate the African-American history and experience of pain and the quest for freedom and joy, as well as triumphs and failures in terms of societal racism, oppression, relationships, economics, and aspirations.

The term "rhythm and blues" has undergone a number of shifts in meaning. In the early 1950s, it was frequently applied to blues records. Starting in the mid-1950s, after this style of music had contributed to the development of rock and roll, the term "R&B" became used in a wider context. It referred to music styles that developed from and incorporated electric blues, as well as gospel and soul music. By the 1970s, the term "rhythm and blues" had changed once again and was used as a blanket term for soul and funk. (Full article...)

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Neo soul is a term coined by music industry entrepreneur Kedar Massenburg during the late 1990s to market and describe a style of music that emerged from soul and contemporary R&B. Heavily based in soul music, neo soul is distinguished by a less conventional sound than its contemporary R&B counterpart, with incorporated elements ranging from jazz, funk, and hip hop to pop, fusion, and African music.

Developed in the United States and United Kingdom during the 1980s and early 1990s as a soul "revival" movement, neo soul emerged into the mainstream with the commercial and critical breakthroughs of several neo soul artists during the 1990s, as it was marketed as an alternative to the producer-driven, digitally-approached R&B of the time. Since its initial mainstream popularity and impact on the sound of contemporary R&B, it has been expanded and diversified musically through the works of both American and international artists. According to Mark Anthony Neal, "neo-soul and its various incarnations has helped to redefine the boundaries and contours of black pop".

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Usher at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival

Usher Raymond IV (born October 14, 1978) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. He is recognized as an influential figure in contemporary R&B and pop music. In 1994, Usher first released his self-titled debut album at the age of 15 and rose to fame in the late 1990s following the release of his second album, My Way (1997). It spawned his first Billboard Hot 100 number-one single "Nice & Slow", and the top-two singles: the title track and "You Make Me Wanna...". His third album, 8701 (2001), saw continued success and contained two number-one singles, "U Remind Me" and "U Got It Bad", as well as the top-three single, "U Don't Have to Call". It sold eight million copies worldwide and won his first two Grammy Awards for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance consecutively in 2002 and 2003.

Confessions (2004) established Usher as one of the best-selling musical artists of the 2000s decade, supported by four consecutive Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles—"Yeah!" (featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris), "Burn", "Confessions Part II", and "My Boo" (with Alicia Keys)—and the top-ten "Caught Up". The album sold over 20 million copies worldwide and received diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). After splitting from his manager and mother Jonnetta Patton in 2007, he released the albums Here I Stand (2008) and Raymond v. Raymond (2010), both of which debuted atop the Billboard 200 chart and respectively spawned the number-one singles "Love in This Club" (featuring Young Jeezy) and "OMG" (featuring will.i.am). The latter also spawned the single "There Goes My Baby", which won his third Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. (Full article...)

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The following are images from various rhythm and blues-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Muddy Waters, a major influence on the movement, pictured in 1971 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 2Alicia Keys ranked fifth on Billboard Artist of the Decade list. "No One" ranks No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 songs of the decade. (from Contemporary R&B)
Image 3The Moonglows, 1956 (from Doo-wop)
Image 4The Jam in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1982 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 5Janet Jackson's Control, released in 1986, was one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the 1980s. (from New jack swing)
Image 6The instruments of the skiffle group the Quarrymen, who would become the Beatles (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 7The Ramones in Toronto (1976) (from Doo-wop)
Image 8The Animals in 1964 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 9The Jimi Hendrix Experience performing on Dutch television in 1967 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 10Peter Green of Fleetwood Mac onstage in 1970 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 11Usher was cited by Billboard as the no. 1 Hot 100 artist of the 2000s decade, with 7 number-one singles that accumulated 42 weeks at the top. (from Contemporary R&B)
Image 12Alexis Korner in Hamburg in 1972 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 13John Lee Hooker, whose visit to England was the anticipated R&B event of 1964, shown in 1978 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 14Led Zeppelin performing at Chicago Stadium in January 1975
Image 15Lead Belly's recordings would be a major part of British R&B repertoires, although he never performed in the UK (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 16The Cleftones during their participation in the doo-wop festival celebrated in May 2010 at the Benedum Center. (from Doo-wop)
Image 17The original line up of the Kinks, 1965 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 18Herman Santiago, original lead singer of the Teenagers (from Doo-wop)
Image 19Beyoncé was named by Billboard the most successful female act of the 2000s. (from Contemporary R&B)
Image 20Alternative R&B artist Frank Ocean performing at the Coachella Festival in 2012 (from Alternative R&B)
Image 21Georgie Fame, leader of one of the most widely influenced R&B groups, in 1968 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 22Kathy Young with the Earth Angels performing Kathy's hit "A Thousand Stars" during the festival of this genre celebrated at the Benedum Center for the Performing Arts in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in May 2010 (from Doo-wop)
Image 23Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings at Middelburg in 2009 (from British rhythm and blues)
Image 24Chris Barber, one of the major figures in the early popularisation of the blues in Britain, playing at the Musikhalle, Hamburg, 1972 (from British rhythm and blues)