Historically speaking, R&B stands for “Rythm and Blues”. If we try to understand from today’s perspective, R&B is a style of music that was developed after the Second World War and includes elements of gospel, pop, hip-hop, blues and jazz with a strong backbeat. In the 1940s, “race music” was superseded by “rhythm and blues,” or “R&B,” as a catch-all marketing term for all African American music. By and large, however, it referred strictly to secular and not sacred music. In this blog, I will delve deep into different eras of R&B to understand how R&B evolved with time, and what future it holds for the music trends.
The emergence and earliest traces of R&B (1920s-30s)
As people started migrating to urban centres in the Northeast and Midwest in the US during the early twentieth century, various regional styles of African American music were brought together to influence one another. During this era, emphasis on electric guitar, piano and saxophone grew as lead instruments. Jazz and blues overlapped in the late 1920s and early 1930s due to the efforts of artists like the Harlem Hamfats with their hit song “Oh Red”. Lonnie Johnson, Leroy Carr, Cab Calloway, Count Basie and T-Bone Walker pioneered the rhythm and blues movement.
Classic R&B Era (1940s-1960s)
Post World War II, a new wave of music emerged. The term ‘Race Music’ became a derogatory term. Jerry Wexler from Billboard coined ‘Rhythm and Blue’ for all African-American music. After RCA Victor began marketing “race records” as “Blues and Rhythm” in 1948, the term “R&B” gained popularity. The jump blues icons like Louis Jordan and his band ‘Tympany Five’ were at the top of the charts. Saxophonist, singer, and songwriter Jordan was an American artist who played the jump blues style of music, which is extremely fast-paced and swinging in tempo, combining elements of swinging jazz and blues that had become prominent before contemporary R&B. He pioneered the electronic organ and fashioned the urban blues, the foundation for rock and roll and classic R&B. Several musical elements defined the sound of this decade: rhythm and horn sections, doo-wop vocal harmonies, and piano trios. In the 1940s, R&B shared a relationship with jazz and blues, though that was about to change.
1950s/1960s
The genre’s newfound direction had opened the doors for classic R&B’s golden age. Disco took off in this decade, similar to R&B becoming a precursor of rock and roll in the 1940s. Ray Charles and Ruth Brown were among the artists who expanded the sound of R&B as it evolved in the fifties, incorporating gospel group elements into the music. Although R&B and rock n’ roll movement slightly overlapped, the electric guitar remained important to the genre. R&B gradually evolved into rock and pursued a white audience as well.
The 1970s/80s (Outset of the Contemporary R&B)
In the 70s, dance music became a hit primarily due to the disco that came out of city nightclubs. Rhythm and Blues vocals with funk beats were fused while guitars with string arrangements, electronic sounds and four-on-the-floor beats. One of the groups that enhanced disco’s escapist vibe was Chic who made the sound richer by running through some soul harmonies and grooves that were more focused and precise. Music Legends like James Brown, The Jackson 5, and Stevie Wonder introduced jazz, African, and Latin polyrhythms to the music genre of R&B. It is said that Brown is the “Godfather of Soul.” Integration was another episode where R&B was fused with the genre of soul and pop was thus embodied by the success of white artists who issued their interpretations of the music and were included in the soul charts, for example, Hall & Oates and David Bowie. Like many genres, R&B evolves constantly which led to the 80s becoming an era of its fresh revolting adopting various electronic elements among other genres such as jazz, funk, pop and hip-hop, to name a few.
1990s (Contemporary R&B at Peak)
As hip-hop culture grew, it started enticing a new wave of fans. To younger kids, the rappers’ rebellious attitude and outspokenness were more enticing than the sweet boy crooners of R&B during the previous decade. Through hip-hop production and collaborations, modern R&B gained popularity in the 1990s. Sonically, ’90s R&B began moving away from live instrumentation and into electronic production. Girl groups like Destiny’s Child, TLC, and SWV powered the genre’s popular dominance. Vintage R&B fans expressed their displeasure, but this hip-hop fusion sound defined the time.
2000s- Present (Smooth R&B)
R&B has moved past the guitars that were popular in the previous times and shifted to a slick sound for urban radio and dance clubs. Soulful R&B singers who focused on melismatic, soulful vocals, and memorable melodies to create hits, and bagged Grammys—Lauryn Hill, Usher, Boyz II Men, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, TLC, and Toni Braxton. Beyoncé, Drake, and Mary J. Blige have done the same by working with rappers and electronic producers to move the rhythmic limits of the R&B genre.
As Alicia Keys and Amy Winehouse emerged, a new sub-genre of neo-soul emerged. These artists paved the way for artists of future generations. Unlike contemporary R&B with hip-hop samplings, neo-soul is less conventional and includes live music recordings. Hence, it is considered more in sync with R&B roots. The use of autotune became popular in 21st-century production and remains one of the crucial features of today’s R&B music. In 2020, many artists like Davido, Rema, Tiwa Savage, Arya Starr, Fireboy DML and Bloody Civilian came to the scene. The unique blend of Afropop, pop and R&B makes them stand out from other R&B artists.
In conclusion, R&B has come a long way from its early roots in jazz and the blues to modern times of fusion with hip-hop and electronic sounds. Both cultural change and wider musical trends of the time are woven into this rich tapestry for the genre. R&B will always be an integral and crucial part of the music business, affecting yesterday and today to create the sounds of tomorrow through innovation.