r&b
-
Without Question, 1997 Was (Maybe, Possibly) the Best Year in Black Music
1997 was the best year in black music. Let me rephrase: 1997 was probably the best year in black music. I know. You think I’m crazy. Hear me out—but first, a caveat. I admit that, as a child of the ’90s, my musical tastes are deeply influenced by my proclivity for hip-hop and ’90s…
-
Just Kickin’ It: Xscape Announces Reunion
In 1992, four girls from Atlanta signed to Jermaine Dupri’s So So Def imprint. Tamika and LaTocha Scott, Kandi Burruss and Tameka “Tiny” Harris went on to become the recording group Xscape, and their debut album, Hummin’ Comin at Cha, which had hit singles such as “Just Kickin’ It” and “Understanding,” became their first of…
-
Unsung: Gospel or R&B? Dave Hollister Won’t Let Anyone Box Him In
Chicago native Dave Hollister has always had vocal chops, straddling the secular and gospel worlds with seeming ease. But after a peak career in the ’90s with Teddy Riley’s group Blackstreet, and then as a solo artist, his name disappeared from the lips of fans who had reveled in his old-school-style love songs. Hollister is…
-
8 Reasons We’re Grateful for New Edition
After more than 30 years in the business, Ronnie DeVoe, Bobby Brown, Ricky Bell, Mike Bivins, Ralph Tresvant and Johnny Gill are being honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and a highly anticipated, three-part biographical miniseries on BET that began airing Tuesday. As they promote the film, the members have been…
-
An Ode To DeVante Swing On His Birthday
Today is Donald Earle “DeVante Swing” Degrate Jr.’s birthday. According to Wikipedia – the world’s most reliable source of information – he is now 47 years old. Based on the series of unfortunate sightings of Jodeci in both its parts and its formation, I think I speak for everybody in saying that it’s an amazing…
-
Kidz Bop Is the Best Hustle Ever
For a vast many people who haven’t put birth control to the test (and failed), Kidz Bop isn’t a thing. If you don’t have children, there’s literally zero reason to know of its existence. But for a lot of us with kids old enough to comprehend, process and regurgitate what they hear, the music struggle…
-
Dallas Shooter Wrote 'RB' on Wall Using Blood, Police Chief Says
The Dallas gunman who shot and killed five Dallas law-enforcement officers and injured several others taunted police during negotiations and seemed to have other plans, “possibly for a larger attack,” Dallas Police Chief David Brown revealed in a Sunday Interview with CNN’s State of the Union, the Washington Post reports. The chief told the network that…
-
Why Jeremih’s Song ‘Oui’ Bothers the Hell Out of Me
I’m not a fan of Jeremih. I’m also not not a fan of Jeremih. In fact, Jeremih exists in a space where I typically forget he exists until one of his songs pops up on a Sirius station I listen to and I read the info and I’m like, “Wow, he’s still around, eh? Well,…
-
An Ode To SWV
I grew up in Frankfurt, Germany, as a military brat in the mid-’80s and early ’90s. Those of us who grew up overseas had one channel to watch on television: AFN, which stands for the Armed Forces Network. We all watched the same cartoons, the same soap operas (General Hospital was followed by Guiding Light), and the…
-
This Generation’s R&B Music is Asswater. Stop Paying For It.
A couple weeks ago, while driving to Ann Arbor for the homecoming of my alma mater University of Michigan, Donny Hathaway’s “A Song For You” popped up on the shuffle. He didn’t write the song, but he made the definitive version; much like with Isaac Hayes’ “By The Time I Get to Phoenix” or Luther…