Portal:Rhythm and blues

Wikipedia's Rhythm and Blues Portal

Introduction

Ruth Brown was known as the "Queen of R&B".[1]

Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities 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 becoming 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 experience of pain and the quest for freedom and joy, as well as triumphs and failures in terms of 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. (Full article...)

Selected article

Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite is the debut album of American R&B and neo soul musician Maxwell released April 2, 1996, on Columbia Records in the United States. Recording sessions for the album took place between 1994 and 1995 at CRC Studios in Chicago and at Electric Lady Studios, RPM, Sorcerer and Chung King Studios in New York City. The album contains elements of R&B, funk, jazz and smooth soul, as well as featuring prominent classic influences in sound and musical style. A concept album, Urban Hang Suite is composed of a song cycle that focuses on an adult romance from first encounter to its conclusion, examining the concept with balladry and slow jams. The album's themes include love, sex, marriage, monogamy and spirituality. The concept was based on Maxwell's own personal experience.

After it was presented to Columbia label executives in 1995, Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite was shelved for nearly a year, partly due to doubts of its sales potential, before being released to generally positive reviews and considerable commercial success. In spite of an initial lack of mainstream interest, the album experienced a boost in sales with the help of the single "Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder)", which sold 500,000 copies within a year. Despite some negative criticism towards its lyrical substance, music writers lauded the album's vintage overtones and Maxwell's songwriting, and it was viewed as a departure from the hip hop-oriented contemporary R&B of the time. Urban Hang Suite earned Maxwell several accolades and comparisons to soul singer Marvin Gaye, and within a year it sold one million copies in the U.S..

The album had a considerable impact on Maxwell's career. Its success helped elevate his reputation to that of a sex symbol as well as a serious performer on the music scene. Maxwell has been credited with shaping the "neo soul" movement that rose to prominence during the late 1990s. Along with D'Angelo's debut album Brown Sugar (1995), Urban Hang Suite has been recognized by writers for helping provide commercial visibility to the neo soul genre, a musical style that focuses on classic influences rather than the mainstream sound of its contemporary R&B counterpart. It has been cited as Maxwell's greatest work and remains as his best-selling release. In 2002, the album was certified double platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), following sales in excess of two million copies.

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WikiProjects

  • WikiProject R&B and Soul Music

Parentage

  • WikiProject Music
    • WikiProject Music/Music genres task force

Selected biography -

Luckett in 2009

LeToya Nicole Luckett (born March 11, 1981) is an American R&B singer and actress. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a founding member of the R&B girl group Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. As a member of Destiny's Child, she achieved four US Top 10 hit singles, "No, No, No", "Bills, Bills, Bills", "Say My Name" and "Jumpin', Jumpin'", and won two Grammy Awards. In the 2000s, she began her solo career after leaving the group and signing a record deal with Capitol Records. Her solo debut album, LeToya (2006), debuted at number-one on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, and was certified platinum by the RIAA, that same year.

The lead single, "Torn", reached the Top 40 in the U.S., and set records on BET's top ten countdown show 106 & Park. Luckett was awarded Top Songwriter at the 2006 ASCAP Rhythm and Soul Awards, and was nominated for Outstanding New Artist at the 2007 NAACP Image Awards. Luckett's second solo album, Lady Love (2009), debuted at number-one on the U.S. Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. (Full article...)
List of selected biographies

General images -

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Associated Wikimedia

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Sources

  1. "Ruth Brown, the Queen of R&B, was born 93 years ago today". Frank Beacham's Journal. Archived from the original on January 24, 2021. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
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