For the past couple decades, contemporary R&B has suffered an image problem. Hip-hop is largely to blame for that. In by the late '80s, the genre had adopted most of rap's bad qualities: the tougher-than-thou attitude, the sterile, mechanical beats and sometimes even the misogyny. Things improved throughout the '90s as New Jack Swing fell out of vogue, yet all but the most enduring hits of that decade still paled to the revered R&B of the '60s and '70s. As a result, many listeners of my generation have been raised to dismiss the genre outright, believing it good for a couple smug laughs at R. Kelly and nothing more.
If you're of that disposition, now is the time to give contemporary R&B a second (or first) chance. The genre has undergone a renaissance this decade, as the noxious “bad boy” archetype has fallen out of favor and a new generation of songwriters have embraced more earnest sentiments. It may not sound like the music your parents listened to anymore, but R&B is as rich as it's been in ages.
Below are some of my favorite R&B albums of the year:
Chrisette Michele – Epiphany
Because of her indelibly jazzy voice, her label originally tried to lump Chrisette Michele in with all those smiling, chirpy retro-soul singers, a classification that Michele fiercely resists on her powerful second album. Here she employs a stronger, empowered croon on a set of showstoppers seemingly designed to bring the Apollo to its feet. One of the best R&B writers of his time, Ne-Yo penned about half of this set, but Michele wrote its finest moment: the grin-it-and-bear-it breakup anthem “Blame It On Me.”
Amerie – In Love & War
Few R&B singers make albums as wild and kinetic as Amerie, who sounds like Beyonce might is she stopped market testing her albums to death and instead did a couple shots, downed a couple Red Bulls and hit the studio before the high wore off. That fuck-it-all enthusiasm has made Amerie a favorite in critical circles, though it hasn't done her any favors on the charts, where she's a perpetual also-ran. If In Love & War's low sales mark the end of her time on Def Jam, at least she went down in a blaze of glory.
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Maxwell – BLACKsummer'snight
Maxwell emerged from his eight-year hiatus better for the rest in one of the year's most encouraging success stories. His comeback album was not only one of the best-received soul albums of 2009, but also became one of the year's best selling. At just nine songs and 39-minutes, it's not the overblown epic expected of one of neo-soul's pioneers. Instead, it's a warm, lovely effort, the work of a man enjoying the freedom of having nothing to prove.
Trey Songz – Ready
Trey Songz bedroom-minded slow jams don't rewrite the book, but there's a sweetness to them that makes them stick. Those who make it through all 17 tracks are treated to the awesomely ridiculous Prince homage “Yo Side of the Bed,” replete with showy falsetto and a long, lighters-up guitar solo. “Let it play, baby!” the singer yells as the guitar wails away.
Mariah Carey – Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel
Mariah Carey charged R&B hitmaker The-Dream with writing the bulk of her latest album; the results divided her longtime fans; the results divided Carey's longtime fans, who blame him for the album's so-so sales. I'm biased The-Dream's own album was my hands-down favorite of 2009, R&B or otherwise but for my money, he brought out the best in Carey, crafting one of her catchiest, most personable records. Hear the difference for yourself: The songs he wrote are vital and emotional; the ones produced without him (and tacked on to the end of the album in a last-minute sales grab) are terminally schlocky.
Keri Hilson – In a Perfect World...
An army of guest artists, producers and songwriters adorn In A Perfect World…, the long-delayed debut from Timbaland protégé Keri Hilson, and sometimes the record suffers from the over-seasoning of too many cooks, especially since Hilson is a deft songwriter on her own. But this uneven debut did accomplish one important feat: making Hilson a star. If she can use some of her new capital to include more of her own voice and trim some of the fat on her next album, it should absolutely kill.
