Lovely R&B and soul

A classic R&B masterpiece. A must-listen recommended album.

Former vocal coach specializing in Western musicRyo
Under the theme of “vocal skills that stand up on the world stage,” I have experience teaching as an online vocal coach specializing in Western music, and I usually listen to genres like nuevo flamenco, bolero, canzone, and R&B. In my teens, I questioned the idea that “foreign music equals English,” and started exploring songs from around the world. My commentary is characterized by a unique perspective shaped by listening to music of every genre, in every language, from every country. I mainly cover world music, so be sure to check it out!

The genre “R&B” began to take hold around the 1970s.

Even though we call it R&B, its style has changed with each era, and by now I think it’s a genre with a rather fuzzy definition.

For this piece, I’ll define R&B as “groovy tracks packed with vocal techniques often used in R&B, like ad-libs and runs,” and introduce some classic R&B albums!

While I’m including a few major tracks, I’ve also picked out some extremely obscure songs that even hardcore R&B aficionados in Japan probably don’t know—so be sure to check them out!

R&B masterpieces: Must-listen recommended albums (61–70)

I WishR. Kelly

I Wish – R Kelly (Lyrics) 🎵

I WishR. Kelly

This is a song dedicated to many of his late friends and his mother.

It was originally planned to feature the rapper 2Pac, but unfortunately, 2Pac was shot and killed before it could be recorded.

It peaked at number 14 on the US R&B chart.

Raise the rankinglower

In conclusion

This time, under the theme of classic R&B albums, we’ve showcased stylish albums and lead singles from various countries.

While many people listen to R&B from the US and UK, I think fewer regularly listen to R&B from French- and Spanish-speaking regions like the ones we introduced.

R&B is highly developed in places such as France, South Africa, and Mexico, so why not dive deeper into those scenes as well?