Over recent years, R&B artists have steered away from only releasing music on certain days of the week. Since there’s always something new coming out, we know it’s sometimes difficult to stay updated on all things R&B. Although we’re always here to give you day-by-day updates, we figured giving you a recap of some of the best R&B tracks and moments from the weekend’s past (and sometimes a little before) at the top of each week is a great way for you to hear all the good stuff in one place. Some of the top R&B artists are releasing new music, doing interviews, and announcing plans for upcoming albums. Despite the unique times we are living in, 2020 has been amazing for our beloved genre.
Anthony Hamilton brings nostalgia with “Back Together” feat. Rick James
Soulful crooner Anthony Hamilton has taken an oldie and flipped it to have a current day flair. He sings about rekindling a relationship with a special someone in “Back Together,” sampled from the Rick James and Teena Marie classic ballad “Fire and Desire.” He was able to pay homage to the late James while also featuring him thanks to the production skills of 9th Wonder.
“Growing up listening to ‘Super Freak’ and ‘Fire and Desire’ made it impossible not to want to sing. This is when I knew, Rick James would be an all-time favorite,” he said.
He continued with: “9th Wonder flipped the sample right in front of me. I wrote the song in a way to make it feel like Rick was singing along with me. ‘Back Together’ pays homage to one of the greats. To me, it’s also about love and getting back together with someone you knew was special. In this time of COVID-19, it took on a new meaning too. It means getting back to our lives. Be close to those who are special to you. We all want to be close to anybody right now.”
India Arie drops short film Welcome Home featuring two singles
India Arie is here to deliver the zen we all need right now. The soulful, soothing artist released a short film titled Welcome Home. In the near ten-minute video, Arie showcases love as well as self care, wellness practices yoga and meditation. It features two of her songs, “Crazy” and “Sacred Space” from her latest EP Worthy.
Fat Joe tells Ashanti a story behind their hit single “What’s Luv?”
It’s always interesting to hear the stories behind the music. A fun Instagram Live chat with Fat Joe and Ashanti on Friday (May 15) unveiled an interesting revelation about their chart topping hit “What’s Luv?” The rapper said it’s a “fact” that the song was originally intended to feature none other than J. Lo.
Here’s how the conversation went:
“Irv and Ja had called me, and they woke me up like 3 in the morning, and they say, ‘Yo, come down, we made a song for you. It’s right after Pun passed” he said. “So when I go to the studio, it was like 4 in the morning. They played ‘What’s Luv?’ and you on it. And they was telling me, ‘Yo, this is for you and J. Lo. We want the Latinos on this.”
Check it out for yourself, the “What’s Luv?” portion begins at the 40:20 mark.
Diddy opens up, remembers Andre Harrell with emotional Instagram posts
It was only a matter of time before Sean P Diddy Combs would open up about the death of longtime mentor, and friend Andre Harrell. Diddy took to Instagram this past week to share two emotional posts about the late music mogul, who died on May 9 at the age of 59. The latest post shows Diddy hugging Harrell.
Harrell gave Diddy his start, hiring him for his first job as an intern at Uptown Records. Harrell’s label was also pinnacle for starting the careers of legendary RnB artists, including Jodeci, and Mary J. Blige.
