Sometimes the best new R&B can be hard to find, but there are plenty of great rhythm-and-blues tunes to get into if you have the time to sift through the hundreds of newly released songs every week. So that R&B heads can focus on listening to what they really love in its true form, we’ll be offering a digest of the best new R&B songs that fans of the genre should hear every Friday.
This past week turned out to be a project-heavy week led by Summer Walker’s highly-anticipated sophomore album, Still Over It. The LVRN singer delivers a solid follow-up to her 2019 debut, Over It. Elsewhere, BJ The Chicago Kid arrives with his second EP of the year Three while Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak’s Silk Sonic brings us one step closer to An Evening With Silk Sonic thanks to “Smokin’ Out The Window.”
Summer Walker — Still Over It
After two long years, Summer Walker finally returned with a new batch of songs that details her recurring struggles with love and her distaste towards it all. Still Over It compiles 20 songs and features from Ari Lennox, SZA, Lil Durk, and more to detail the pitfalls of love through raw emotion and unfiltered accounts of the past.
Silk Sonic — “Smokin’ Out The Window”
At long last, we’re just a few days away from the release of Silk Sonic’s debut album, An Evening With Silk Sonic. As a final treat before the project arrives, Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak deliver “Smokin’ Out The Window.” The track dismisses an ex who simply used the singers for their money and played their part in the game of love to reap a boatload of lavish items.
BJ The Chicago Kid — Three
BJ The Chicago Kid is on a roll this year and it continues with his new EP, Three. Staying true to its name, the project delivers three songs that are brought to life by BJ’s own life experiences while reflecting on the ups and downs as well as the love/hate dynamic of relationships. It’s also a follow-up to his 4 AM EP which he released earlier this year.
Dijon — Absolutely
Dijon is sharper than ever on Absolutely, a project that arrives after his 2020 EP How Do You Feel About Getting Married?. Its 12 songs find the singer discovering his potential as a musician while also attempting to meet the expectations that surround him.
Elijah Blake — The Neon Eon
Elijah Blake’s last project arrived back in 2018 with Bijoux 23. Now the talented singer-songwriter is back with a new body of work thanks to The Neon Eon. Blake enlists help from Trinidad James, Tamar Braxton, Keyshia Cole, D Smoke, and more for an album that’s short and sweet at just ten songs.
Ejay Mallard — Healium.
Houston has itself an up-and-coming R&B singer worth paying attention to. His name is Ejay Mallard and his latest second album, Healium. is a strong display. Throughout 15 songs, Mallard dives into topics surrounding mental health while healing from past traumas in real time through the music that appears on the album. Mallard also made it a point to invite fellow Houston acts onto the project like Guapo, Jet The 3rd, Lace Hampton, Mynd, and Sion to help tell his story.
Tempest — “Lemon Pepper”
Last year, Long Beach’s own Tempest shined brightly thanks to singles like “Sorry To Say” and “Not The Same” and now she’s back with new music. The singer drops of a three-song EP titled Lemon Pepper with tracks named after a pair of lemon pepper wing orders. Hopefully, this marks the start of a new chapter for the very talented singer.
Jordan Hawkins — Heart Won’t Stop
North Carolina’s own Jordan Hawkins will absolutely blow you away with his debut EP Heart Won’t Stop. Carried by soaring vocals that push the genre of R&B pasts its traditional limits, his background in the church choir aids the music present on this album.
Hunnah — Unloved
After gracing us with her ear-pleasing single “Appreciate” back in August, Hunnah is back with her unapolgetic EP, Unloved. It presents seven songs that detail her shame and desire for romance. “I had all these songs about my feelings of coming into my late 20s and never having been in love or in a relationship and feeling so detached from the world of romantic love and it all just started to fit together,” she said about the project. “So I decided to release that element of shame and make this EP that was honest and in my heart.”
Titose — Was It Something I Said?
Botswana singer Titose is a new artist you should probably keep an eye on in the future. Her debut project Was It Something I Said? arrives amid difficult times for Titose, which she alluded to in a previous post announcing the project. She described music as “a solace, a way for me to make sense of the chaos,” and it’s clear on the project’s eight songs, which includes an appearance from The Big Hash.
Muni Long — “Ain’t Easy”
With her Public Displays Of Affection EP on the way, Muni Long offers up another single before its release with “Ain’t Easy.” The project is billed as a “beautiful and introspective collection of records touching on heartbreak, love, empowerment, and self-confidence,” according to a press release, as evidenced by “Ain’t Easy.” The track also comes after she released “No R&B” with Ann Marie last month.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.