R&B Is Back! And It's Thanks To Summer Walker
Just when R &B seemed like it wasn’t going to survive the test of time, the Atlanta- based sultry artist Summer Walker ( who has been compared to artists like H.E.R. and SZA) sauntered her way onto the music scene. She dropped her debut album in October 2018 titled Last Day of Summer (which is the only time I’ve heard last day of summer and not been bummed out) accompanied by ground breaking ballads “Girls Need Love” and “CPR” , garnering positive reactions from people through her candor and vulnerability when it comes to navigating loss in a relationship.
Listen to her album here.
Now, before we delve a little deeper into the world of Summer, let’s take a step back into what makes this genre tick.
Rhythm and Blues (R&B) is a term that at the time was used to describe blues influenced styles of music that was predominant amongst African Americans since as early as the ‘30s. The term itself was utilized to replace the first term “race music,” which was a standard phrase that used to describe any music black people made at the time . It wasn’t until a Billboard Magazine reporter named Jerry Wexler ( who later became an influential music producer ) ended up using the term Rhythm & Blues to express upbeat popular music for black American artists ,combining elements of Jazz and Blues , further adding a sense of depth and grittiness to their craft . For the ‘50s, R&B was predominant in the youth culture and club scenes , but often times shrug off as a genre of little to no stylistic abilities compared to Jazz’s perceived elitism and skillset that’s monumental to black expression.
In the proceeding decades, R&B became the umbrella term for funk and soul genres of music (although they can both be put into their own categories tbh). Despite devotees of the genre, when hip- hop arose, the black social scene began to embrace it more, marginalizing the multifaceted and sobering R&B to “ just some love songs”. The ascension of rap music, especially on the mainstream level, presented consequences to R&B in the changing voices. What do I mean by changing voices? Historically speaking, singers that were able to master the art of crisp and high registered tones--from the likes of Patti LaBelle to Usher which also transcended to rougher and lower registered singers such as Chaka Khan, Anita Baker, and Toni Braxton to name a few. The variety was outstandingly breathtaking because no other genre had praised as many progressions of the human voice like R&B has. This became a heavy influence on the music industry as a whole and was evident with the rise of melodic rappers like T-Pain and Future ( with the use of auto-tune). This especially hurt the R&B singers ( and seemingly diminished chances for newcomers to make it in the genre) that have contralto type voices as rappers generally rap in their own speaking voice, which tends to be lower.
Moreover , despite the present level of uncertainty in the genre, Walker persistently tested the waters by dropping glimpses of what she had to offer, embodying both the high melody and contralto tone of voice respectfully-proving her vocal depth and appeal to other aspiring young contemporaries in the R&B genre which is so necessary and endearing.
She continues this glimmer of hope with the release of her second project CLEAR ,which is a four track EP of live recordings ( at the famous Airbnb treehouse in Atlanta) that are not only soulful, but reminiscent of an MTV Unplugged session ( the good ol’ days). This is evident through the visual component in which Summer and her band performed songs off the album. The rich timbre and velvety ballads that roll off of her no longer make her just an artist and us the listener- we end up being enveloped in her world, feeling every bit of emotion she had felt when composing it. “Wasted”, which is a song about losing yourself in a love that has become so unrequited, it seemingly gets comfortable. The juxtaposition of her emotional maturity and the desire to stay in a toxic situation are beyond relatable.
“What an addiction, so high a cost / Gambled it all just to be lost / But no love lost, no bridges burned / You live and you learn / I learned from my hurt” — “Wasted” off of the CLEAR EP
The chirping of birds, deep ballads, and blurry lights add to the ambiance, which is a direct correlation and ode to the neo-soul pioneers of the earlier aughts in this genre. Walker has zeroed into those late-night memories we’ve all experienced, lusted for, or read about at some point in our life. She exemplifies the tie to a gal’s staple evening reveries: candles, wine, close friends, and incense.
All in all, the rawness, the energy, and the soul that Walker portrays are everything and more that R&B yearns for and needs to remain true – true to expressing deep emotion and uninhibited imagination that’s rooted in the universal experience of pain and heartache turned to gut-wrenchingly beautiful art.
cover via Twitter
