Alternative R&B

Primary Stylistic Influences:

• Contemporary R&B

Secondary Stylistic Influences:

• Alternative Rock, Hip-Hop (Alternative Hip Hop, Cloud rap), Electronic Music, Future Garage, Chillwave, Jazz, Funk, Trip Hop, Soul

Alternative R&B is an emerging stylistic alternative to Contemporary R&B that's risen in The New '10s. The genre essentially combines R&B with a wide variety of genres. Basically, it's R&B meets everything else.

Many Alternative R&B artists present themselves in a Darker and Edgier fashion when compared to their contemporary counterparts. While they sing about sex, it's not entire focus of their lyrics. Many sing about spirituality, dark things that trouble them, failed relationships, and for some, drug use.

Another term for the genre is "PBR&B", derived from the Pabst Blue Ribbon brand of beer and its belated popularity among the hipster subculture, though it's proven to be contentious for that very reason.

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Artists generally agreed to be Alternative R&B include:

• Alessia Cara
• AlunaGeorge
• Autre Ne Veut
• Banks
• Beyoncé (Self-Titled Album and onwards)
  • 2013 - Beyoncé
  • 2016 - Lemonade
  • 2022 - Renaissance
• James Blake
• Brandy (Afrodisiac only, but the album is considered one of the progenitors of the genre breaking out in the 2000s)
• Chet Faker
• Chino Amobi (blends it with Industrial and Harsh Noise)
• Chloe x Halle
  • Chlöe
  • Halle Bailey
• Cody Chesnutt (The Headphone Masterpiece is largely considered a Ur-Example for the genre)
  • 2002 - The Headphone Masterpiece
• Clarence Clarity
• Imani Coppola
• FKA twigs
• Frank Ocean
• Glass Animals
• HAIM (Indie rock with R&B/Hip-Hop stylings)
• Heize
• Hiatus Kaiyote
• How To Dress Well
• Dev Hynes (specifically his Blood Orange project)
  • 2018 - Negro Swan
• Ibeyi
• Janet Jackson (The Velvet Rope is widely viewed as a likely Ur-Example)
  • 1997 - The Velvet Rope
• Janelle Monáe
  • 2010 - The ArchAndroid
• Jessie Ware
• Jessy Lanza
• Jhené Aiko
• Joji
• Kali Uchis (combined with reggaeton and neo soul)
• Kelela
• Kehlani
• Kimbra
• Miguel
• Moses Sumney (this, but also Baroque Pop, Alternative Indie and Soul)
• Oh Wonder
• PARTYNEXTDOOR
• Quadron
• RHYE
• Sampha
• serpentwithfeet (a very odd variant of this, in which he combines it with neo soul, electronica and Gospel Music)
  • 2018 - soil
• Willow Smith
• SOHN
• Solange (Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams and onwards)
  • 2016 - A Seat at the Table
• Spacek (an Ur-Example of sorts)
• David Sylvian (explored the style on 1999's Dead Bees on a Cake)
• SZA
• THEE Satisfaction
• Theophilus London
• Tinashe
• Tory Lanez
• The Weeknd
• Yves Tumor (mixed with experimental pop, Psychedelic Rock and Electronic Music, though they have fully switched to psych-rock as of Heaven to a Tortured Mind, with some Post-Punk and New Wave Music elements as well)
• Zayn (formerly of One Direction)

Tropes

• Darker and Edgier: Often considered this to Contemporary R&B.
• Dead Unicorn Trope: Many artists labeled Alternative R&B sound little like others, due to the wide variety of influences.
• Doing It for the Art: Many of these artists are exploring different sounds for their own interest, not for a commercial value.
• Drugs Are Good/Drugs Are Bad: Drug use isn't an uncommon topic, how they're portrayed depends on the artist.
• Genre-Busting: Uh, yeah. Many have a sound that's hard to define.
• Insistent Terminology: Many artists falling under this banner don't like the term, for a variety of reasons.