Modern R&B music.
Contemporary R&B was firmly established at the beginning of The '80s when Disco died out and took a little bit of Funk and Soul with it (outside the mainstream, at least). The producers of that era started to experiment with synthesized sounds, with a stronger emphasis of pop sounds. Michael Jackson's highly influential Thriller is a perfect example his impact on R&B music for the later half of this decade. Janet Jackson brought producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis into the mainstream with her own influential Control album. Teddy Riley was also big name producer in this era, fusing hip-hop and R&B, creating New Jack Swing. Tina Turner made a huge comeback and many other R&B artists got their start during this time
By and large, however, the 1990s is considered to be the boom period. Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson continued to dominate, but we already had other popular artists riding the R&B wave, which has now absorbed Hip-Hop within its diverse sound. Boy Bands and Girl Groups reigned supreme, not to say that solo singers didn't make their impact. This was also the decade the Grammy enacted the Best R&B album.
By the late 1990s and the Turn of the Millennium, Contemporary R&B's popularity cooled a little, but the rise of Neo Soul boosted by Lauryn Hill's groundbreaking The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill took place, not to mention more fusions with other genres such as Electronic Music, Rock, and Dance. In the first years of The New '10s, Pop and R&B were almost inseparable as genres as artists like Beyoncé and Chris Brown can easily be played in Pop playlists and the growing influence of dance music is shaping the genre. As of 2012 this seems to be changing with the rise of artists like Frank Ocean and The Weeknd, and the newly formed variant called PBR&B, which basically R&B meets Neoclassical Punk Zydeco Rockabilly.
So yeah, Contemporary R&B is a fusion of so many other genres. Unlike a lot of other genres, females tend to get more love with any given female singer can amass a devoted following. It is pretty tough for male R&B singers as they're mainly seen as soft due to the growing Hip-Hop influence.
Artists who generally fall under Contemporary R&B label:
- 3LW
- Aaliyah
- Al B. Sure!
- Aloe Blacc
- Amerie
- Ashanti
- B5
- Babyface
- Beyoncé
- Bobby Brown
- Boyz II Men
- Mary J. Blige
- Brandy
- Chris Brown
- Mariah Carey
- Ciara
- Ariana Grande (very heavily inspired by 90's R&B)
- Cee Lo Green (albeit with hip-hop and pop leanings)
- Day 26
- Dean
- En Vogue
- Lauryn Hill
- Whitney Houston
- Janet Jackson
- Michael Jackson (though some would debate he is more Pop, the music is rooted in R&B)
- Off the Wall (1979)
- Thriller (1982)
- Dangerous (1991)
- HI Story Past Present And Future Book I (1995)
- Invincible (2001)
- Nick Jonas (originally a member of the Disney Channel-sponsored pop rock Boy Band The Jonas Brothers. Went solo with a mature sound far removed from his original band.)
- Kehlani
- Alicia Keys
- Khalid
- John Legend
- Lloyd
- Miguel
- Monica
- Ne-Yo
- Frank Ocean
- Keke Palmer
- Prince (though he's more Neoclassical Punk Zydeco Rockabilly)
- Prince (1979)
- Purple Rain (1984)
- Rihanna (Though slightly edging more towards pop, and often plays the Genre Roulette.)
- R. Kelly
- Raghav
- Lionel Richie (some would say he is more pop than R&B)
- Kelly Rowland
- Sade (although they're more Neoclassical Punk Zydeco Rockabilly, their core sound is quiet storm R&B)
- Jill Scott
- Sam Smith
- SZA
- Teena Marie
- Robin Thicke
- Justin Timberlake
- Tinashe
- Trey Songz
- TLC
- Tony Toni Tone
- Usher
- Luther Vandross
- Jody Watley
- The Weeknd
- Pharrell Williams (with occasional forays into Alternative Hip Hop)
- ZAYN (Former member of pop rock boy band One Direction. Went solo with a much more mature sound.)
