RnBass (also spelled as R&Bass, shortening of rhythm and bass) is a

music genre A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music as belonging to a shared tradition or set of conventions. It is to be distinguished from ''musical form'' and musical style, although in practice these terms are some ...

that fuses

contemporary R&B Contemporary R&B (or simply R&B) is a popular music genre that combines rhythm and blues with elements of pop, soul, funk, hip hop, and electronic music. The genre features a distinctive record production style, drum machine-backed rhythm ...

music with hip hop production style or music genre, known as ratchet music, coined by

DJ Mustard Dijon Isaiah McFarlane (born June 5, 1990), known professionally as Mustard (also known as DJ Mustard), is an American record producer and beatmaker. He is a frequent collaborator of fellow California-bred artists YG and Ty Dolla Sign; among var ...

. Described by ''

Vibe ''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down productio ...

'' magazine as a breath of fresh air for the R&B genre, RnBass consists of tonal singing, melodic harmonies, along with heavy 808's bass elements. There are also notable elements of EDM, with influences of 1990s–2000s music, as well as

hyphy The term hyphy ( ) is Oakland slang meaning "hyperactive". More specifically, it is an adjective describing the hip hop music and the culture associated with the area. The term was first coined by Oakland rapper Keak da Sneak. History The hyp ...

. Coined by Bay Area producer

J Maine Jarred Jermaine Gazarian (born March 23, 1987), professionally known as J Maine, is an American record producer from San Francisco, California, now based in Los Angeles, California. J Maine is known for coining RnBass, a West Coast-originated mu ...

, the RnBass musical style has garnered critical attention since the early-to-mid 2010s and has been popularized with urban audiences across America by Los Angeles producer

, by mixing pop music elements of ratchet with turn-up lyrics. Despite originating in the West Coast, namely the

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...

, RnBass producers and artists across the globe continue to develop R&B with the modern RnBass genre.

Influence

YouTube producers like Starra and Skylark Beats have been heavily pushing the genre online with their various remixes, tutorials and RnBass instrumentals. Also, its cross-genre influence has spread into the mainstream.

References

{{Rhythm and blues Contemporary R&B genres