Neo soul (sometimes called progressive soul) is a genre of

popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fu ...

. As a term, it was coined by music industry entrepreneur Kedar Massenburg during the late 1990s to market and describe a style of music that emerged from

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest att ...

and

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 rhy ...

. Heavily based in soul music, neo soul is distinguished by a less conventional sound than its contemporary R&B counterpart, with incorporated elements ranging from

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the mi ...

jazz fusion Jazz fusion (also known as fusion and progressive jazz) is a music genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric guitars, amplifiers, and ke ...

, hip hop, and

African music Given the vastness of the African continent, its music is diverse, with regions and nations having many distinct musical traditions. African music includes the genres amapiano, Jùjú, Fuji, Afrobeat, Highlife, Makossa, Kizomba, and othe ...

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' ( ...

, rock, and

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electro ...

. It has been noted by music writers for its traditional R&B influences, conscious-driven lyrics, and strong female presence. Neo soul developed during the 1980s and early 1990s, in the United States and United Kingdom, as a soul revival movement. It earned mainstream success during the 1990s, with the commercial and critical breakthroughs of several artists, including

D'Angelo Michael Eugene Archer (born February 11, 1974), better known by his stage name D'Angelo (), is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He first garnered attention after co-producing the single "U Will Know" ...

Erykah Badu Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971), known professionally as Erykah Badu (), is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Influenced by R&B, soul, and hip hop, Badu rose to prominence in the late 1990s when her debut al ...

Lauryn Hill Lauryn Noelle Hill (born May 26, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. She is often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, as well as being one of the most influential musicians of her generation. ...

, and

Maxwell Maxwell may refer to: People * Maxwell (surname), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name ** James Clerk Maxwell, mathematician and physicist * Justice Maxwell (disambiguation) * Maxwell baronets, in the Baronetage of ...

. Their music was marketed as an alternative to the producer-driven, digitally approached R&B of the time, although many of them were ambivalent about the term. Since its initial mainstream popularity and impact on the sound of contemporary R&B, neo soul has been expanded and diversified musically through the works of both American and international artists. Its mainstream presence declined during the 2000s, although newer artists emerged through more

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...

means of marketing their music. In his book ''The Essential Neo Soul'' (2010), music journalist and culture critic Chris Campbell writes that, while the genre has been "woefully misunderstood and its artists mis-marketed", there is "a historical and social relevance that validates its designation as the current face of alternative progressive soul music (in both underground and overground circles), complete with a distinct origin and developmental evolution". According to Mark Anthony Neal, "neo-soul and its various incarnations has helped to redefine the boundaries and contours of black pop."Neal, Mark Anthony (2003).
Songs in the Key of Black Life: A Rhythm and Blues Nation
".

Routledge Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law ...

: pp. 117–118. Retrieved November 2, 2011.

Etymology

As a term, ''neo soul'' was coined by Kedar Massenburg of

Motown Records Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''mot ...

in the late 1990s as a marketing category following the commercial breakthroughs of artists such as

, and

. The success of D'Angelo's 1995 debut album ''

Brown Sugar Brown sugar is unrefined or partially refined soft sugar. Brown Sugar may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Brown Sugar'' (1922 film), a 1922 British silent film directed by Fred Paul * ''Brown Sugar'' (1931 film), a 1931 ...

'' has been regarded by several writers and music critics as inspiration behind the term's origin.Kot, Greg.
Dusting of Old King Soul
". ''Chicago Tribune'': 1. July 21, 1996. Retrieved November 2, 2011.Mitchell, Gail.
Soul Resurrection: What's So New About Neo-Soul?
". ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'': 30, 36. June 1, 2002. Retrieved November 2, 2011. While some artists have ignored the label, others have received the designation with controversy because it may seem contrived to music audiences and imply that soul music had ended at some point in time. In a 2002 interview for ''

'', Massenburg said that genre classifications are often unpopular because they may be suggestive of a short-lived trend. However, although he said neo soul is still essentially soul music, Massenburg felt there was a need to market artists of the genre for listeners to have an understanding of what they were buying. In a 2010 article for

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television ...

, music writer Tyler Lewis said that neo soul has been received with much controversy: "Given the way black music has been named by (usually) outsiders ever since the blues, the reaction to the name by artists who ostensibly fit into the 'neo-soul' category represents a wonderful example of black self-determination in an industry that is still defiantly wedded to narrow definitions and images of black folks."Lewis, Tyler (September 28, 2010)
Review: ''Airtight's Revenge''
.

. Retrieved September 28, 2010. Jason Anderson of

CBC News CBC News is a division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on the corporation's English-language operations, namely CBC Television, CBC Radio, CBC News Network, and CBC.ca ...

compares the etymology of neo soul to that of " new wave" and comments: "As imperfect as the term may be, neo-soul is still an effective tag to describe the mix of chic modernity and time-honoured tradition that distinguished the genre's best examples. Neo-soul artists tried to look both backward and forward, acting in the belief that a continuum might exist."

Characteristics

Despite some ambivalence from artists, the term received widespread use by music critics and writers who wrote about artists and albums associated with the musical style. African American studies professor Mark Anthony Neal has described neo soul as "everything from avant-garde R&B to organic soul ... a product of trying to develop something outside of the norm in R&B". According to music writers, the genre's works are mostly album-oriented and distinguished by its musicianship and production, incorporating "organic" elements of classic soul music with the use of

live instrumentation In music, live instrumentation is the use of acoustic and electronic musical instruments in live music and recording rather than DJing A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Typ ...

, in contrast to the more single-oriented, hip hop-based, and producer-driven sampling approach of contemporary R&B. Neo soul also incorporates elements of

, rap,

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

, rock,

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

, and

. In her book ''Musical Rhythm in the Age of Digital Reproduction'', music author Anne Danielsen wrote that neo soul toward the end of the 1990s exhibited a musical development that was part of "a remarkable increase in musicians' experimentation with and manipulation of

groove Groove or Grooves may refer to: Music * Groove (music) * Groove (drumming) * The Groove (band), an Australian rock/pop band of the 1960s * The Groove (Sirius XM), a US radio station * Groove 101.7FM, a former Perth, Australia, radio station ...

s at the microrhythmic level – that is, the level in played music that is usually understood in terms of phrasing and timing." Common-02-mika

Noting that most of the genre's artists are singer-songwriters, writers have viewed their lyrical content as more "conscious-driven" and having a broader range than most other R&B artists.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

calls it "roughly analogous to contemporary R&B". Genre: Neo Soul

. Retrieved April 26, 2010. Dimitri Ehrlich of '' Vibe'' said that they "emphasize a mix of elegant, jazz-tinged R&B and subdued hip hop, with a highly idiosyncratic, deeply personal approach to love and politics". Music writers have noted that neo soul artists are predominantly female, which contrasts the marginalized presence of women in mainstream hip hop and R&B. Jason Anderson of

called neo soul a "sinuous, sly yet unabashedly earnest" alternative and "kind of haven for listeners turned off by the hedonism of mainstream hip-hop and club jams." Neo soul artists are often associated with

alternative lifestyle An alternative lifestyle is a lifestyle perceived to be outside the norm for a given culture. The phrase "alternative lifestyle" is often used pejoratively. Description of a related set of activities as alternative is a defining aspect of certai ...

s and fashions, including organic food, incense, and knit caps. According to music writer Peter Shapiro, the term itself refers to a musical style that obtains its influence from older R&B styles, and bohemian musicians seeking a soul revival, while setting themselves apart from the more contemporary sounds of their mainstream R&B counterparts. In a 1998 article on neo soul, ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and event (philosophy), events that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various me ...

'' journalist

Christopher John Farley Christopher John Farley (born July 28, 1966) is a Jamaican-born American journalist, columnist, and author. Early life Farley was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and grew up in New York. He is a graduate of Brockport High School and Harvard Univer ...

wrote that singers such as Hill, D'Angelo, and Maxwell "share a willingness to challenge musical orthodoxy".Farley, Christopher John
Music: Neo-Soul on a Roll
''

''. Retrieved May 9, 2010.

Miles Marshall Lewis Miles Marshall Lewis (born December 18, 1970) is an American pop culture critic, essayist, literary editor, fiction writer, and music journalist. He is a graduate of Morehouse College, class of 1993. Career Lewis was born in The Bronx, New ...

commented that 1990s neo soul "owed its

raison d'être Raison d'être is a French expression commonly used in English, meaning "reason for being" or "reason to be". Raison d'être may refer to: Music * Raison d'être (band), a Swedish dark-ambient-industrial-drone music project * ''Raison D'être' ...

to '70s soul superstars like

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo ar ...

and

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, pop, s ...

", adding that "in concert, Erykah Badu and D'Angelo regularly covered

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan (), is an American singer. Her career has spanned more than five decades, beginning in the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus. Known as the " Q ...

, the

Ohio Players Ohio Players is an American funk band, most popular in the 1970s. They are best known for their songs "Fire" and " Love Rollercoaster", and for their erotic album covers that featured nude or nearly nude women. Many of the women were models feat ...

, and

Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), better known as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Take Me to the River", ...

, to make the lineage crystal clear." In citing Tony! Toni! Tone! as progenitors of the genre, Tony Green of '' Vibe'' viewed that the group pioneered the "digital-analog hybrid sound" of neo soul and "dramatically refreshed the digitalized wasteland that was R&B in the late '80s".Green, Tony.
Props: Tony! Toni! Tone!
". '' Vibe'': 168. May 2003. Retrieved November 2, 2011. Neo soul artists during the 1990s were heavily inspired by the eclectic sound and mellow instrumentation of

Gil Scott-Heron Gilbert Scott-Heron (April 1, 1949 – May 27, 2011) was an American jazz poet, singer, musician, and author, known primarily for his work as a spoken-word performer in the 1970s and 1980s. His collaborative efforts with musician Brian Ja ...

's and Brian Jackson's collaborative work in the 1970s.Bordowitz, Hank.
Gil Scott-Heron
". ''American Visions'': June 1, 1998. Retrieved November 2, 2011. ''

All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...

'' cited Jackson as "one of the early architects" of the sound and his early work with Scott-Heron as "an inspirational and musical

Rosetta stone The Rosetta Stone is a stele composed of granodiorite inscribed with three versions of a decree issued in Memphis, Egypt, in 196 BC during the Ptolemaic dynasty on behalf of King Ptolemy V Epiphanes. The top and middle texts are in Anci ...

for the neo-soul movement".

History

1980s–early 1990s: Stylistic origins

Neo soul originated in the 1980s and early 1990s, with the work of musical acts such as

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. ...

, Tony! Toni! Toné!, Terence Trent D'Arby, Joi,Mock, Brentin
The Joyful Noise of Janelle Monáe
. ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

''. Retrieved May 18, 2010. and

Mint Condition Mint condition is an expression used to denote the quality of a pre-owned good as displaying virtually no imperfections and being in pristine condition relative to its original production state. Originally, the phrase related to the way collect ...

, whose music deviated from the conventions of most

at the time. Tony! Toni! Toné!-member Raphael Saadiq later embarked on a solo career and produced various works of other neo soul artists. Influential to neo soul, UK act Sade achieved success in the 1980s with music that featured a smooth jazzy style of

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, ear ...

called sophisti-pop. The band was part of a new wave of British R&B-oriented artists during the late-1980s and early 1990s that also included Soul II Soul,

Caron Wheeler Caron Melina Wheeler (born 19 January 1963) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and musician. Born and raised in London, she performed in various singing competitions as a teenager and began her recording career as one of the found ...

The Brand New Heavies The Brand New Heavies is an acid jazz and funk group formed in 1985 in Ealing in west London. Centered around songwriters/multi-instrumentalists Simon Bartholomew and Andrew Levy, the core members of the group since its founding, Brand New He ...

Jamiroquai Jamiroquai () are an English funk and acid jazz band from London. Formed in 1992, they are fronted by vocalist Jay Kay, and were prominent in the London-based funk and acid jazz movement of the 1990s. They built on their acid jazz sound in th ...

, and Lisa Stansfield.Henderson, Alex (August 1, 2003)
British Soul
Allmusic. Retrieved March 6, 2011.

's Alex Henderson writes that, "Many of the British artists who emerged during that period had a neo-soul outlook and were able to blend influences from different eras". Other British progenitors of the neo soul movement at the time included

Young Disciples Young Disciples was a British / American acid jazz band, formed in London in 1990 by Carleen Anderson ( vocals and keyboards), Marco Nelson (bass, guitar and organ) and Femi Williams (percussion and programming). Their most famous hit was th ...

and Omar Lye-Fook, the latter of whom has been cited as "the father of British neo-soul" and an influence on many future artists. According to Christopher John Farley, Prince had been "carrying a torch for neo soul for decades, refusing to make R&B that played by the rules or fit into comfortable formats. In the mid-'90s, he was suddenly joined by a host of other soul artists who also wanted to break boundaries". American artists during the early 1990s included Zhané,

Groove Theory Groove Theory is an American duo, with former member, singer-songwriter Amel Larrieux and songwriter/producer/actor, Bryce Wilson. The group is best known for their 1995 hit "Tell Me", which reached the top five of ''Billboard''s Hot 100 and th ...

, Joi,

Tony Rich Antonio Jeffries (born November 19, 1971), better known as Tony Rich and The Tony Rich Project, is an American Grammy-award-winning Contemporary singer-songwriter best known for his hit single " Nobody Knows". Early career Rich was born in De ...

, and Me'Shell NdegéOcello.Ross, Sean.
After a False Start, The Neo-Soul Genre Picks Up Steam on the Mainstream Track
". ''

'': May 8, 1999. Retrieved November 2, 2011. NdegéOcello's 1993 debut album ''Plantation Lullabies'' was later credited as the beginning of neo soul; according to Renee Graham of ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'', it was "arguably the first shot in the so-called 'neo-soul' movement". The success of Tony! Toni! Toné!'s 1993 album '' Sons of Soul'' was also viewed as a precursor to the soul music revival in the mid-1990s.

Cheo Hodari Coker Cheo Hodari Coker (born December 12, 1972) is an American former music journalist turned television writer and producer known for such television series as ''Luke Cage'', '' NCIS: Los Angeles'', '' Southland'' and '' Ray Donovan''. Coker also wro ...

said in 1997 that the album "largely sparked the soul music revival that has opened the door for a new generation of singers who build on the tradition of Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder".Coker, Cheo Hodari (January 12, 1997)
Time to Jam—or Jam? – Los Angeles Times
. ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

''. Retrieved June 25, 2011. Allmusic editor Leo Stanley wrote that by the release of Tony! Toni! Toné!'s follow-up album '' House of Music'' in 1996, "their influence was beginning to be apparent, as younger soul singer-songwriters like Tony Rich and

began reaching the R&B charts. Like Tony! Toni! Toné!, Rich and Maxwell relied on traditional soul and R&B values of songwriting and live performances, discarding the synth-heavy productions of the late '80s and early '90s".Stanely, Leo (August 1, 2003)
House of Music – Tony! Toni! Toné! , AllMusic: Review
. Allmusic. Retrieved June 24, 2011. A few hip hop groups are cited as well. Malcolm Venable of '' Vibe'' highlights the early work of hip hop band

The Roots The Roots are an American hip hop band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy F ...

, who used live instrumentation, as a precursor to neo soul's commercial breakthrough in the mid-1990s. Kierna Mayo, former editor-in-chief of ''

Ebony Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus '' Diospyros'', which also contains the persimmons. Unlike most woods, ebony is dense enough to sink in water. It is finely textured and has a mirror finish when ...

'', said that

alternative hip hop Alternative hip hop (also known as alternative rap) is a subgenre of hip hop music that encompasses a wide range of styles that are not typically identified as mainstream. AllMusic defines it as comprising " hip hop groups that refuse to confo ...

group

A Tribe Called Quest A Tribe Called Quest was an American hip hop group formed in Queens, New York City, in 1985,Q-Tip

's early 1990s albums ''

The Low End Theory ''The Low End Theory'' is the second studio album by American hip-hop group A Tribe Called Quest, released on September 24, 1991, by Jive Records. Recording sessions for the album were held mostly at Battery Studios in New York City, from 1990 to ...

'' and ''

Midnight Marauders ''Midnight Marauders'' is the third studio album by American hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, released on November 9, 1993, by Jive Records. Recording sessions for the album occurred at Battery Studios, Platinum Island Studios and Scorcerer Sou ...

'' "gave birth to neo-everything ... That entire class of D'Angelo, Erykah Badu, Maxwell, and Lauryn Hill".

Mid–late 1990s: Mainstream breakthrough

In 1995, former corporate marketer turned artist manager Kedar Massenburg established the record label Kedar Entertainment Inc., through which he released the breakthrough neo soul recordings of artists such as Badu,

, and Chico DeBarge. Music journalists have specifically credited the successes of D'Angelo's ''

'' (1995), Maxwell's '' Urban Hang Suite'' (1996), Badu's '' Baduizm'' (1997), and Hill's '' The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill'' (1998) with shaping and raising the neo soul movement to commercial visibility into the late 1990s.Huey, Steve. Maxwell: Biography Allmusic. Retrieved March 30, 2009.Nelson, Trevor
Radio 1 Listeners Top 50 Albums of 1993–2003
TrevorNelson. Retrieved March 30, 2009.Harvilla, Rob
Maxwell Returns. So Do the Giant Panties
. ''The Village Voice''. Retrieved March 31, 2009. According to Farley, D'Angelo's album "gives a nod to the past, ... mints his own sound, with golden humming keyboards and sensual vocals and unhurried melodies ... His songs were polished without being slick and smart without being pretentious", while Badu "brought an iconoclastic spirit to soul music, with her towering Afrocentric headwraps, incense candles, and quirky lyrics". ''Baduizm'' sold nearly three million copies and won Badu two

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

. Hill's ''Miseducation'' album featured her singing and rapping, with deeply personal lyrics, and was one of neo soul's primary successes, achieving massive sales, critical acclaim, and five Grammy Awards. The 1997 film '' Love Jones'' capitalized on neo soul's success at the time with its

soundtrack album A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television show. The first such album to be commercially released was Walt Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' ...

, which impacted the ''Billboard'' charts and featured artists such as Hill, Maxwell, The Brand New Heavies, Me'Shell NdegéOcello,

, and Dionne Farris. After a brief marketing downturn, neo soul gained more mainstream popularity in 1999 with commercial successes by Hill, Maxwell,

Eric Benét Eric Benét Jordan (born October 15, 1967) is an American R&B/neo soul singer-songwriter and actor, who has received a total of four Grammy nominations to date for his musical work. Biography Early life Benét was born on October 15, 1966 ...

, Saadiq, and

Les Nubians Les Nubians is a French musical duo, composed of sisters Hélène and Célia Faussart from Paris, France. In 1985, the sisters moved with their parents to Chad. Seven years later, they returned to Bordeaux, France, and began singing a cappella, ...

. It impacted mainstream radio while influencing contemporary R&B acts, such as R. Kelly and

Aaliyah Aaliyah Dana Haughton (; January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001) was an American singer and actress. She has been credited for helping to redefine contemporary R&B, pop and hip hop, earning her the nicknames the "Princess of R&B" and " ...

, to incorporate some of its textural and lyrical elements. In Kelly's song "

When a Woman's Fed Up "When a Woman's Fed Up" is an R&B song by American singer R. Kelly from his 1998 double album, '' R.'' The song reached number 22 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number 5 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. The video, directed by Kelly, feat ...

" (1998), the singer incorporated a more soul-based sound and referenced Badu's 1997 song " Tyrone" in the lyrics. Other female artists broke through with their debut albums, including

Macy Gray Natalie Renée McIntyre (born September 6, 1967), known by her stage name Macy Gray, is an American R&B and soul singer and actress. She is known for her distinctive raspy voice and a singing style heavily influenced by Billie Holiday. Gray ha ...

, Angie Stone, and Jill Scott. Although Scott's album '' Who Is Jill Scott? Words and Sounds Vol. 1'' would not see release until 2000, she co-wrote and sang on "

You Got Me You Got Me or U Got Me may refer to: Film * ''You Got Me!'' (film), a 2007 Filipino comedy Music Songs * "You Got Me" (The Roots song), 1999 * "You Got Me" (J.Williams song), 2010 * "You Got Me" (Ivy Quainoo song), 2012 * "You Got Me" (Mýa song), ...

" (the 1999 hit single by hip hop band

) and received further exposure as a supporting performer on the band's tour that year. "Thanks to her stint on 'You Got Me' and subsequent live shows", Joel McIver wrote, "Scott can be credited as the first female artist to emerge in Erykah Badu's wake who could seriously claim to have challenged her superiority at the top of the neo-soul tree". During the late 1990s and early 2000s, the musical collective

Soulquarians The Soulquarians were a rotating collective of experimental Black music artists active during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Members of the collective included singer and multi-instrumentalist D'Angelo, drummer and producer Ahmir "Questlove" Th ...

—consisting of such artists as D'Angelo, The Roots, Erykah Badu,

Bilal __NOTOC__ Bilal may refer to: People * Bilal (name) (a list of people with the name) * Bilal ibn Rabah, a companion of Muhammad * Bilal (American singer) * Bilal (Lebanese singer) Places * Bilal Colony, a neighbourhood of Korangi Town in Karac ...

Mos Def Yasiin Bey (; born Dante Terrell Smith, December 11, 1973), previously and more commonly known by his stage name Mos Def (), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor. His hip hop career began in 1994, alongside his siblings in the s ...

Common Common may refer to: Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Common, common land area in Cambridge, Massachusetts * Clapham Common, originally ...

, James Poyser,

J Dilla J, or j, is the tenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its usual name in English is ''jay'' (pronounced ), with a now-uncommon vari ...

and Q-Tip—contributed significantly to the neo soul movement with what

Greg Kot Greg Kot (born March 3, 1957) is an American music journalist and author. From 1990 until 2020, Kot was the rock music critic at the '' Chicago Tribune'', where he covered popular music and reported on music-related social, political and busine ...

described as its members' "organic soul, natural R&B, boho- rap".Kot, Greg.
A Fresh Collective Soul?
". ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'': 1. March 19, 2000. Retrieved November 2, 2011. The collective developed through the production work of The Roots' drummer and producer

Questlove Ahmir Khalib Thompson (born January 20, 1971), known professionally as Questlove (stylized as ), is an American musician, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor. He is the drummer and joint frontman (with Black Tho ...

Early 2000s: Height of hype

In 2000, D'Angelo released his second album '' Voodoo'', serving as a further alternative to the mainstream of late 1990s R&B and hip hop, as neo soul reached its apex in the new decade. A production of the Soulquarians, it was an exemplary creative milestone of neo soul. Ben Ratliff of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' called the album "the succes d'estime that proves the force of this new music: it is a largely unslick, stubbornly idiosyncratic and genuinely great album that has already produced two hit singles". The year also saw Badu's second album '' Mama's Gun'', by which time the singer had been dubbed by writers as "the queen of neo-soul", although she said of the honorific title, "I hated that because what if I don't do that anymore? What if I change? Then that puts me in a penitentiary." Scott's first album ''Who Is Jill Scott?'' sold millions worldwide and proved one of the genre's significant releases. Other successful performers marketed as neo soul at this time included Bilal, Musiq Soulchild, India.Arie, and

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...

, who broke through to broader popularity with her debut album '' Songs in A Minor'' (2001). According to

biographer Andy Kellman, although Bilal may have been the "one R&B artist for whom the neo-soul categorization seemed limiting", his 2001 debut album ''

1st Born Second ''1st Born Second'' is the debut album by the American singer-songwriter Bilal, released on July 27, 2001, by Interscope Records. Bilal recorded the album at Electric Lady Studios in New York with a host of record producers, including Aaron Come ...

'' was an "exemplary" release for the genre and a top-10 R&B chart success. Hip hop acts such as The Roots and Common, also associated with the Soulquarians, released albums that incorporated neo soul: ''

Phrenology Phrenology () is a pseudoscience which involves the measurement of bumps on the skull to predict mental traits.Wihe, J. V. (2002). "Science and Pseudoscience: A Primer in Critical Thinking." In ''Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience'', pp. 195–203. C ...

'' (2002) and '' Electric Circus'' (2003). Commenting on neo soul's hype,

Daphne Brooks Daphne Brooks (born 1968) is William R. Kenan, Jr. professor of African American studies, American Studies, Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies and Music at Yale University; she is also director of graduate studies. She specializes in African ...

wrote in 2004, "The increasing attention paid to heavily hyped 'neo-soul' artists such as Jill Scott and Indie.arie ... suggest that cultural memory is now recognized as a marketable aesthetic strategy of expression in contemporary pop."

Mid–late 2000s: Mainstream decline

The 2000s later featured a decline in output by neo soul artists, with many of them failing to make a commercial impact after previous successes or not releasing a follow-up album.Graham, Renée (November 14, 2003)
Boston.com / A&E / Music / Soul searching
. ''

''. Retrieved March 6, 2011. Badu's commercial viability decreased as each of her releases following her debut ''Baduizm'' departed further from that album's music. Hill followed-up her 1998 debut—considered the best-selling neo soul album—with a combative, confessional live album (2002's ''

MTV Unplugged No. 2.0 ''MTV Unplugged No. 2.0'' is a live album by American singer and rapper Lauryn Hill. The performance comes from her 2002 ''MTV Unplugged'' special recorded on July 21, 2001 at MTV Studios in Times Square, New York City. Hill abandoned the hip ho ...

'') in which she expresses her misgivings about fame, and her recording career diminished soon after. Melena Ryzik of ''The New York Times'' wrote in a retrospective piece on that "era of left-of-center black singer-songwriters", stating "many of them struggled to keep their creative momentum, conflicted about their early mainstream success." Producer and Soulquarians member Questlove elaborated on the artists' regression from the mainstream, saying "I think most of us went through our psychosomatic, quasi-self-saboteur stage. Once we got that first taste of success, I think just the pressure of reacting got to all of us. Some of us released some of the craziest records of our career." Other artists such as D'Angelo and Hill went on indefinite hiatus from the music scene. Tyler Lewis from ''

'' attributed the decline to "the downside of herejection of the term neo soul', going on to say: ''

''s Renée Graham wrote of the artists' ambivalence towards the term in a 2003 article on neo soul's standing, "Despite its critical success, if neo-soul had an initial failing, it was the media-created label itself – a term that the artists, whom it was meant to represent, generally rejected". In a 2003 interview, music publicist John Constanza said that "The neo-soul movement is still there, but it's been underground, and it's trying to get the attention of the mainstream again". Mark Edward Nero of About.com stated, "In general, neo-soul has remained almost exclusive to R&B outlets such as urban radio and

Black Entertainment Television Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...

... the majority of neo-soul artists have yet to crossover to mainstream American music listeners, partially because the music's sound generally focuses on artist expression, rather than popular appeal".Nero, Mark Edward
Neo-Soul: What Is Neo-Soul?
. About.com. Retrieved March 5, 2011. Sutton graffiti

After D'Angelo and Hill's withdrawal from the mainstream, Bilal appeared to be another artist from "the soul music vanguard" of the late 1990s and early 2000s to succumb to professional setbacks and fade from the public view, after his heavily bootlegged album '' Love for Sale'' was shelved in 2006, although it developed an underground following in subsequent years. Smash Gordon, of the

Fabric Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not ...

club's blog, later called the leak "one of the biggest mysteries in neo-soul history". In the latter part of the decade, emerging artists such as

Heather Headley Heather Headley (born October 5, 1974) is a Trinidadian-born American singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. She won the 2000 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for the titular role of '' Aida''. She also won the 2010 Grammy ...

, Anthony David, J Davey, Eric Roberson, and Ledisi signed to independent soul labels and received exposure through independent retailers, neo soul-oriented web sites, college and public radio stations, city club venues, cable networks such as Music Choice and

BET J BET Her (formerly Centric) is an American basic cable television network owned by Paramount Media Networks. The network is a spin-off of BET with a focus on general entertainment targeting African-American women. The channel originally launched ...

, and publishing deals as writers and producers for major label-recording artists. Erykah Badu and Maxwell returned from their respective hiatuses and released well-received albums, her '' New Amerykah'' albums and his 2009 album '' BLACKsummers'night'', and they subsequently toured together.

VH1 Soul BET Soul is an American pay television network that is controlled by the BET Networks division of Paramount Global, which owns the network. The channel showcases R&B, funk, soul, neo soul, hip hop, jazz and Motown music from various decades. ...

's series ''Soulstage'', which began in 2007, showcased new music by artists such as Badu, Jill Scott, India.Arie, Q-Tip, and Saadiq.

2010s–present: Late period

Since its original popularity, neo soul has been expanded and diversified musically through the works of both American and international artists.Ratliff, Ben
Out of a Rut and Into a New Groove
. ''

''. Retrieved May 9, 2010. The more popular neo soul artists of the 2010s included Scott, Maxwell,

John Legend John Roger Stephens (born December 28, 1978), known professionally as John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and record producer. He began his musical career by working behind the scenes, playing piano on Lauryn Hill's " Eve ...

, Anthony Hamilton,

Amy Winehouse Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer and songwriter. She was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres, including soul, rhythm and blues and jazz. A membe ...

, Chrisette Michele,

Leela James Aleicha Janeice Campbell (born May 22, 1973) known professionally as Leela James, is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter. Music career James made her debut on the soundtrack to the 2000 Jamie Foxx film '' Bait'' on The Roots song "Work" ...

, and Raheem DeVaughn. DeVaughn has described himself as an "R&B Hippy Neo-Soul Rock Star", viewing it as a reference to his eclectic musical style. In its 2010 issue on critical moments in popular music, ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally ...

'' cited D'Angelo's ''Voodoo'' and its success as a turning point for neo soul: "D'Angelo's pastiche of funk, carnal ache, and high-minded, Afrocentric rhetoric stands as neo-soul's crowning achievement. So unsurpassable that it'd be eight years before we'd hear from Erykah Badu and Maxwell again, while Hill and D'Angelo remain missing. But Alicia Keys, John Legend, and Cee-Lo picked up D's mantle and ran with it". Evan Rytlewski of '' The A.V. Club'' discerns "a line of revelatory, late-period neo-soul albums" with the releases of Maxwell's ''BLACKsummers'night'' (2009), Badu's ''

New Amerykah Part Two (Return of the Ankh) ''New Amerykah Part Two (Return of the Ankh)'' is the fifth studio album by American recording artist Erykah Badu, first released on March 30, 2010, through Universal Motown. Collaborating with several hip hop producers over the Internet, Badu co ...

'' (2010), Bilal's ''

Airtight's Revenge ''Airtight's Revenge'' is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Bilal. It was released on September 6, 2010, by the independent record label Plug Research, his first album for the label. Bilal began composing music for the album u ...

'' (2010), and

Frank Ocean Christopher Francis "Frank" Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper. His works are noted by music critics for featuring avant-garde styles and introspective, elliptical lyrics. Ocean ...

's '' Channel Orange'' (2012). In the 2010s, other neo soul acts included

Fitz and the Tantrums Fitz and the Tantrums are an American indie pop and neo soul band from Los Angeles, California, that formed in 2008. The band consists of Michael Fitzpatrick (lead vocals), Noelle Scaggs (co-lead vocals and percussion), James King (saxophone, ...

, Mayer Hawthorne,

Nathaniel Rateliff Nathaniel David Rateliff (born October 7, 1978) is an American singer and songwriter based in Denver, Colorado, whose influences are described as folk, Americana and vintage rhythm & blues. Rateliff has performed with a backing band called the ...

& the Night Sweats, and Amos Lee. In August 2019,

Okayplayer Okayplayer is an online hip-hop and alternative music website and community, described by ''Rolling Stone'' as a "tastemaker" and "an antidote to dull promotional Web sites used by most artists". The community was founded by The Roots' drummer ...

journalist Keith Nelson Jr. published a piece highlighting 11 recording artists who are "on the precipice of pushing neo-soul forward" into its third decade of existence: Steve Lacy ("cut from the abstract neo-soul cloth of Frank Ocean where you’re just as likely to have a jam session as you are to hear philosophical quips"),

Mahalia Mahalia is a given name and may refer to: * Mahalia Barnes (born 1982), Australian singer-songwriter *Mahalia Belo, British film and television director *Mahalia (singer) (born 1 May 1998), English singer, songwriter and actress, better known by th ...

("singer-songwriter, with honeyed vocals … songs of love and anguish typically exist in narratives, similar to Jill Scott, who paved her path"), Adrian Daniel ("experimentation and vulnerability that is reminiscent of fellow Brooklynite Maxwell"),

VanJess VanJess was a Nigerian-American R&B duo composed of sisters Ivana and Jessica Nwokike. The duo began their career on YouTube performing cover songs. After one of their videos, a cover of Drake's "Headlines", had viral success, they decided to p ...

("sister duo float between the soulful chemistry of Floetry and the unapologetically assertive of

City Girls City Girls is an American hip hop duo consisting of Yung Miami (Caresha Romeka Brownlee; born February 1994) and JT (Jatavia Shakara Johnson; born December 1992). The duo originate from Miami, Florida, and garnered attention after making an un ...

… artful sexual empowerment"), Donovan ("avant-garde singer and instrumentalist … bedroom intimate vocals and motiveproduction"), Ari Lennox ("can make

Tinder Tinder is easily combustible material used to start a fire. Tinder is a finely divided, open material which will begin to glow under a shower of sparks. Air is gently wafted over the glowing tinder until it bursts into flame. The flaming tinder i ...

plights sound rich with soul … akin to Erykah Badu"), Marco McKinnis ("Anthony Hamilton meets D'Angelo … hazy ambient sounds"), Baby Rose ("exquisitely guttural voice makes ovepalpable"), Kyle Dion ("a register so high it sounded like tearful begging"),

Lucky Daye David Debrandon Brown (born September 25, 1985), professionally known as Lucky Daye, is an American singer-songwriter from New Orleans. He is signed to Keep Cool Records and RCA Records. He released his first EP, ''I'' on November 9, 2018 and his ...

("his love odes are imbued with a Raphael Saadiq-esque adventurousness"), and Iman Omari ("a faint Bilal tinge … music that leans heavy on a jazz/hip-hop").

Etymology

Characteristics

History

1980s–early 1990s: Stylistic origins

Mid–late 1990s: Mainstream breakthrough

Early 2000s: Height of hype

Mid–late 2000s: Mainstream decline

2010s–present: Late period

See also

References

Further reading