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‘Tis the season again: to make a list, check it twice (and a couple more times for good measure) and then reveal who are the hottest artists of the year. In this case, we’re talking Billboard’s staff picks of the R&B artists who left the most indelible footprints in 2025.
Before moving forward, let’s underscore that these picks were not decided strictly by chart data. As we previously mentioned on our initial list in February, while chart success was a factor in the staff discussion, other criteria was also taken into account: vocal performance, musical and lyrical resonance, cultural buzz, touring success and business endeavors and partnerships.
There’s no doubt that some R&B fans will disagree with these staff picks and decry that other artists are more deserving of a slot on the list. However, there’s also no doubt that both sides can agree on one thing: that 2025 was a strong year for R&B.
As noted in Billboard’s October story predicting which R&B artists would score nominations for the 68th annual Grammy Awards, this year witnessed anticipated returns (Justin Bieber, GIVĒON, Teyana Taylor, Kehlani, Bryson Tiller) and breakthroughs by a mix of established and rising stars (Ravyn Lenae, Mariah the Scientist, PARTYNEXTDOOR, Leon Thomas).
This year also uncorked a refreshing blend of contemporary, alternative and traditional R&B as fermented by the aforementioned in addition to genre torch bearers such as Lalah Hathaway and Bilal plus promising movers and shakers such as Durand Bernarr, Kwn and Destin Conrad. Also notching notable buzz this year: Odeal and Summer Walker, the latter sliding under the wire with the final chapter in her Over It trilogy. Additional honorable mentions making in-roads in 2025 include Elmiene, Khamari and Alex Isley.
Then put another check in the win column labeled tours: R&B turned up and showed out this year, thanks to supremely successful runs by Chris Brown on his first-ever stadium world tour with special guests Tiller, Jhené Aiko and Walker; Brandy and Monica’s BPC Presents: The Boy Is Mine Tour; and The Queens! 4 Legends. 1 Stage. Tour starring Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight, Patti LaBelle and Stephanie Mills.
R&B also will be taking center stage once again at the upcoming Super Bowl LX pre-game festivities, when Coco Jones will perform “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” Jones follows in the footsteps of Ledisi — the former’s fellow Grammy-winning colleague and also 2026 Grammy nominee — who memorably performed “Lift” at last year’s Super Bowl pre-game celebration.
All of which underscores another truth that can be agreed upon: R&B is doing the damn thing! With that said, let’s now unveil the hottest R&B artists of 2025.
kwn (Feb. 2025 Rank: N/A)
Image Credit: Easy Ramsey
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Boza shares the story behind his hit song “París” with Sech, the creation of his “orióN” remix with Sistek and gives advice to people pursuing women who are already in relationships.
Boza: How was the collaboration with Sistek born? Well, on my team there’s someone very, very, very important, his name is Pedrito Alegría and he always kind of has… you could say, I don’t know, ideas, or he always contributes a lot to what I do. So, he was like, “Look, I have a buddy named Sistek, why don’t we do the ‘orióN’ remix, he wants to do it and everything.” And obviously we’re very, very open with all that. I’m a fan of electronic music too, so well, why not? It was born through Pedrito Alegría, that’s where we met, the collaboration happened and when I heard the song it was like, wow, something else, another vibe.
How do I see “orióN” ten years from now? “orióN” is my baby with Elena [Rose], you know? And “orióN” is a song that talks about emotional responsibility. I think it’s a song that’s going, going to endure quite a bit, you know? Since it’s not an empty song, it’s a song that has a very positive message, a message which a man can identify with, a woman can identify with. So, I think it’s not going to be one of those songs that are trendy, I think it’s a song that came to stay.
I think that the idea, I mean, no, not the idea, the experience of “París”, everyone at some point has had, as they say, that experience, it could be in “París,” it could be in other places in the world, whatever. But that song was born, I remember, in Andrés’ studio. They sent us a reference, like an intro, a chorus, obviously we loved it, and from there I added, so to speak, my point of view, my experience in “París”, in theory.
We had wanted for a while to record a song with Sech. We had already recorded some, but it hadn’t materialized, so to speak, right? Until now, we took advantage that there were other awards in Panama, and we were, so to speak, the host and all that, so, the attention was full, full on Panama. And it was like the best moment to do it together, you know? I’ve always said that God’s timing is perfect. We sent that song to Sech and he loved it and, so to speak, added his, his vibe, his flow there, and well, from there on, you know? What has happened has been very telling itself. The public had been waiting for it for a while and loved the song.
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Save StorySave this storySave StorySave this storyThe staff of Pitchfork listens to a lot of new music. A lot of it. On any given day our writers, editors, and contributors go through an imposing number of new releases, giving recommendations to each other and discovering new favorites along the way. Each Monday, with our Pitchfork Selects playlist, we’re sharing what our writers are playing obsessively and highlighting some of the Pitchfork staff’s favorite new music. The playlist is a grab-bag of tracks: Its only guiding principle is that these are the songs you’d gladly send to a friend.This week’s Pitchfork Selects playlist features Lolina, Na-Kel Smith, Ulrika Spacek, and more. Listen below and follow our playlists on Apple Music and Spotify. (Pitchfork earns a commission from purchases made through affiliate links on our site.)Pitchfork Selects: December 2, 2025Isobel Waller-Bridge: “Tapes”Lolina: “GG”The Null Club: “Overgrown” [ft. Miss Grit]Na-Kel Smith: “Money2Tall”Ulrika Spacek: “Square Root of None”Parent Teacher: “NVD//A”
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Lizzo knows a thing or two about being “canceled” in the court of public opinion, and now she’s sharing what she’s learned with the rest of the class.
In a Substack essay published Monday (Dec. 1), the hitmaker shared her thoughts on why “everyone should get cancelled at least once,” reflecting on the moments in her career where she faced overwhelming backlash that forced her to grow a thicker skin.
“I was raised in the Pentecostal COGIC church in Detroit, Michigan where the idea of hell was very real,” she began. “If you disobeyed God, or were considered a ‘bad person’ you were on a first class flight to eternal damnation in a lake of fire.”
With her strict religious upbringing as her moral compass, Lizzo explained that she spent most of her life trying to be as good as possible — just for the public to decide that she was anything but in 2019, when she attended a Lakers game wearing pants made to look like her buttocks were exposed. According to the Grammy winner, this was the first of many times she was canceled, with people falsely accusing her of running onto the court unauthorized and bombarding her with offensive memes and death threats.
“All those years of being a good person doesn’t matter to the internet,” she wrote. “The internet doesn’t care about what really happened to someone. It only cares about believing the hype.”
Lizzo went on to make a list of all the reasons she’s been canceled in the years since, including “doing a smoothie detox,” “crying/complaining,” “saying I make music for black women” and “unknowingly using the s*az slur in a song [Grrrls].”
But what has she learned from those experiences? “F–k it,” she wrote.
“You aren’t getting out of this thing without unintentionally hurting someone’s feelings,” she continued. “Sensitivity is at an all time high and because of personalized algorithms, any content you see that doesn’t cater to you personally feels like an attack on your identity.”
“Its left us in a state of paralysis, unable to make mistakes because the court of public opinion is always ready to be judge, jury and executioner,” she continued. “As the qualifications of being deemed a ‘good person’ narrow while the sudden increase in conservative morals skyrocket, who has lived a real life and is still considered ‘good’?”
The essay marks Lizzo’s second post on her Substack account, which she kicked off with a piece on weight loss written through the lens of someone whose own health journey has been very publicly scrutinized. The singer-songwriter has been open in the past about how her tumultuous relationship with fame and haters has affected her mental health over the years, though she’s now doing better than ever following the release of mixtape My Face Hurts From Smiling.
“I’m so confident, and I think the thing that I’m most confident in now is me, my vision and my creativity,” she told Billboard in June. “I kind of lost trust in myself for awhile, because when you get in the industry, there’s a lot of people that come in and think they’re the experts … I think when you’re seeing that glow, it’s that confidence that’s truly being proud of who I am and not hiding who I am in all the aspects of it.”
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WHAM!’s “Last Christmas,” Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” and more classic holiday hits re-enter the top 10 of the Hot 100. Billboard chart experts explain how they feel about the classics making a comeback and what that means for the top 10. They also dive into “The Fate of Ophelia” breaking Taylor Swift’s personal record, Olivia Dean’s phenomenon, and RIIZE stopping by the studio to share how they worked on their latest album, ‘FAME,’ their thoughts on ‘KPop Demon Hunters,’ and more!
RIIZE: Hi, Billboard. We are RIIZE! And you’re watching the Hot 100 Show.
Tetris Kelly: Happy holidays and welcome back to the Hot 100 Show. Our boys, Rise, are in the building today. Can’t wait to have them on set to talk about the new music. But, hey, Christmas is back in a big way, so let’s jump into the top 10. This is the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 for the week dated December 6th. “Opalite” falls down to No. 10, as Leon slips to nine. “Jingle Bell Rock” appears at No. 8. All right, there we have numbers 10 through eight, with a little surprising drop from Taylor Swift and a new incoming Christmas classic. How are we feeling about the top 10 so far?
Delisa Shannon: I love that it’s shaken up, y’all. I love to see it, personally. I see “Opalite” holding on real strong, which we knew. The fans love it, so, like, I’m really not surprised to see that one holding on. I saw Leon Thomas at Brooklyn Paramount last week.
Trevor Anderson: Oh, you were at the folk show? Was it the-
Delisa Shannon: For the folks, yeah.
Tetris Kelly: Nice, how was that?
Delisa Shannon: It was incredible. And it was so loud when “Mutt” was playing, so that’s exactly why “Mutt” is still on the top 10. Exactly why, but also, everyone was screaming every other song of Leon Thomas. So that was really impressive to me. You know, typically when you go to a show, when a song like this is on the charts, you see everyone pull out their phones for the one big song that everybody knows. That was not the case. That show was rocking, standing room only, like, elbow to elbow, shoulder to shoulder. So as we have discussed time and time again about Leon Thomas and his importance with R&B, I think getting to see it live was so, so, so incredibly cool.
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Flea has a simple, come together now message on his first-ever solo single: “live for peace, live for love.” The simple, open-hearted plea comes more than five minutes into the nearly eight-minute song “A Plea,” which dropped on Tuesday morning (Dec. 2).
The free jazz/spoken word jam is the first taste of the hyperkinetic Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist’s upcoming, as yet untitled, debut full-length solo album, which is due out next year on Nonesuch Records. Though best known for his bass-thumping in the Chili Peppers, Flea returns to his first instrument, the trumpet, on the album a release described as filled with a “dream band of modern jazz visionaries.” Additional details about the albums guests and track list will be announced early next year.
In the meantime, Flea dropped the high-energy video for “A Plea,” which was directed by his eldest daughter, 37-year-old photographer Clara Balzary. In the visual, Flea performs a series of modern dance-style moves in a blank space, walking in slow motion, shaking his head and arms, punching the air, flailing his torso, shaking his butt and patting his belly along to the song’s uptempo jazz groove.
The song, written and performed by Flea, features his work on electric bass, trumpet and Gil Scott-Heron-like spoken word-style vocals, including such provocative lyrics as “Who’s your neighbor, who’s your friend?/ Ahh there’s hate all around/ I don’t care about your f–king politics/ I don’t wanna hear about your politics/ Well, he said boo/ She said hooray.”
As the tempo increases to a frantic pace, Flea laments that the “beautiful kids” are scared of the coming “ugly” and of guns, making a plea for “peace and love” while confirming that hate is never the solution. He’s joined on the track by double bassist Anna Butterss (Boygenius), guitarist Jeff Parker (Tortoise), drummer Deantoni Parks (We Are Dark Angels), percussionist Mauro Refosco (David Byrne), alto flutist Rickey Washington and trombonist Vikram Devasthali (Angel Olsen), with additional vocals by Chris Warren (The DX Band) and the song’s producer, Josh Johnson (Leon Bridges), who also plays alto sax.
In a statement, Flea, 63, described the song’s lyrics as reflective of the divisiveness in our country and world right now and yearning for “a place beyond, a place of love, for me to speak my mind and be myself. I’m always just trying to be myself… I don’t care about the act of politics. I think there is a much more transcendent place above it where there’s discourse to be had that can actually help humanity, and actually help us all to live harmoniously and productively in a way that’s healthy for the world. There’s a place where we meet, and it’s love.”
While Flea has been slappin’ the bass with the Chili Peppers since 1982, he’s also contributed to a number of supergroups, including Radiohead singer Thom Yorke’s Atoms For Peace, as well as sitting in with everyone from the Circle Jerks to Tom Waits, Johnny Cash, Alanis Morissette, Nirvana and Jane’s Addiction. He’s also long had a sideline acting and making cameos in films and TV shows, including Back to the Future Pt. II, My Own Private Idaho, Inside Out 2, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Baby Driver, The Big Lebowski and Obi-Wan Kenobi, among many others.
Watch the video for “A Plea” below.
Trending on Billboard Waiting for the first snow is a winter tradition — but what if only a single snowflake arrives? That’s what happens in The First Snow of Fraggle Rock, the new holiday special arriving Friday on Apple TV, which finds Gobo (John Tartaglia) venturing to “Outer Space” — aka the human world — […]
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Leon Thomas’ “Mutt” is the most-heard song on United States radio stations, as it jumps to No. 1 on Billboard’s Radio Songs chart (dated Dec. 6).
The survey reflects airplay audience on more than 1,000 radio stations covering multiple formats, as monitored by Mediabase, with totals delivered to Billboard by Luminate. The data contributes to the Billboard Hot 100, which also blends streaming and sales figures.
“Mutt” lifts one spot to the Radio Songs summit with 64.4 million in audience Nov. 21-27. Notably, it completes the longest ride to the top of the chart, 35 weeks, for a title by a male soloist. Overall, only Dua Lipa’s “Levitating” took longer, 37 weeks, to lead in 2021, while Gabby Barrett’s “I Hope,” featuring Charlie Puth, now shares second place via its 35-week journey in 2020. (Radio Songs began in December 1990.)
“Mutt” is Thomas’ first Radio Songs leader as a recording artist and second as a co-writer and co-producer; it follows SZA’s “Snooze,” which notched three weeks at No. 1 in 2023.
Plus, “Mutt” is the first Radio Songs No. 1 for an R&B song (defined as those that have hit Billboard’s Hot R&B Songs chart) since “Snooze.”
“Mutt” racked up 13 weeks at No. 1 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart, 10 weeks atop Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, three weeks leading Rhythmic Airplay and two weeks in charge of Adult R&B Airplay. It has also crossed to pop radio, ascending to a new No. 4 best on the latest Pop Airplay list.
“Mutt” concurrently leads the multimetric Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for a 14th week and Hot R&B Songs for a 31st frame. It has hit a No. 6 high on the Hot 100.
Meanwhile, “Mutt” is the fourth Radio Songs No. 1 of 2025 promoted by Interscope Capitol. It follows Doechii’s “Anxiety” (five weeks at No. 1 in May-June); Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s “Luther” (six, April-May); and Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ “Die With a Smile” (eight, February-April). Interscope Capitol is the only label team with a quartet of Radio Songs No. 1s in a single year this decade.
Sabrina Carpenter is putting as much distance as possible between herself and the Donald Trump administration after the White House shared a video set to her song “Juno.”
On Tuesday (Dec. 2), the pop star slammed the government for posting a compilation of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers chasing, tackling and handcuffing people on the streets while a snippet of the Short n’ Sweet hit plays. “this video is evil and disgusting,” Carpenter wrote on X.
“Do not ever involve me or my music to benefit your inhumane agenda,” she continued.
Billboard has reached out to the White House for comment.
Carpenter’s reply comes one day after the White House first posted the video, which puts a shocking spin on the Grammy winner’s gag of “arresting” people at her Short n’ Sweet Tour for being too attractive just before performing “Juno” each night. Before the trek wrapped in November after more than a year on the road, Carpenter had distributed fuzzy pink handcuffs to everyone from Millie Bobby Brown, to TWICE, SZA and Miss Piggy of The Muppets.
The Girl Meets World alum would then dive into the song, with fans in the crowd looking forward to the new pose Carpenter would strike at every show after the line, “Have you ever tried this one?”
That same line can now be heard over the arrest footage in the White House’s video, which was posted despite Carpenter being a vocal Trump detractor. After his election win in 2024, the vocalist told fans at a concert, “Sorry about our country, and to the women in here, I love you so so so so so much … I really hope for the rest of this night you can enjoy yourselves, because you absolutely deserve it.”
This is far from the first time the Trump administration has irked musicians and their fans by using music without authorization, nor is it the first time it’s happened in the past few weeks alone. Just last month, Olivia Rodrigo condemned the White House for pairing a video encouraging self-deportations to her song “All-American Bitch.”
“don’t ever use my songs to promote your racist, hateful propaganda,” she wrote at the time.
Shortly before that, Kenny Loggins slammed the twice-impeached POTUS for using “Danger Zone” in an AI-generated video of himself dumping feces on “No Kings” protestors, and Swifties called out the White House for making a TikTok using Taylor Swift’s “The Fate of Ophelia.”
Source: ALFREDO ESTRELLA / Getty
While Donald Trump is out here illegally bombing “drug boats” in international waters and pardoning a former drug trafficking ex-president here in the United States, El Chapo’s son is actually being held accountable for his drug-related transgressions and may serve some serious jail time as a result.
According to the New York Times, El Chapo’s son, Joaquín Guzmán López, pleaded guilty to kidnapping a former drug-dealing colleague, Ismael Zambada García, and delivering him to authorities on U.S. soil in July of 2024. The news comes on the heels of the Trump administration declaring war on drug trafficking from Latino countries such as Venezuela (which has no real history in the drug trade), though many feel that this administration’s seemingly inevitable invasion of Venezuela is nothing more than an attempt to steal their oil reserves, which is valued in the trillions.
Still, while that is going on López took accountability for his role in the kidnapping of Ismael Zambada García. The once mighty Sinaloa cartel that El Chapo ruled with an iron fist continues to come apart at the seams, as its leaders continue to end up behind bars on American soil for moving weight both in Mexico and the United States.
Per the New York Times:
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While the drug charges in Mr. Guzmán López’s guilty plea were significant, they paled in cinematic drama to the accusations surrounding the abduction of Mr. Zambada García, his father’s former partner in crime. Known as El Mayo, Mr. Zambada García had long been one of Mexico’s most wanted men and had escaped capture countless times in recent years, evading both American and Mexican authorities.
By using his familial connections, Mr. Guzmán López persuaded Mr. Zambada García to come down from one of his hide-outs in the mountains of Sinaloa in July 2024 for what he thought would be a meeting to resolve a dispute among local politicians. Mr. Guzmán López then ambushed the older man, drugging him with sedatives and flying him in a turboprop plane across the border, where he was apprehended by waiting U.S. agents.
Talk about taking everyone down with him. Lopez must not have liked Garcia to have done him dirty like that.
While prosecutors have suggested a 10-year prison sentence for Lopez, as he has been cooperating with authorities on the matter, the final sentencing will be made by judge Sharon Johnson Coleman, who may or may not sentence him to more than a decade behind bars.
That being said, we wouldn’t be surprised if Lopez actually gets himself a presidential pardon, as 17 members of his family have already been welcomed into the U.S. by the Trump administration under unknown circumstances earlier this year. Could something already have been worked out behind closed doors by Trump and El Chapo’s family? El Chapo was said to have had a net worth of more than $10 billion, so how much of that could he have used to ensure safe passage for his family into the U.S.? We all know that Trump is all about that bribery. Just sayin’.
What do y’all think will end up happening with El Chapo’s son? Will he end up serving hard time, or will he ultimately find himself with a presidential pardon? Let us know in the comments section below.
