R&B/Hip-Hop
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2 Chainz is counting his blessings after a scary car crash on Saturday morning in Miami that landed the rapper in a hospital. The 46-year-old MC posted a video soon after in which he was seen being loaded into the back of an ambulance on a stretcher, with a zoom out to show a black […]
Tyla got her first Billboard Hot 100 hit with the steamy track “Water,” which boosted into the mainstream in part thanks to a hip-swaying TikTok dance challenge.
The track, which peaked at No. 10 on the tally, also topped Billboard’s Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart, as well as the U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart. The rising star is gearing up to release her debut album in 2024.
If you need a guide to follow along with Tyla’s “Water,” find the lyrics below:Make me sweatMake me hotterMake me lose my breathMake me waterMake me sweatMake me hotterMake me lose my breathMake me water
NormallyI can keep my cool, but tonight I’m wildin’I’ma beIn a dangerous mood, can you match my timing? MmTelling me (yeah)That you really ’bout it, why try hide it? OohTalk is cheap, so show meThat you understand how I like it
Can you blow my mind?Set off my whole bodyIf I give you my timeCan you snatch my soul from me?I don’t wanna wait, come take itTake me where I ain’t been beforeCan you blow my mind?Set off my whole bodyWhole body
Make me sweatMake me hotterMake me lose my breathMake me waterMake me sweatMake me hotterMake me lose my breathMake me water
HopefullyYou can last all night, don’t get too excited (ooh)Oh, privacyYou ain’t gotta go nowhere, you can stay inside it
Can you blow my mind? OhSet off my whole bodyIf I give you my time (give you my time)Can you snatch my soul from me?I don’t wanna wait, come take itTake me where I ain’t been beforeCan you blow my mind?Set off my whole bodyWhole body
Make me sweatMake me hotterMake me lose my breathMake me waterMake me sweatMake me hotterMake me lose my breathMake me water (make me sweat)Make me sweatMake me hotterMake me lose my breathMake me waterMake me sweat (make me sweat)Make me hotterMake me lose my breathMake me water
Make me sweatMake me hotterMake me lose my breathMake me waterMake me sweatMake me hotterMake me lose my breathMake me water
Lyrics licensed & provided by LyricFind
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Spirit Music Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Ariowa Ogheneochuko Kennedy Irosogie, Christopher Collin Stewart, Corey Lindsey Keay, Imani Lewis, Jackson Paul Lomastro, Olmo Zucca, Rayan El-Hussein Goufer, Samuel Awuku, Tyla Seethal
Jack Harlow delivered yet another viral hit with “Lovin on Me,” his groovy 2023 single that samples R&B singer Delbert “Dale” Greer’s 1995 track, “Whatever,” in the hook.
“Lovin on Me” marks Harlow’s third No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. “Warming up. More coming,” he captioned his victorious Instagram carousel after the achievement. He previously topped the tally with “First Class” and his Lil Nas X collaboration, “Industry Baby.”
If you need a guide to follow along with Jack Harlow’s “Lovin on Me,” find the lyrics below:
I don’t like no whips and chains, and you can’t tie me downBut you can whip your lovin’ on me, babyWhip your lovin’ on me, baby
I’m vanilla, baby, I’ll choke you (I don’t like no whips and chains)But I ain’t no killer, baby (and you can’t tie me down)She twenty-eight, tellin’ me I’m still a baby (but you can whip your lovin’ on me, baby)I get love from Detroit like Skilla Baby (whip your lovin’ on me, baby)And the thing about your boy is I don’t like no whips and chains, and you can’t tie me downBut you can whip your lovin’ on me, baby (that’s right, that’s right)Whip your lovin’ on me, baby
Young J-A-C-K, AKA Rico, like Suave, Young EnriqueSpeakin’ of AKA, she’s a alphaBut not around your boy, she get quiet ’round your boy, hold on (shh)Don’t know what you heard or what you thought about your boyBut they lied about your boy, goin’ dumb and it’s some’ idiotic ’bout your boyShe wearin’ cheetah print, that’s how bad she wanna be spotted ’round your boy
I don’t like no whips and chains, and you can’t tie me downBut you can whip your lovin’ on me, babyWhip your lovin’ on me
I’m vanilla, baby, I’ll choke you (I don’t like no whips and chains)But I ain’t no killer, baby (and you can’t tie me down)She twenty-eight, tellin’ me I’m still a baby (but you can whip your lovin’ on me, baby)I get love from Detroit like Skilla Baby (whip your lovin’ on me, baby)And the thing about your boy is I don’t like no whips and chains, and you can’t tie me downBut you can whip your lovin’ on me, baby Whip your lovin’ on me, baby
Young M-I-S-S-I-O-N-A-R-YYou sharp like barbed wireShe stole my heart, then she got archivedI keep it short with a bi—, Lord FarquaadAll the girls in the front row, ayyAll the girls in the barricade, ayyAll the girls that been waitin’ all day, let your tongue hang outF— everything, ayyIf you came with a man (yeah, yeah)Let go of his hand (let go of this sh–)Everybody in the suite, kickin’ up they feetStand up, bi—, dance
I don’t like no whips and chains (I see you) And you can’t tie me down (and all the guys in the back waitin’ for the next track)But you can whip your lovin’ on me, baby (cut your boy a slack)Whip your lovin’ on me (it’s young Jack)
I’m vanilla, baby, I’ll choke you (I don’t like no whips and chains)But I ain’t no killer, baby (and you can’t tie me down)She twenty-eight, tellin’ me I’m still a baby (but you can whip your lovin’ on me, baby)I get love from Detroit like Skilla Baby (whip your lovin’ on me, baby)And the thing about your boy is I don’t like no whips and chains, and you can’t tie me downBut you can whip your lovin’ on me, baby (that’s right, that’s right)Whip your lovin’ on me, babyI don’t like no whips and chains, and you can’t tie me downBut you can whip your lovin’ on me, babyWhip your lovin’ on me, baby
Lyrics licensed & provided by LyricFind
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Delbert M. Greer, Jackman Harlow, Nickie Jon Pabon, Nik Frascona, Ozan Yildirim, Reginald Nelton, Sean Momberger
Cardi B took the stage during TikTok‘s inaugural In the Mix event on Sunday (Dec. 10) at Sloan Park in Mesa, Ariz., and she performed a medley of hits for the high-energy audience. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The rapper was a vision in red for […]
With her current momentum on 10, Nicki Minaj opted to crank the decibels even more by enlisting 50 Cent on the newest version of her Pink Friday 2 song “Beep, Beep.” “#QGTM SOUTHSIDE JAMAICA, QUEENS STAND TF UP!!!!!!!!!!!! He walked on this sh–. YIKESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS I am so honored to have him stop by #GagCity!!!! #PinkFriday2,” an excited Minaj […]
As per usual, it’s been a busy week in the world of hip-hop and R&B. In the first full week of December, myriad artists got their announcements and releases out to avoid the Christmas lockdown in the coming weeks. On Sunday (Dec. 10), SZA celebrated the one-year anniversary of her blockbuster SOS album with the announcement of LANA, the forthcoming deluxe version of her nine-time Grammy-nominated sophomore studio album. Of course, the weekend’s most high-profile release was from none other than Nicki Minaj, who unleashed her long-awaited Pink Friday 2 — her fifth studio album and sequel to her 2010 Billboard 200-topping debut LP — on her birthday, Dec. 8.
Elsewhere in the hip-hop and R&B worlds, Cardi B confirmed that she is no longer with Offset, 2 Chainz is thankfully in stable condition after landing in an unfortunate car accident, and Will Smith rocked the house at the star-studded A Grammy Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop telecast.
With Fresh Picks, Billboard aims to highlight some of the best and most interesting new sounds across R&B and hip-hop. From Tokischa and Sexyy Red’s cross-genre collaboration to Usher and H.E.R.’s stunning Color Purple duet, get into these seven new picks and be sure to check out the rest of our recs in the Spotify playlist below.
Freshest Find: Usher & H.E.R., “Risk It All”
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As the highly anticipated Color Purple movie musical draws nearer, the promotion for the flick’s two related soundtracks is kicking into high gear. Usher and H.E.R. started off the weekend — which ended in a pair of Golden Globe nods for lead actress Fantasia Barrino and supporting actress Danielle Brooks — with the release of “Risk It All,” their gorgeous new duet for The Color Purple (Music From and Inspired By), due Dec. 15. Co-written by Oscar winners H.E.R. and Jimmy Napes, Usher and the “Damage” singer harmonize beautifully across the ethereal piano-backed arrangement. “People are cryin’ for it, people are dyin’ for it/ Always the reason we still believe it/ Somethin’ that leaves us hurtin’ is worth it,” the pair croon.
Tokischa feat. Sexyy Red, “Daddy”
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How do you cap off a breakout year that found you opening up for Drake and collaborating with Nicki Minaj? With an infectious cross-genre collaboration, of course! For the latest release in her string of fiery collaborations, Sexyy Red links up with Latin Grammy-nominated Dominican rapper Toksicha, for a sultry, sex-positive reggaeton-meets-house number that plays around with gender in the realm of kink. Across the thumping Yeti Beats- and El Guincho-helmed beat, Tokischa assumes the role of Sexyy’s sugar daddy as they trade hilarious verses, including some tongue-in-cheek bilingual lines from the “Pound Town” rapper herself.
Nicki Minaj, “Fallin 4 U”
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Of course, the Queen scores herself a slot on this week’s round-up. Her gargantuan Pink Friday 2 LP — 22 tracks and counting — features several tracks for every side of her musical personality, but most pale in comparison to “Fallin 4 U.” Placed several songs deep into the album, “Fallin 4 U” is, in many ways, the defining synthesis of Minaj’s creative hallmark. There are her impassioned, high-octane, wordplay-laden bars, emotional Auto-Tuned ad-libs and hooks, a penchant for both the introspective and the braggadocious (often at the same time), and a healthy dose of melodrama via those background strings. If there’s any track on Pink Friday 2 that truly makes the album feel like a descendant of its predecessor, it’s this one.
SXMPRA feat. Juicy J, “Business Man”
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New Zealand rapper SXMPRA combines his ominous underground phonk sound with that of ’90s Memphis rap pioneer Juicy J on the hard-hitting “Business Man.” The pair trade punchline-packed verses asserting their dominance at break-neck speed. “Stand and fight/ Folding chairs and/ Throwing them hands/ Would’ve been the best time of my life,” quips Juicy. The collaboration features production from Juicy J and HitKidd, who put out his own Renegade album this week.
James Fauntleroy, “Sleigh”
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Holiday music seems to be a genre that knows no bounds given how its consumption only increases with each passing year. Four-time Grammy-winning singer-songwriter James Fauntleroy took a daring stab at holiday originals by making his debut studio LP a Christmas album. A compilation of two previous holiday EPs featuring ten tracks, The Warmest Winter Ever is chock-full of steamy between-the-sheets anthems for the Christmas season. “Sleigh,” is one of the album’s instant standouts, with its waterfall of layered harmonies and cheeky Beyoncé shoutout: “She gon’ sleigh like Beyoncé.”
Tems, “Not An Angel”
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For her latest release, Tems subverts the gospel-bent of her preceding “Me & U” single and opts for a rhythmic take on Biblical imagery, rejecting the role of being an “angel” or “savior” for someone who isn’t quite yet ready to be saved. “‘Cause I’m not an angel/ I’m just a girl that knows the truth/ And I couldn’t save you/ You couldn’t see what I’ve been through,” she croons sorrowfully over the Sarz co-produced Afrosoul beat.
Q Da Fool feat. Ot7 Quanny, “Rich Droppaz”
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It’s a bit ironic that a link-up between a DMV rapper and a Philly rapper sounds so far removed from the dominant contemporary sound of either region, but it undoubtedly makes for a banger of a record. A slinking street anthem that coasts on both the duo’s chemistry and their individual charisma, “Rich Droppaz” finds the pairs trading hilarious bars like, “Yeah, I love the money, go me boo’d up/ I can’t do no Ella Mai, I ain’t ‘Boo’d Up.’” Unassuming but still urgent, “Rich Droppaz” is a promising lead into Q Da Fool’s forthcoming Art of Ambition album.
Nicki Minaj is bringing Pink Friday 2 to a city near you. Just days after the release of her latest studio album, the Queen of Rap has announced dates for a world tour in support of the Pink Friday sequel. Kicking off Friday, March 1, in Oakland, Calif., the three-month trek will find Minaj performing […]
In the five years that followed the release of SZA’s groundbreaking debut album, Ctrl, the acclaimed artist teased fans with the occasional one-off or collaboration — as the wait for the official follow-up continued to grow. So when she finally did return at the end of 2022 with her much-anticipated second album, SOS, the stakes were high. And throughout 2023, her record-breaking chart wins exceeded expectations.
With SOS, SZA ventured outside R&B’s boundaries by diving into gospel, grunge, pop-punk and rap; meanwhile, as her producer-engineer, Rob Bisel, previously told Billboard, “Her pen got sharper and more personal.” SOS debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and spent 10 nonconsecutive weeks there, the most of any R&B/hip-hop album by a woman since Mariah Carey’s self-titled debut spent 11 weeks at the top in 1991. Instead of its impact being limited to the final weeks of 2022, SOS became one of this year’s biggest releases.
It started with the groovy yet gruesome “Kill Bill,” which arrived as a single in January and eventually became SZA’s first No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100; it also made history with an unprecedented 21-week siege atop the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The following month, she embarked on the SOS tour, telling Billboard at the time that she was “deeply excited to pop ass and cry and give theater” during her first-ever arena headlining stint, compared with her more intimate, stripped-down shows in the past. “When I finally saw the tour and how insane she was going with her choreography, range and stamina … it really hit me,” her producer Carter Lang previously told Billboard. “The transformation was super apparent.”
SZA found ways to keep SOS in rotation while on the road. In April, “Snooze” was released as the album’s sixth single and slowly grew into its next smash. It was serviced to (and succeeded at) rhythmic, R&B/hip-hop and pop radio, all of which culminated in a star-studded music video that arrived in August and featured Justin Bieber. Soon after its release, she recruited him for the song’s acoustic version. “Snooze” ultimately peaked at No. 2 on the Hot 100 and dethroned “Kill Bill” on Hot R&B Songs, where the former had ruled for 16 nonconsecutive weeks.
By September, SOS became the longest-running No. 1 title on Top R&B Albums, logging 50 weeks and counting at the summit. And to top it all off, SZA finished at No. 1 on four major Billboard year-end R&B/hip-hop rankings: Top R&B/Hip-Hop Artists, Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songwriters, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (SOS) and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (“Kill Bill”). SZA was also crowned the No. 2 Hot 100 artist of the year and No. 5 Hot 100 songwriter of the year, while SOS landed at No. 3 on the year-end Billboard 200 recap.
“We had a lot of really big moments in R&B this year, obviously SZA being one of those,” says Alaysia Sierra, head of R&B at Spotify. “She’s pop, alternative, R&B. She doesn’t want to be put in a box, but she can’t deny her foundation.”
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But SZA wasn’t the only R&B artist earning rave reviews following a prolonged album break. Janelle Monáe returned with The Age of Pleasure, which is Grammy-nominated for album of the year and blends more Afrobeats, reggae, funk and soul sounds compared with her 2017 left-of-center pop album, Dirty Computer. Jorja Smith released the kaleidoscopic Falling or Flying five years after her critically acclaimed debut, Lost & Found. And Kelela dropped the rapturous Raven, the follow-up to her first full-length album, Take Me Apart, from 2017. Taking their time to further develop their sound — regardless of expectations to make a specific type of music — wasn’t just better for their peace of mind but also for their artistry.
“It’s hard making music as a Black woman [because] we don’t get the luxury to try something and have it be something that’s genuinely part of us,” SZA previously told Billboard. “You have to allow people to get to know different parts of it.”
She’s following the trajectory laid out by artists like Beyoncé and Usher, who have R&B roots but later crossed over and found mainstream pop superstardom. Decades into their careers, they are dominating the world’s biggest stages: Beyoncé’s Renaissance world tour grossed $579.8 million, according to Billboard Boxscore — making it the highest-grossing tour by a woman, a Black artist and any American soloist — while Usher will headline the Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show next year in Las Vegas, the home of his two residencies that combined are expected to exceed $100 million in earnings by early December, according to Billboard’s estimate.
SZA is well on her way. She is the most nominated artist at the 2024 Grammys, with SOS up for album of the year and six different songs nominated in various genre categories. More Black women R&B artists are present in the Big Four categories: Victoria Monét is the second-most nominated, with seven nods, while Coco Jones has five.
Sierra believes that R&B artists like Monét and Jones, both of whom are up for best new artist, have the best shot at elevating to pop music’s upper echelon. “Our next superstars are R&B artists,” Sierra says. “When you think about a pop star, they’re going to be making R&B music.”
This story originally appeared in the Dec. 9, 2023, issue of Billboard.
There’s no agreed upon birthdate of the term “rock’n’roll.” Ohio DJ Alan Freed is widely credited with popularizing it in the early 1950s to describe a new upbeat version of R&B music that was gaining traction with young audiences throughout America. Almost 70 years later, in 2017, it was R&B/hip-hop that surpassed rock as the country’s dominant music. And unlike rock, hip-hop does have an agreed upon birthdate, resulting in the current 50th-anniversary celebration.
Despite chatter to the contrary, a large segment of rap sounds very similar to what it was like at 30, 25 or even 15 years old. A clear line can be drawn between Big Daddy Kane or Rakim and the deliveries of Jay-Z, Nas, Drake, Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole. The aesthetics may have changed a bit, as well as the effectiveness of the techniques, but the artistic values shared by the first group of MCs are also shared by the latter.
And yet, until this September, hip-hop had gone an entire calendar year without a song topping the Billboard Hot 100, for the first time since 1993. The concern was understandable, but when it’s considered that the artist who broke the streak isn’t even a traditional rapper — Doja Cat, whose “Paint the Town Red,” the Dionne Warwick-sampling single from her most recent rap-flavored project, Scarlet, did the honors — the genre seems to be just fine. And to be fair, when the genre’s most consistent hit-makers did return — Drake and Cole’s collaboration “First Person Shooter” debuted at No. 1 in October — things more or less went back to normal.
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And that’s what has been so remarkable about this yearlong celebration of hip-hop’s anniversary. The palpable sense of doom and gloom between the innumerable star-studded events — the pop-up performances, special segments on airings of the BET Awards and the MTV Video Music Awards and a multigenerational gathering at Yankee Stadium that capped off the festivities — all just proved that the principles that catapulted the genre into the mainstream are alive and well. Some aspects of the music’s past have even miraculously returned to the forefront — like a strong contingent of women rappers.
For years, fans and critics alike have decried the fact that hip-hop didn’t make enough space for women artists to thrive. It may have taken a few years, but that’s what they’re getting today. As a matter of fact, outside of “The Big Three” (Drake, Cole and Lamar) it’s the women — rappers like GloRilla, Cardi B, Ice Spice, Nicki Minaj and Latto — who seem to be carrying on the tradition the most. They’re the artists rapping as if they’re standing 10 toes down in the middle of a cypher. And their fixation on bars has netted them great success.
Minaj is already one of the most successful artists of her generation and Cardi B can’t seem to make a song that doesn’t turn into a hit, while Latto and GloRilla, two relative newcomers, have both managed to land top 10 hits and sell out their own shows. Even Doja Cat, an already successful pop artist, has released a rap album to critical acclaim and commercial success. To top it off, she took arguably the hottest new female rapper in the game, Ice Spice, on tour with her.
Meanwhile, a new generation of rap stars like Lil Uzi Vert and Playboi Carti have taken the music in a different direction that eschews its traditional form and most resembles a new brand of punk. They don’t focus on crafting 16-bar verses or making sure to stay within the pocket of the beat. Hell, fellow newcomer Yeat doesn’t even use real words at times. But it seems to be working. Uzi’s Jersey club-influenced “Just Wanna Rock” dominated radio, and their Pink Tape album went No. 1 earlier this year. Carti’s last full-length, 2020’s Whole Lotta Red, debuted at No. 1, and Yeat has notched two top 10 entries on the Billboard 200, while hitting No. 1 on the Hot 100 with his recent collaboration with Drake, “IDGAF.” Traditional rap fans may feel that, if this is the future, then hip-hop won’t last another 50 years.
But hip-hop has always been this way — a fearless cultural and artistic lab that works to push itself forward. If anything, it’s the world that has changed the most. “Rap has always come in waves,” says Maurice Slade, SoundCloud’s head of marketing, artist relations. “Similar to a garden, rap needs rain for things to grow. And whenever it gets real rainy — which I think is the time we’re in right now — shortly after that there’s fertile soil and sunshine, and then you see the fruit after.”
According to Slade, the state of the world is responsible for the type of music new hip-hop artists are creating. “The rain right now is post-pandemic — these kids went through some crazy shit with that. You got a recession, you got high interest rates, you got wars going on. The world is f–ked up. When the world is really f–ked up, right after that is when we get some of the best sh-t when it comes to rap and hip-hop.”
This story originally appeared in the Dec. 9, 2023, issue of Billboard.
Megan Thee Stallion and Reneé Rapp are gearing up for the ultimate hot girl crossover.
In a Sunday (Dec. 10) Instagram video shared to Rapp’s official updates account, the “Plan B” rapper — dressed appropriately in all-pink attire — broke the news that a duet between the two women is in the works for the upcoming Mean Girls musical film. “What’s up y’all?” she said. “It’s Megan Thee Stallion, aka the Black Regina George, and I’m excited to introduce my girl to the stage.”
“We have a new song coming out for Mean Girls,” she added in the clip, which Rapp shared to her personal Instagram Story. “That’s right, give it up for the new fantastic plastic, Renee Rapp.”
Meg didn’t give any details about the song’s title or release date, although Mean Girls arrives in theaters Jan. 12, 2024. Rapp stars in the project as queen of the Plastics, Regina George, a role she first played on Broadway in the musical adaptation of Tina Fey’s original 2004 Mean Girls film.
Fey will reprise her role as Ms. Norbury, and Tim Meadows will also return as Principal Duvall. Bebe Wood and Avantika will flesh out the Plastics squad as Gretchen Wieners and Karen Shetty, respectively, and The Summer I Turned Pretty‘s Chris Briney will star as Aaron Samuels. Angourie Rice will take over the role of Cady Heron from Lindsay Lohan, flanked by Auliʻi Cravalho as Janis, and Jaquel Spivey as Damian.
The collab announcement comes just over a month after the full Mean Girls trailer dropped, showing Rapp in her element with a perfect sync placement from Olivia Rodrigo. In November, Rapp also released the deluxe version of her debut album Snow Angel, which debuted at No. 44 on the Billboard 200 chart dated Sept. 2.
As for Ms. Stallion, the three-time Grammy winner is fresh off the arrival of her new single “Cobra,” her first independent release since announcing that she was no longer signed to a record label. Prior to that, she joined Cardi B in releasing “Bongos,” a follow-up to their smash duet “WAP.”