rnb
R&B
Rhythm 'n' Blues (R&B)
- Era
- 1945–present
- Origin
- Urban North & South USA
- Student playlists
- None yet
About this supergenre
Originally a post-war Billboard label for Black popular music; then soul, then contemporary R&B. Vocal-forward, groove-anchored — the throughline between blues, gospel, and almost every modern pop vocal.
Canonical reference: musicmap.info / rnb
Inside rhythm 'n' blues (r&b) · 14 subgenre s on a mini-timeline
Each subgenre at its emergence year, oldest at top. This is what students curate playlists for — the granular level. Click any subgenre chip from the main map and you land on its row here.
- 1950s
- 1960s
- 1970s
- 1980s
- 1990s
- 2000s
- 2010s
- 2020s
- 2030s
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Doo-Wop
1950
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Soul (Motown / Stax)
1959
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Funk
1967
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Philly Soul
1968
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Disco
1973
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Go-Go
1976
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Quiet Storm
1976
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New Jack Swing
1987
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Contemporary R&B
1990
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Hip-Hop Soul
1991
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Neo-Soul
1994
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Alternative R&B
2010
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Future Soul
2015
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Afrobeats Crossover
2015
Connective tissue · 9 link s
How rhythm 'n' blues (r&b) relates to the rest of the map. Click any genre to follow the line.
Primary lineage
Direct parents and direct children — the main line.
Other influences
Cousin genres and indirect influences that shaped this supergenre.
Backlash / anti
Reactions against, not descents from — the genres this one defined itself against.
Student curations
No playlists for rhythm 'n' blues (r&b) yet.
This supergenre is waiting for a curator. If you're in MUSA 266 or MUSA 220 and this is your assignment, build a 5–10 track YouTube playlist and submit it through the course form.