R&B's past and present came together to make for some outstanding records in 2018. Up and comers like Jorja Smith, serpentwithfeet, and Simulator Jones stood strong alongside genre stalwarts Bettye LaVette, Meshell Ndegeocello, and Toni Braxton.
Anderson .Paak
Oxnard
The singer/rapper's third album and Aftermath debut is a little deeper and richer than 2016's Grammy-nominated Malibu.
Bettye LaVette
Things Have Changed
The soul diva interprets 12 songs from the Bob Dylan songbook, in an inspired matching of vocalist and material.
Blood Orange
Negro Swan
Dev Hynes' most touching LP mixes and bounds between bedsit post-punk, desolate dream pop, chillwave-coated quiet storm, and low-profile hip-hop soul.
Chris Dave / Chris Dave and the Drumhedz
Chris Dave and the Drumhedz
The drummer and composer's fiery first album as a leader, featuring lead turns from Bilal, Tweet, Phonte, and Anderson Paak.
Georgia Anne Muldrow
Overload
Varied and generous left-of-center R&B from the singer, songwriter, and producer, her first proper album in three years.
Janelle Monáe
Dirty Computer
Artful resistance and pop music aren't mutually exclusive on the multihyphenate's first album in five years.
Jorja Smith
Lost & Found
Assured hip-hop soul from the winner of the 2018 Brit Award for Critics' Choice.
José James
Lean on Me
The singer pays tribute to living soul legend Bill Withers with a set that tactfully sways between faithful and imaginative.
Kadhja Bonet
Childqueen
Enchanting and exceptional folk-soul from the multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and producer, only her second release.
Kandace Springs
Indigo
A more colorful second album from the Blue Note singer, songwriter, and pianist, featuring extensive input from drummer and producer Karriem Riggins.
Leon Bridges
Good Thing
The singer adeptly builds off and deviates from the early-'60s foundation of his Grammy-nominated debut.
Mariah Carey
Caution
A measured and understated collection of slow and midtempo R&B ballads with support from Blood Orange, Slick Rick, and Timbaland.
Marsha Ambrosius
Nyla
The ex-Floetry songstress' third solo album covers as much emotional ground as the first two, despite newly wedded bliss and new motherhood.
Meshell Ndegeocello
Ventriloquism
An all-covers set that creatively reshapes R&B hits and deep classics of the '80s and early '90s.
Prophet
Wanna Be Your Man
After lingering in obscurity for decades, this alien funkmaster picks up right where he left of on his second album.
Raheem DeVaughn
Decade of a Love King
Album six from the contemporary soul artist is strictly slow jams and couples anthems.
serpentwithfeet
Soil
A passionate, complex debut album that unites gospel, classical, R&B, and avant-garde on songs that glow like religious icons.
Starchild & the New Romantic
Language
Dev Hynes and Solange associate Bryndon Cook makes his Princely full-length debut on Ghostly International.
Stimulator Jones
Exotic Worlds and Masterful Treasures
The proper debut album from Sam Lunsford resembles spiffed-up late-'80s/early-'90s R&B demos designed for twilight listening.
The Carters
Everything Is Love
Hand in hand, hip-hop's reigning couple triumph over marital strife with confidence and style.
The Internet
Hive Mind
The R&B band follows their Grammy-nominated third album with a comforting set of loose dance grooves and languid ballads.
The Midnight Hour / Ali Shaheed Muhammad / Adrian Younge
The Midnight Hour
Double shot of vivid orchestral soul and jazz from Adrian Younge, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and a cast including Raphael Saadiq and Marsha Ambrosius.
Tinashe
Joyride
Smooth, multi-dimensional return from the pop-R&B singer following myriad snags and delays.
Tirzah
Devotion
Shifting from her early dance leanings to woozy R&B, the singer/songwriter's first album captures love's complexity with disarming originality.
Toni Braxton
Sex & Cigarettes
Brief, frank, and tightly concentrated set of breakup material from the recent Soul Train Legend Award winner.
