MiddleChild Promotions

Where the underground and mainstream in urban entertainment collide!

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#NowPlaying #MCP2016 Deep Cuts by MCP

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For all of the womanizing and thug posturing that went on in male R&B for 2016, Jacob Latimore snuck in at the tail end of the year to remind us that the R&B loverman still lives on. A little love in the trap goes a long way and putting some genuine emotion into the mix of things gives us hope that the new school of R&B in 2017 may be a little more willing to wear their hearts on their sleeves and have a little more soul back up their rhythm and blues the way Jacob does.

The Keys: Mutual; Risky; Love Drug

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John Legends opens up Darkness and Light by proclaiming that he's "sang what they want" and proceeds to use the rest of his album to sing about the effects of the current political climate, his marriage, his daughter and his fame on his life instead. And having such complimentary yet contrasting themes reflected in both the production (which ebbs and flows accordingly) and in his choice of collaborators (Chance the Rapper; Brittany Howard; Miguel) results in an album that comes closer to the gritty soul of his classic debut than he's been in quite some time. Fine by us.

The Keys: Penthouse Floor feat. Chance the Rapper; Darkness and Light feat. Brittany Howard; Overload feat. Miguel

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Even with the smash success of "Uptown Funk", Bruno Mars' career trajectory certainly wasn't indicating he was going to make one of the best R&B albums of the early 90s in 2016! An homage, tribute and revival of everything great about the late 80s and early 90s R&B, with appropriate New Jack Swing touchstones thrown in for good measure, 24K Magic reminds you of just how great R&B used to be and how much of a musical genius Bruno really is.

The Keys: That’s What I Like; Calling All My Lovelies; Finesse

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It's always energizing to hear music from an artist that you can feel is 100% authentically them in that moment, in that space, at that time. That's what makes Here one of Alicia Keys' most enjoyable albums in years. It isn't an album overly concerned with rehashing past glories, chasing radio play or shape-shifting to find a mainstream spot to fit into. Instead, she just taps into a raw New York state of mind and fuses her R&B, hip-hop and gospel inclinations into a plain, simple and pure package.

The Keys: Pawn It All; She Don’t Really Care_1 Luv; Where Do We Begin Now

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This definitely a year where self-care was essential and we didn't realize how badly we needed a soundtrack for it until we had A Seat at the Table with Solange. Such a blatant stylistic diversion from all of her past music, she spent four years creating and curating an emotionally pitch perfect set of records that dissected, examined and uplifted the black experience in America in 2016. Culturally relevant without ever pandering, becoming overtly political or predictably preachy, it was heartwarming to hear some shit that was unapologetically for us.

The Keys: Weary; Mad feat. Lil’ Wayne; F.U.B.U. feat. The-Dream & BJ the Chicago Kid

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Rare was the perfect title for singer/songwriter PJ's debut album because she was definitely a rare diamond to be found in the rough landscape of 2016 R&B. Not settling for gimmicks and trendy pastiches, PJ infused her brand of R&B with stylistic tropes and elements as vivid as her album cover, running the gamut from trap to funk to alternative to pop to acoustic soul and back with impressive precision for an early twentysomething artist willingly swimming against the modern music currents. If you were searching for a musical breath of fresh air, she said it best herself: "this is what it looks like."

The Keys: Gangster; Always Wanted feat. G-Eazy; Come Down feat. Ty Dolla $ign

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Chapters proved that Yuna was one of R&B's best kept secrets in 2016 and should be as big of a star in America as she is in her home country of Malaysia. With each album, she's progressed further down an R&B-centered path leading up to this album, which may not have any trap bangers or powerhouse anthems but serves up a simple and direct serving of smooth grooves with just enough rhythm to help console the blues.

The Keys: Lanes; Best Love; Used to Love You feat. Jhené Aiko

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What can we say that hasn't been said about Lemonade already? Nothing. So we'll just co-sign the praise and critical acclaim given to Beyonce's magnum opus and say that regardless of how overhyped or overrated anyone might think she and her work to be, the genius of such raw, bold, painful, honest and blunt self-expression coming from an artist of her stature at this point in her career is undeniable.

The Keys: Pray You Catch Me; Don’t Hurt Yourself feat. Jack White; All Night

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TWENTY88 was one of 2016′s most pleasant surprises as Big Sean and Jhené Aiko reminded us how entertaining, clever and creative R&B and Hip-Hop can be when they join forces together. Waxing poetic on the neverending Mars/Venus rollercoaster ride, they also wound up creating one of the most relevant projects for listeners from both musical sides in 2016.

The Keys: On the Way; Talk Show; Memories Faded

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We can only hope that we don’t have to wait another decade for Tweet’s next album because no one soothes the soul quite like her! Charlene is just as smooth, soulful and seamless as her 15-year old debut and she still manages to evoke all of the emotions with each and every lyric and note. The power of this woman and her guitar continues to be something to behold.

The Keys: Addicted; Neva Shouda Left Ya; Got Whatcha Want

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BJ the Chicago Kid’s sophomore album, In My Mind, gave us hope that not all is lost with the new generation of R&B. Forgoing overindulgence in the current “trapsoul” movement, he opted to blend subtle modern R&B and hip-hop influences with classic soul instead. Combining that with his raw vocal talent and lyrics with a genuine message created an album that strikes all the right R&B chords in 2016. Soul food over cheap thrills.

The Keys: Church feat. Chance the Rapper & Buddy; The New Cupid feat. Kendrick Lamar; Falling on My Face

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Mýa’s conscious choice to opt out of the major label game over a decade ago might have diminished her mainstream profile but it hasn’t diminished the quality of her music. Smoove Jones, her seventh independent project released via her own Planet 9 label, is on par with her most popular albums. It showcases her sultry vocals and signature sensual attitude against some fresh, pure R&B production that epitomizes her status as a true tastemaker of music for the grown and sexy. Take her 2017 Grammy nomination for Best R&B Album as a co-sign.

The Keys: Elevator; Phya; Smoove Jones Afta Glow Show

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Rihanna’s beginnings may have indicated that she was on track to being yet another prefabricated flash in the pan but she has spent the last decade continuously refining and redefining her music, always staying on trend with a finger on the pulse of the next wave. Then she made her boldest artistic move to date by defying all expectations with ANTI - a raw, gritty, cohesively chaotic patchwork that sounded nothing quite like what she had done before yet also sounded unapologetically (no pun intended) Rihanna.

The Keys: Kiss It Better; Desperado; Love on the Brain

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Sequels are almost never as good as the original but, best case scenario, they can be as good as the original, which is definitely the case for Sex Love & Pain II. Harnessing the soul and emotion from SLP1 and fusing it with some contemporary sounds and energy, Tank proved once again how criminally underrated a singer, songwriter, producer and overall artist he is!

The Keys: Fuckin’ wit Me; Better for You; Already in Love feat. Shawn Stockman

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True, Monica’s latest album dropped two weeks before 2016 but it definitely held up and held its own in 2017! Her most musically creative project to date, borrowing elements from trap, hip-hop, soul, pop, dance and even country, Code Red was both a personal declaration of R&B’s current “state of emergency” and a personal testament to how multi-dimensional and relevant a genre it still is.

The Keys: Call My Name; Deep; Alone in Your Heart

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Puff Daddy released another new visual from his most recent project MMM. This one is for the Lil Kim, Styles P & King Los’ collaborative joint “Auction”.