Winter is entering its last month, and our latest R&B Season playlist update is here with the best of the best genre-adjacent drops this week to warm you up. One of the standouts we have to mention is Giveon's new single "TWENTIES," which sees him reflect on a failed relationship that he wasted much of his youth in. Thanks to warm bass, orchestral string and choral arrangements, plus some wistful piano here and there, this is a very sultry and tender jam with even some trap-inspired drums here and there to spice things up. Whatever his next record looks like, this record and other singles indicate some real heat on the way.
Moving slightly away from the R&B realm, we also wanted to highlight Rema's icy and hypnotizing new Sade-sampling Afrobeat single, "Baby (Is It A Crime)." His smoky vocals and malleable flows fit very well over this light and slightly eerie instrumental, as a soft piano line and sharp percussion combine with ghostly background vocals to build a hazy atmosphere. This cut also has some string embellishments that up the drama without distracting from the infectiously melodic core.
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HNHH R&B Season Playlist
As far as new R&B albums this week, we'd recommend you dive into Chase Shakur's latest full-length, WONDERLOVE. As the title suggests, it's an exploratory and love-lorn collection of tracks that feel soft-spoken at times, but often incorporate some very dynamic elements to give them a livelier bounce. That X-factor on the particularly fun "LUV IN DA 6" is a killer Smino feature that mixes with Shakur's croons in a very charismatic way. In addition, this track has some creative sample flips and shifting vocal tones that give it that extra sense of modular progression.
Speaking of collaborations, Rory and Leon Thomas recently joined forces for the breakbeat-inspired, jungly, D&B-like "WHO ARE YOU ANYWAY?" The cut actually stars out on a bit more of a somber note thanks to deep and dramatic piano chords, but the drums – plus Thomas' vocals – pick up the emotion quickly and passionately. Finally, we'd be remiss not to mention Lithe's "Rolling Stone." The Melbourne native came through with the darkest and coldest cut this R&B Season update, proving that sometimes less is more.
