Best of R'n'B Playlist

So I'm currently trying to make better use of the playlist function on iTunes, as usually I just end up making On The Go lists with like two songs that I play on repeat. The first playlist I've been working on is my Best of R'n'B playlist. I'm not going to say that this is the quintessential R'n'B playlist, but I like to think it's pretty good. Of course, choosing ten songs out of the millions of great ones out there is not easy, but if you're looking for a place to start, these ten are pretty damn good.

1. I Want You | Cee Lo Green

This is a great song! In fact, this whole album is pretty special, definitely worth a listen. The only thing I don't like about this song is the line 'she's smart but she's still sexy'. Still. Can a woman not be both? I sing it as and instead.

2. Pretty Wings | Maxwell

I only really got into Maxwell recently, and still haven't listened to much of his stuff, but if it's all like this then I know I'm gonna love him. His cover of This Woman's Work is great, as is this cover of Pretty Wings (pretty sure all 50,000 views are me).

3. Untitled (How Does It Feel) | D'Angelo

This is such a good song, and ... the video helps. What's not to love, beautiful song, beautiful man, beautiful video. I also love the blunt ending of this song.

4. Adorn | Miguel

This is one of the most recent songs on my list, it was between this and Climax by Usher. I chose this though because it's a really fun song to sing (expect a cover).

5. Sexy Cinderella | Lynden David Hall

I only discovered this song, and Lynden himself, after I bought The Trevor Nelson Collection Vol. 2. This is a must have album for anyone who likes R'n'B, Hip Hop and funk, it spans several decades of fantastic music. Lynden David Hall was a British singer, described as Britain's answer to D'Angelo, but unfortunately he died, well before his time, in 2006. It's such a shame that this incredible artist never got the success he deserved. If you like this song make sure to check out his other work, I really rate his first album Medicine 4 My Pain, especially the title track.

6. Rocket | Beyonce

Dayuuuuuuuum, this song is so good. This is some real baby-makin music. It was tough to choose between this and Dance For You for this playlist, but I think Rocket just wins out. I think I'll have to do a Top Ten Beyonce playlist at some point.

7. Heaven | John Legend

Oh I love John Legend. I definitely prefer his earlier music to his more current work, but that's just me. This song is just great, especially the live versions (invest in the Live From Philadelphia album, So High on that is inSANE).

8. Pink and Blue | Andre 3000

Urgh, this whole album is fantastic, actually there's very little that Andre 3000 is involved in that I don't love.  A Day In The Life of Benjamin Andre is genius.

9. Confessions | Usher

This album was the first I ever bought with my own money. I used to listen to it all the time on my walkman, so I know all the words to all the songs. There's three different Confessions songs on the album, Confessions, Confessions (Interlude) and Confessions Part 2. I like them all, and the video kind of incorporates all of them.

10. Human Nature | Michael Jackson

I'm a huge Michael Jackson fan, who isn't? He practically invented music. Anyway this is a particularly slow-ish jam, that is just a perfect piece of music. I can also play this on the bass <3.

I know that some of these may not scream R'n'B, but I feel like the definition changes so frequently it's hard to pin it down. The genre is expected to encompass slow jams like Untitled, to more upbeat stuff like I Want You, and nowadays it seems to just be attributed to any music produced by an artist of colour. I've tried to incorporate everything that I think R'n'B music is about, but you could just as easily say that there is too little R'n'B in this playlist and that there isn't enough. Where's Prince for example? (This is another story, I think I'll do a whole other playlist for Prince. He's genre spanning, much like Andre 3000, or most of the artists in this playlist to be frank). Anyway, without writing myself out of writing this post, I hope you like the music!