'90s R&B

In the '90s, R&B was like a funky genie let out of the bottle, free to move in any direction it desired, and a new generation of soul men and women took it all over the place. Babyface protégé Toni Braxton emerged as an R&B diva to be reckoned with, displaying both some powerful pipes and a knack for making sorrow sound sexy on "Un-Break My Heart." When most of '80s boy band New Edition branched off into Bell Biv Devoe, the all-grown-up trio made a massive impact with the percolating "Poison," helping put New Jack Swing on the map. Even R&B vets were busy discovering new musical routes in the '90s — Michael Jackson teamed up with R. Kelly for "You Are Not Alone," and Guns N' Roses guitar-slinger Slash put some rock 'n' roll bite into the worldwide #1 smash "Black or White." In Next Steps, hear '90s trails being blazed right before your ears, from sassy girl groups to sultry neo soul.

Sometimes it's easy to forget that so many of the primary ingredients we take for granted in today's R&B first became part of the mix in the '90s. It's hard to imagine a world without the sweaty, sexy sound of R. Kelly-style soul, but it was in 1994 that the writer/producer/singer sizzled his way to the top of the charts with "Bump N' Grind," the first of his many blockbuster singles. En Vogue not only paved the way for soul-strutting ladies like Destiny's Child, but they also pioneered the use of hard-rock riffs on stone-cold R&B tracks with "Free Your Mind," and when D'Angelo gave the organic feel of '70s soul a modern twist on "Lady," he led the charge for a whole legion of neo-soul stars to follow. Your temperature is sure to rise when '90s R&B artists work up some steamy sounds in Deep Cuts.

Sure, R&B artists have always sung about the magic that happens between the sheets, but in the '90s they took it to a whole new level. New Edition graduate Johnny Gill started his solo career in the '80s, but it was in 1990 that his New Jack smash "Rub You the Right Way" really put him — and his under-the-covers agenda — on the map. When Gill joined forces with Gerald Levert and Keith Sweat in supergroup LSG, that power to please was multiplied by three on "My Body," a steamy 1997 smash whose lusty lyrics left little to the imagination. And it was Sweat who discovered Atlanta vocal group Silk, five young men who were just as upfront about their desires on the '93 #1 single "Freak Me."

The '90s was the decade when R&B opened up the window on a whole new world of possibilities, blending with elements of hip-hop, rock, and pop, and branching out in ways no one could've predicted, from the jolt and jump of New Jack Swing acts like Bell Biv Devoe to the drum n' bass-laced sounds of Ivana Santilli and beyond. It was also the era when R&B really ascended to not just join, but also dominate the mainstream of North American music. So how can you zero in on the all the crucial cuts from this vital era in R&B history? Simple — just tap into the towering stack of '90s R&B Essentials we've assembled for you right here, encompassing everything from His Royal Purpleness himself, Prince, to soul explorer Maxwell, R&B empress Erykah Badu and our very own Deborah Cox.