The Floacist

After vacating her spot as one-half of the R&B duo Floetry in 2007, Natalie Stewart — aka the Floacist — made a handful of guest appearances on recordings by other musicians, including Brian Culbertson's XII. She signed as a solo artist to the Shanachie label, who released her debut album, Floetic Soul, in November 2010. Dominated by seductive ballads featuring Stewart’s trademark breathy whispers, she benefited from collaborations with Musiq Soulchild, Raheem DeVaughn, and Lalah Hathaway, along with production input from J.R. Hutson, Know-I, and Chris “Big Dog” Davis.