Soul Genre Research

Soul:

Soul Music is a popular music genre that originated in the United States in the late 1950's and early 1960's. This type of genre combines elements of African-American gospel music, rhythm and blues and jazz. The popularity of this genre was due to the fact that it was popular to dance and listen to in the United States. During the Civil Rights Movement record labels such as Motown, Atlantic and Stax were influential. Soul also became popular around the world the world, directly influential rock music and the music of Africa. Some characteristics of soul music would be Catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps and extemporaneous body moves, are an important feature of soul music. Other characteristics are a call and response between the lead vocalist and the chorus and an especially tense vocal sound. The style of music also occasionally uses improvisation additions, twirls and auxiliary sounds. In addition, Soul music reflected the African-American identity and it stressed the importance of an African-American culture. The new found African-American consciousness led to new styles of music, which boasted pride in being black. Soul music dominated U.S. R&B charts in the 1960's, and many recordings crossed over into the pop charts in the U.S., Britain and elsewhere. Moreover, over  the years Soul music has changed and developed depending on the popularity of other styles of music. In 1968 some soul artists developed funk music, while other singers and groups developed slicker, more sophisticated, and in some cases more politically conscious varieties. In the early 1970's, soul music has been influenced by psychedelic rock and other genres, leading to psychedelic soul. The United States saw the development of neo soul around 1994. There have been many other sub-genres and styles of music that have influenced a change in soul music, while still keeping with some of the original characteristics. Some examples of popular soul artists from over the years are; Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Prince, David Bowie, John Legend etc.

Adele:

Adele Laurie Blue Adkins was born on May 5th, 1988, in North London, England. Early on in life she developed a passion for music. The type of songs she liked where by artists like Lauryn Hill, Mary J. Blige and Destiny's Child. However her true eye opening moment came when she was 15 and happened to come across a collection of Etta James and Ella Fitzgerald records at a local shop. Adele explained to The Telegraph in a 2008 interview that; "there was no musical heritage in our family." and "Chart music was all I ever knew. So when I listened to the Etta's and the Ella's, it sounds so cheesy, but it was like an awakening. I was like, oh, right, some people have proper longevity and are legends. I was so inspired that as a 15-year-old I was listening to music that had been made in the '40s.". In addition, instead of a normal school Adele's mother enrolled her in the BRIT School for Performing Arts & Technology, which counts Amy Winehouse as an alum. While at school, Adele cut a three-track demo for a class project that was eventually posted on her MySpace page. When executives at XL Recordings heard the tracks, they contacted the singer and, in November 2006, just four months after Adele had graduated school, signed her to a record deal. Since that leap she has only grew and grew with her success, realising album after album, hitting number one's on the charts and winning awards for her amazing music. For her album '21' (released in 2011) the singer won numerous awards in 2012, among them, a record-tying six Grammy Awards, including Album of the year; two Brit Awards, including British Album of the year, and three American Music Awards. With sales of more than 100 million records, Adele is one of the best-selling recording artists in the world.

Pentatonix:
They are a five-member American a cappella group from Arlington, Texas, consisting of vocalists Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, Kristin Maldonado, Avi Kaplan, and Kevin Olusola. Characterized by their pop-style arrangements with vocal harmonies, baselines, riffling, percussion and beat boxing, they are widely known for their covers, mostly of modern pop works or Christmas songs, sometimes in the form of medleys, along with original material. The group first formed in 2011 and subsequently won the third season of NBC's The Sing-Off, receiving $200,000 and a recording contract with Sony Music. Even though Sony's Epic Records dropped the group after The Sing-Off, the group formed its YouTube channel, distributing their music through Madison Gate Records, a label owned by Sony Pictures. with over 13 million subscribers and 2.4 billion views, Pentatonix's YouTube channel is currently the 13th most-subscribed music video channel. The groups video tribute to Daft Punk had received over 240 million views as of mid 2017. Since forming, Pentatonix's have had a lot of success including; Their album PTX, Vol. II, debuted at number 1 on Billboard's Independent Albums and number 10 on the Billboard 200 in 2013. In addition, in 2014, Pentatonix signed with RCA Records, a "flagship" label of Sony Music Entertainment. Pentatonix have won three Grammy Awards: they were the first a capella act to win Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella, doing so in 2015 and won 2016, and Best Country Duo/Group Performance in 2017.

Rag'n'Bone Man:
Rory Charles Graham (born 29th January 1985), better known as Rag'n'Bone Man, is a new found popular English singer-songwriter. He released his first hit single "Human" in 2016, with Columbia Records, and his debut album, also named "Human", was released in February 2017. At the 2017 Brit Awards he was named British Breakthrough Act and also received the Critics' Choice Award. In 2011, Graham begun working with UK hip hop label High Focus, releasing a number of recordings with them such as; a collaboration E.P with MC/Producer Dirty Dike under the name "Put That Soul On Me" (2014). He has had a major break through this past year, including another hit single he has released called "Skin" reaching number 13. Expectations are high for what he has yet to offer.

R&B Genre Research

R&B:

R&B, also know as Contemporary R&B, is a music genre that combines the elements of rhyme and blues, soul, funk, pop, hip hop and dance. Contemporary R&B originated at the end of the disco era, which was around the late 1970's, when Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones added more electronics elements to the black music sound of the time. This created a smoother dance floor-friendly sound. One of the first results of this was 'Off the Wall' (1979), according to Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic, "was a visionary album, that found a way to break disco wide open into a new world where the beat was undeniable, but not the primary focus - it was part of a colourful tapestry of lush ballads and strings, smooth soul and pop, soft rock, and alluring funk". In addition to the new found R&B music Richard j. Ripani wrote that Janet Jackson's 'Control' (1986) was "important to the development of R&B for a number of reasons", as she and her producers, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, "crafted a new sound that fuses the rhythmic elements of funk and disco, along with heavy doses of synthesizers, percussion, sound effects, and rap music sensibility." Moreover, R&B that we know today has changed in many ways along with its time. Many things have been added or changed it order to make R&B music more modern and interesting. An example would be; the use of Auto-Tune and new computerized synths have given R&B a more futuristic feel while still attempting to incorporate many of the genre's common themes such as love and relationships. The evolution of the genre's production and instrumentation have spurred the successes of performers such as Beyoncé, Christna Aguilera, Usher, John Legend, Frank Ocean, Drake, Tianshe, Ne-Yo etc. Todays R&B is far more diverse and incorporates more sonic elements than before, as it expands its appeal and commercial viability. Other examples of things that have changed are how R&B artists will sometimes collab with non-R&B artists, e.g. combining R&B artists with wrappers.

The Weeknd:

Abel Makkonen Tesfae was born on the 16th February 1990. He is known professionally as The Weeknd and is a Canadian singer, songwriter and record producer. In late 2010, Tesfaye anonymously uploaded several songs to YouTube under the name 'The Weeknd'. He released three nine-track mixtapes throughout 2011. The names of those mixtapes are 'House of Balloons', 'Thursday' and 'Echoes of Silence', which were critically acclaimed. In 2012, he also released a compilation album 'Trilogy', thirty tracks consisting of the original mixtapes and three additional songs. It was released under Republic Records and his own label XO. In 2013, he released his debut studio album 'Kiss Land' and 'Live For'. His second album, 'Beauty Behind the Madness', which became his first number one album on the US Billboard 200, including the number-three single 'Earned It' and produced the number one singles 'The Hills' and 'Cant Feel My Face'. In addition to his success, The Weeknd has won two Grammy Awards and nine Juno Awards. In september 2016, the release of the third album 'Starboy' was announced along with the release of the title track single 'Starboy', which subsequently reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The type of genre his music has been described as having conventions of Contemporary R&B, Alternative R&B, R&B/Soul and Pop music. His music shows clear characteristics of R&B music and has been that way since the very beginning.

Ne-yo:

Shaffer Chimere Smith, or more commonly know as Ne-yo, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, dancer and actor. His fame began when many people started noticing his songwriting abilities after he penned his 2004 hit 'Let me Love You' for singer Mario. The success from this in the United States allowed Ne-yo to get a meeting between him and Def Jam's label head, and the signing of a recording contract. He released an album called 'In My Own Words' in 2006. It turned out to be a success and reached number one on the Billboard 200. It is certified platinum in the United States, United Kingdom, Japan and Australia. Ne-yo's first single 'Stay', was released in September 2005. The song made a big impact on the R&B charts. In April 2007, he released his second album 'Because of you'; this was the second the second number one platinum-selling album debuting on the US Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. In addition, the album also won a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Album at the 2008 Grammy Awards. Ne-yo went on to have a lot of success with his musical talents and continued to get nominated and win awards. His upcoming seventh album, entitled Good Man, is expected to be released sometime in September 2017, with 'Another Love Song' released in May 2017 as the albums first single.

Boyz || Men:

They are an American R&B vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. However, before they reached their fame the group would practise in the high school bathrooms, because of their excellent acoustics but lack of any other place to rehearse. This was convenient, considering they all attended the same high school. Boyz || Men are a trio which includes Nathan Morris alongside tenors Wayne Morris and Shawn Stockman; they were also one of the most memorable boy bands from the 1990's. They found fame in the 1990's through Motown Records. During this time they gained international success, which began with the release of the number one single 'End of the Road' in 1992, which reached the top of charts worldwide. In addition, this songs remained number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for 13 weeks. The only person who was able to achieve such a feat before them was Elvis Presley. In 2012, the music industry rewarded Boyz || Men for their remarkable longevity. The group received a star Hollywood Walk of Fame and they remain popular around the world, especially in North America, Europe and Asia. Moreover, Boyz || Men still remain one of the most truly iconic R&B groups in music history. The group redefined popular R&B and continues to create timeless hits that appeal to fans across all generations.

Indie Rock Genre Research

Indie Rock:

Indie Rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United States and the United Kingdom in the 1980's . Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated  with the music they produced and was initially used interchangeably with "alternative rock". As grunge and punk revival bands US, and then Britpop bands in the UK, broke into mainstream in the 1990's, it came to be used to identify those acts that retained an outsider and underground perspective. In the 2000's, as a result of changes in the music industry and the growing importance of the Internet, some indie rock acts began to enjoy commercial success, leading to questions about its meaningfulness as a term. Some prominent indie rock record labels were founded during the 1980's. During the 1990's, Grunge bands broke into mainstream, and the term "alternative' lost its original counter-cultural meaning. By the end of the 1990's indie rock developed subgenera and related styles including lo-fi, noise pop, emotion, slow core, post-rock and math rock. In the 2000's, changes in the music industry and in music technology enabled a new wave of indie rock bands to achieve mainstream success. In the early 2000's, a new group of bands that played a stripped-down and back-to-basics version of guitar rock emerged into the mainstream. The commercial breakthrough from these scenes was led by four bands: The Strokes, The White Stripes, The Hives and The Vines. Emotional also broke into mainstream culture in the early 2000's. By the end of the 2000's the proliferation of indie bands was being referred to as "Indie landfill'.

Imagine Dragons:

Imagine Dragons are an American rock band from Las Vegas, Nevada, consisting of lead vocalist Dan Reynolds, lead guitarist Wayne Sermon, bassist Ben McKee, and drummer Daniel Platzman.  Imagine Dragons music style has been described as mainly being alternative rock, indie rock and pop rock. Some examples of their songs would be; "Believer", "Radioactive", "Demons", "Tip Toe", "Monster" etc. In addition they have won two American Music Awards for Favourite Alternative Artist, a Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance, five Billboard Music Awards, and a World Music Award. In May 2014, the band was nominated for a total of fourteen different Billboard Music Awards, including Top Artist of the Year and a Milestone Award, which recognises innovation and creativity of artists across different genres. A specific example of an award they won was a BMI Pop Award, which are awarded to honour songwriters, composers and music publishers of the year's most performed songs. In 2016 Imagine Dragons were awarded this for their song "I Bet My Life". They have also won this same award three times before, in 2014 and 2015 for their songs "Radioactive", "It's Time" and "Demons". As of January 2017, Imagine Dragons have sold 9 million albums, 27 million singles worldwide and continue with their global success.

Arctic Monkeys:

Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in 2002 in High Green, a suburb of Sheffield. The band consists of Alex Turner (lead vocalist, rhythm/lead guitar), Matt Helders (drums, vocals), Jamie Cook (lead/rhythm guitar) and Nick O'Malley (bass, backing vocals). Former band member Andy Nicholson (bass guitar, backing vocals) left the band in 2006 shortly after their debut album was released. They have released five studio albums: Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006), Favourite Worst Nightmare (2007), Humbug (2009), Suck It and See (2011) and AM (2013), as well as one live album, At the Apollo (2008). Their debut album is the fastest-selling debut album by a band in British chart history, and in 2013, Rolling Stone ranked it the 39th-greatest debut album of all time. The band has won seven Brit Awards - winning both Best British Group and Best British Album three times, and have been nominated for three Grammy Awards. They also won the Mercury Prize in 2006 for their debut album, in addition to receiving nominations in 2007 and 2013. The band have headlined at the Glastonbury Festival twice, in 2007 and again in 2013. Arctic Monkeys were heralded as one of the first bands to come to public attention via the Internet, with commentators suggesting they represented the possibility of a change in the way in which new brands are promoted and marketed.

Bloc Party:

Bloc Party are an English Indie Rock band, currently composed of Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, sampler), Russell Lissack (lead guitar, keyboards), Justin Harris (bass guitar, keyboards, saxophones, backing vocals) and Louise Bartle (drums, percussion). Former members Matt Tong and Gordon Moakes left the band in 2013 and 2015 respectively. Their brand of music, whilst rooted in rock, retains elements of other genres such as electronica and house music. The band was formed at the 1999 Reading Festival by Okereke and Lissack. They went through a variety of names before settling on Bloc Party in 2003. Moakes joined the band after answering an advert in NME magazine, while Tong was picked via an audition. Bloc Party got their break by giving BBC Radio 1 DJ Steve Lamacq and Franz Ferdinand's lead singer, Alex Kapranos, a copy of their demo "She's Hearing Voices". In February 2005, the band released their debut album Silent Alarm. It was critically acclaimed and was named Indie Album of the Year at the 2006 PLUG Awards and NME Album of the year which both honour indie music. That year, the record was also certified platinum in Britain. The band built on this success in 2007 with the release of their second studio album, A Weekend in the City, which reached a peak of number two in the UK Albums Chart and number twelve in the Billboard 200. In August 2008, Bloc Party released their third studio record, Intimacy which entered the UK Albums Chart at number eight and number eighteen on the Billboard 200. The band fifth studio album, Hymns, the first to involve Harris and Bartle, was released on 29th January 2016. Bloc Party have sold over 3 million albums worldwide.