Jonathan Butler - Lies vs Beyonce - Love On Top

Classic RnB from 1987 - 'Lies' from Jonathan Butler - this song still sounds good, a testament to Butler's smooth jazzy vocals and musical talent.  Searched for this song when I was listening to one of wife's favourite Beyonce songs off B's latest album '4'  - 'Love On Top'.  I was like "Hey Lols, this song sounds familiar" and well, have a listen and judge for yourself :-)  Either way, both songs are the bomb - Beyonce has done her own thing on 'Love On Top', dazzling with her vocal range and incorporating that 80s feel that makes you remember the 'good old days' hehe..

Anyways, couldn't find the official clip for 'Love On Top' but found an alternative (complete with lyrics if you wanna learn it to sing in the shower) - gotta say again this song is TIGHT esp chorus and key changes:

enjoy and leave a comment if you like/hate the songs :-)

Mu

Love You Like I Did - 112 - Cover by MrMisterMu

Hey all, this is me - MrMisterMu - jamming a cover called 'Love You Like I Did' by 112 ...hope you all like it - check out my new blog while you're at it for more of my other videos: http://www.rnbforever.com or my channel @ www.youtube.com/mrmistermu - leave a comment below to let me know what you think, appreciate critique, support etc - thanks!  Mu :-)

Janet Jackson - 'Lets Wait Awhile' and 'Escapade'

I remember back in the day, every second girl in Aranui wanted to be Janet Jackson - well here's an early hit for you that just popped into my head while on the bus to work this morning - 'Lets Wait Awhile'.  The message in this song is obviously to take things slow...the message seems so outdated these days, given the mainstream media's focus on sex, drugs and partying - pretty surprising how things can change in a couple of decades right? LOL

In any case, as an artist, Janet Jackson has weathered the changes in the music industry over time.  Initially regarded as a wholesome artist when she first entered the music scene, Janet Jackson, like her brother Michael, has experimented and succeeded with more seccular music and videos.  Her videos are a constant source of popularity and recognition, largely due in part to Jackson's featured dance routines.

Check out this video of Janet Jackson rocking it out on 'Escapade' (BTW - 'Escapade' is such a cool name for a song....):

Whats your favourite Janet Jackson song? Leave me a comment below to have your say :-)

Much love,

Mu

R Kelly - She's Got That Vibe & Bump N Grind - The King Of R & B At His Best

These two songs have to be right there in being rated the greatest R&B jams of the 90s - and from none other than the widely regarded 'King of R&B',  R Kelly.  Granted, the videos themselves aren't that great but the music from this guy is good!  I still remember trying to lip sync to 'She's Got That Vibe' and doing a whole dance routine back in high school - ah, to be young again! LOL

Born Robert Sylvester Kelly in 1967, R Kelly is an rnb artists who has churned out the hits for over a decade since the early 1990s, including 'Ignition' and  'I Believe I Can Fly', the latter earning him three Grammy awards in 1998.   R Kelly is one of those artists who can mix it up - he can hit you hard with a club hit to make you dance (eg. 'She's Got That Vibe') or smooth things out with a slow jam (eg. 'Bump n Grind').  His list of hits also feature collaborations with many of today's RnB popular singers and artists, a sign of his popularity and swagger in the RnB music industry.

Although he has enjoyed many successful albums and hit songs, R Kelly has also been dogged by controversy and featured in various media headlines.  You can read more about R Kelly highs and lows here on Wikipedia.

For the rest of us though, its probably best to remember R Kelly for what he does best (ie making music :-)...so kick back and relax with that special someone and enjoy these sounds from the King of R & B:

RnB Singers - Jodeci - 'Lately' (K-Ci and JoJo)

As a singer, its hard to follow in the footsteps of someone like Stevie Wonder, who originally wrote the song in the video entitled Lately.  However, if you're blessed rnb singers like brothers K-Ci and JoJo Hailey from rnb band Jodeci, singing is the least of your worries.

As part of the group Jodeci, K-Ci and JoJo were the lead vocalists for hit rnb songs such as 'Forever My Lady', 'Cry For You' and of course, 'Love You 4 Life'.  Instead of the common 'clean cut' images of rnb groups at the time (such as Boyz II Men), Jodeci had a 'bad boy' image about them - often teaming up with hip hop artists to deliver wild and sex themed songs.  Although Jodeci later split, K-Ci and JoJo continued as a successful rnb singing duo, performing chart hits such as 'All My Life', 'Crazy' and 'Tell Me Its Real'.

For more on rnb singers K-Ci and JoJo, check out wikipedia here

For the rest of you, here is a classic clip of rnb singers K-Ci and JoJo singing 'All My Life':

Jamie Foxx - Wish You Were Here - If You've Ever Lost Somebody, A Song For You

This performance by Jamie Foxx is pretty moving...I thought I'd add it to my blog, with all the earthquakes and loss of loved ones here in Christchurch - recent happenings have made me think a lot about my own mortality and about how I'll miss my sons dearly when my time comes - a bit morbid I know but as they say, if there's one thing you can count on in this life, its death.

I've been talking with my eldest son a bit about death - I feel that its better to prepare him for these sorts of things - I don't want him to ever wonder how I felt about him if I died tomorrow you know?   The main thing we talk about is how we will miss each other but how we have to keep on living, in the hope that we will meet again after death.

I hope this song moves you as well - to have that conversation with your loved ones who are still here or to simply remember your loved ones who have passed on.

And here's another cool clip I found of Jamie Foxx, singing 'Heaven':

Bruno Mars - 'The Lazy Song' - Another Song My Two Year Old Son Loves!

My two year old loves this song, and grooves along with the monkeys in the video too!  As many of you know, this song is simply known as 'The Lazy Song', performed by Pop/Rnb sensation, Bruno Mars.  I like Mars' style, he has a unique style about him and his music.  It's also quite clear that he's a good live performer - I've seen him perform live on the Graham Norton show - Mars (and the show) was awesome!

A bit about Bruno Mars:

Born Peter Gene Hernandez, Bruno Mars is a successful singer/songwriter, having co-written hit songs such as "Nothing On You" by B.O.B and "Billionaire" by Travis McCoy.  As well as writing songs for other artists, Mars has enjoyed mainstream success with his own hit singles, such as 'Grenade' and 'Just The Way You Are'.  You can read more about Bruno Mars on Wikipedia here

And I've just found that performance on the Graham Norton show!  Check out the video below of Bruno Mars singing his hit song 'Grenade':

Jamoa Jam - 'Knowing You So Long' - In Memory of Aunty Sieni Paea-Fidow

Thought I'd dedicate this post to my Aunty Sieni who passed away last week - 'Knowing You So Long' - a classic Pacific R & B song by well known artists Jamoa Jam.  Sang backup vocals for this song at her funeral service on Monday with my rellies Daniel and Anaru Fidow.  It was a crazy day as a magnitude 6.3 earthquake decided to strike Christchurch right in the middle of the service!  I suppose that was how she wanted to go out - with a shake, rattle and roll!

Anyways Aunty, manuia le malaga - peace be the journey to Heaven <3

J Williams feat. Scribe - 'You Got Me' - Domestic Violence In The Public Eye Again...

My son loves this song - 'You Got Me' by J Williams (feat Scribe) and to be honest, its not hard to see why.  Williams has the look, the voice and the dance moves - in essence, he is the total R & B package, and his star seemed to be on the rise.  Recently however, J Williams has been accused of beating his former girlfriend, and has been publicly ousted in the media as a result of the allegations.  

It is a story that we are all too familiar with.  It only seems like yesterday that R & B sensation Chris Brown was on Oprah, speaking about his domestic violence incident/s involving fellow pop star Rihanna.  

I'm not saying that J Williams is innocent or guilty (heaven forbid - I might even be related somehow :-). I just hope that he can make it through this tough situation and realise that it will pass - yes, just like it is passing now for Chris Brown - so we can all enjoy some more of that R & B talent that he is blessed with...

For all you J Williams lovers out there, here's a another cool clip - this one is a duet with his older sister Lavina who I reckon is one of the most madly talented female singers in NZ (yes from way back in Ma-V-Elle!):

Black Men United - 'U Will Know' - Best R & B Collaboration EVER

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R & B music needs more collaborations like this one!  'U Will Know' was released in 1994 as a track on the movie 'Jason's Lyric'.

It brought together a smattering of popular R & B, Hip Hop and Soul Music artists including:

Aaron Hall After 7 Al B. Sure! Boyz II Men Brian McKnight Christopher Williams D'Angelo (song writer) Damion Hall El DeBarge Gerald LeVert H-Town Intro Joe Keith Sweat Lenny Kravitz (guitar) Lil' Joe Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (DRS) Portrait R. Kelly Silk Sovory Stokley Williams lead singer of Mint Condition Tevin Campbell Tony! Toni! Toné! (Raphael Saadiq on gutair) Usher Going over the list, I thought to myself, wow that was a crazy list of who's who in R & B at the time.  To come up with a great sounding song as well was awesome - all the solos compliment the song well.  But I also thought to myself, hey, who else could have been included to make this collaboration even better? Well maybe the following: - Jodeci (or just K-Ci & Jo-Jo) - Shai - Hi Five - Michael Jackson (or even Jackson 5) - Blackstreet - New Edition - ABC - Bel Biv Devoe - Prince Just to name a few - but hey, there's no mistaking the song is the bomb right?  Let me know if you can think of any other early-mid 90s R & B artists who might have made the cut :-)

New YouTube Music - Fooling Around by MrMisterMu - www.rnbforever.com

Check this out - this is the video from yours truly, MrMisterMu :-)  As per the video, 'Fooling Around' is an original track written roughly 10 years ago (back in the late 1990s).  Originally written for my old band 'Que' (or 'Unique' as we were known back in those days), 'Fooling Around' is a song about a bitter guy who gets cheated on and pretty much doesn't trust girls anymore...no, the song isn't written from past experience, just a vivid imagination I guess :-)

Anyways, check out the vid and feel free to leave a comment to let me know what you think...

Deborah Cox feat RL (from Next) - 'We Can't Be Friends' - Best RnB Duet Ever?

Released in 1999, 'We Can't Be Friends' features Arista Record label stars Deborah Cox and RL.  Cox, who has often been described as Canada's greatest RnB artist (although, that would depend on whether Justin Bieber is counted as RnB :-)), started out in the music industry as a backing vocalist for Celine Dion, before moving to the US, where she was signed up to Arista Records.

RL is probably best known for his work with RnB group 'Next' - who also were signed to Arista Records in the mid-late 90s.  Next are best known for their RnB club hits, 'Too Close' and 'Wifey'.

In any case, I don't know too many duets better than this one.  If you can think of one, hit us back with a comment to let us know :-)

Tank - I Can't Make You Love Me - Awesome RnB Rendition Of A Legendary Song

This video was recommended by my brother, self proclaimed 'RnB Guru' Mr Lee Fidow - so this post is dedicated out to you bro :-)

The music video above features Grammy nominated US RnB singer/songwriter Tank singing a cover of Bonnie Raitt's hit, 'I Can't Make You Love Me'.  Originally written by Mike Reid and Allen Shamblin, 'I Can't Make You Love Me' has been voted as one of the top 500 songs of all time, originally recorded by legendary rock/blues artist Bonnie Raitt.

Here, Tank takes the song to a new level - and I gotta say, his singing of the first verse is smooth like peanut butter :-)  The timbre of Tank's voice kind of reminds me of Jamie Foxx'...but Tank's riffs (or frillys as my bro puts them) sets his voice apart - his frills at the end of the song are purrty - probably could've been a better video but hey - its the music we're about here right lol....

Read up more on Tank here on Wikipedia and don't forget to leave a comment about what you think about Tank.

Committed - Season 2 Winners of 'The Sing Off' US Talent Show - Check Them Out!

Its commonly known that a lot of Rhythm & Blues music artists started out in the Gospel music scene, whether it be singing or playing instruments at church.  Its probably what makes many Gospel/R&B artists so talented - performing on a frequent basis from childhood.

Today's post highlights a six-part acapella harmony group known simply as 'Committed', who started out with Gospel roots but have dabbled in some R&B material as part of their involvement in the second season of US series, 'The Sing Off', which they won.

These guys absolutely slayed the competition - I was impressed when watching the video above where they are singing Al Green's 'Lets Stay Together', which showcases not only their 'buttery' blending ability, but their talent to each sing well individually.

You can find out more about Committed on their website

In the meantime, check out another of their vids here (this one is my personal favourite and is a medley of songs by Usher!):

Ahmir - The Wedding Song - Yes, Ahmir Are The Number 1 R&B Group on YouTube!

Now that is one tag any R&B group can be proud of - Number 1 R&B group on YouTube!  I can hear what you're thinking - are they really that good?  The answer is yes!!

Ahmir not only have fantastic vocals, but also have a unique persona to their group - their music is often directed at helping to those who are less fortunate, such as the earthquake victims in Haiti.

I've chosen this particular video clip of Ahmir singing one of their original songs 'The Wedding Song' - as most of their other clips on YouTube are covers, which you can check out for yourself :-)

You can read more about Ahmir here on their website: www.ahrmusic.com

Do you like Ahmir or have any other information on them?  Leave us a comment below:

Aaradhna - Down Time - Home Grown Female RnB Star

This is an awesome song from New Zealand female singer-songwriter Aaradhna called "Down Time".  I learned to play this song on guitar so its sort of the only song I can 'kind of' sing...well, try to sing :-)

A bit about Aaradhna - she is the oldest of five children and is a New Zealand artist of both Samoan and Indian descent.  Blessed with an amazing voice and an ability to write songs (she began writing songs at age 11!), Aaradhna is one of New Zealand's most well known RnB artists, signed to Dawn Raid Entertainment.

You can read more about Aaradhna here on Wikipedia

 

Ne-Yo: A Conversation with Ne-Yo (Interview with Lee Hawkins)

This is such a cool 'Up, Close and Personal' interview with RnB superstar Ne-Yo.  In this interview, Ne-Yo talks about his musical influences.  Check it out below:


I love how he talks about how he used to 'hate listening to his own voice' - hard to believe right?
Ne-Yo is so crazy talented, as I've blogged before - he not only sings but is known in the industry for his abilities in the songwriting department.  In this interview, we even hear about how the late, great Michael Jackson came to Ne-Yo for material.

Leave a comment to let us know what you think about the interview (and what you think about a Ne-Yo cartoon that is in the pipelines...)

Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men - One Sweet Day - Live at Madison Square Garden 1995

So what do you get if you combine one of the greatest vocal divas of her generation (ie. Mariah Carey) with the most successful RnB group of all time (ie. Boyz II Men)?

The result is 'One Sweet Day' - the longest running number one single in US chart history.  The single was penned by Walter Afanasieff, Carey and the four members of Boyz II Men - brothers Wanya and Nathan Morris, Shawn Stockman and Michael McCary.

The video above is from way back in 1995, thats over 15 years ago! Mariah and Boyz II Men look so young back then - Mariah especially looks so more innocent back then, as we all were I suppose (thats if you were born back then) :-)  ANYWAYS, I picked this clip out because of the style of clothing that Boyz II Men wore in the video - the Nehru collar shirts underneath the vests - I thought that was so cool back in the days...

Find out more about Mariah Carey here on Wikipedia or Boyz II Men on Wikipedia

Let me know if you have any requests for artists you'd like to see here on www.rnbforever.com by leaving a comment below :-)

Adeaze - "Got My Girl For Life" - NZ RnB At Its Best

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be able to sing and play guitar really, really well?  Well, wonder no more - check out this clip from NZ R'n'B sensation 'Adeaze' with their 2010 release 'Got My Girl For Life':

These two brothers - Naina and Vii Tupai brought New Zealand R&B to the fore with the release of their 2004 album 'Always and For Real'.

To find out more, read about Adeaze on Wikipedia.

Do you have a favourite Adeaze song or have you seen Adeaze live?  Leave your comments on your experience below:

Blackstreet - Don't Leave Me - Live on MTV Unplugged (Wish I Still Had This On DVD!)

Man, this song brings back memories - 'Don't Leave Me' was a single released from Blackstreet's breakthrough album 'Another Level'.  For me, this was probably one of the most played RnB albums of the late 1990s - and was constantly requested on the jukebox whenever me and my boys hit Dennys Restaurant on a Friday night lol...

As with a lot of groups/bands, Blackstreet went through a few personnel changes.   However, 'Another Level' features what I believe to be their best lineup - Teddy Riley, Chauncey Hannibal, Mark Middleton and Eric Williams.

Read more about Blackstreet here on Wikipedia.

Let us know what your favourite Blackstreet songs/videos are by leaving a comment below.