Upcoming Albums For R&B Lovers

It’s no surprise that R&B and soul is a fast changing, fast evolving genre that sees it's contributors constantly releasing new tracks and records that are defining the sound of our age and changing our playlists. 2024 was no doubt yet another riveting year in R&B. And with this summer having come to an end and the colder months starting to settle in, R&B listeners and lovers will want to know what's coming to their ears this autumn, eager for a new set of tracks to serve as a playlist to their everyday lives. 

Mary J Blige - Gratitude 

Mary J Blige, The Queen of Hip-Hop Soul, is releasing her fifteenth studio album Gratitude on November 15th, which will be followed by her ‘For My Fans Tour’, which will see the singer and actress supported by R&B titans Ne-Yo and Mario. Of the title, the singer says  "It's called Gratitude because that’s where I am,” she said. “Look at my life right now, I’m in a constant state of gratitude. I feel good, I have jobs and opportunities, I’m healthy, my family’s healthy, I got people around that care and love me and I have amazing fans". As well as ‘Gone Forever’ featuring Remy Ma and DJ Khaled, appearing on the project, her latest single ‘Breathing’ featuring Fabolous will also make an appearance on the record.

The  ‘Good Morning Gorgeous’ singer has displayed true longevity during her career, and fifteen project releases later, she is still contributing to r&b as one of its true masters. As winter approaches, Mary J Blige’s album will serve as a refresher to her longtime fans, the true r&b lovers.  

Miguel - VISCERA 

Miguel’s 2023 saw his 2011 single ‘Sure Thing’ go viral on TikTok, leading to a surge in his streams, although his 20 year span as a notable artist has already shown that his artistry can stand the test of time. In the midst of the song’s revival, the singer-songwriter released his new single ‘Give It To Me’ in April,  a dark and cosmical track that sees the singer pining for love, followed by ‘Number 9’, featuring Lil Yachty, in August, a song about renewal and and new awakening. 

VISCERA, his fifth studio album sees the San Pedro-bred singer showing sides of his artistry that he previously hasn’t displayed before. “I think this album is very much a metamorphosis”, he says of the upcoming project. Each song on this record represents the care, safety, and intimacy that my growth requires.

Miguel is a man venturing through life as an ever-evolving individual, willing to confront the uncomfortable procedurally, and VISCERA, just as his previous work, will prove as nothing but an addition to the work of a man who understands that to venture through life means to be ever evolving. 

FLO - ACCESS ALL AREAS 

The British R&B girl group consisting of Jorja Douglas, Stella Quaresma, and Renée Downer – will drop their highly-anticipated project on November 15th via Island Records. 2023 saw the young songstresses become the first group to ever win both the BRIT’s Rising Star Award and the BBC Sound Poll in the same year. Continuing into 2024 with consistency and stamina, the London-based girl group have had a year loaded with activity, their debut album announcement serving as the perseverance of their hard work breaking into the industry. Executively produced by MNEK, ACCESS ALL AREAS  follows his work with the trio on their 2022 debut EP The Lead, as well as 2023’s 3 of Us.

The album announcement followed a sleek run of of singles that have been released this year, including ‘Walk like This’,  ‘Caught Up’-  a ‘friendly reminder’ from the girls that they are not to be “played with”  and ‘Bending My Rules’-  a Darhyl “DJ” Camper produced song that shows a softer side of FLO. “It shows our vulnerability and it speaks to our current relationships with our boyfriends. It's hard to be a baddie and a lover girl, but sometimes you just have to Bend Your Rules’”  Speaking about the upcoming record, FLO says: “Access All Areas is a labour of love. To us it represents our growth and dedication to making girl group history, to making a project we are truly proud to call our debut album.”  

Watch the live version of 'Bending My Rules' below:

Jorja Smith -  Falling or Flying (Deluxe) 

Falling or Flying is the sophomore album of British singer songwriter Jorja Smith, which was released on September 29th, 2023. On her second album, the Walsall-raised star found her rhythm in her enlarged audible  palette, collaborating with DAMEDAME, an emerging production duo who are also friends of Smith’s. Throughout the 16-track project, the trio soars with ideas and freedom, landing at a place of sonical liberty at the end of the record, reflecting the peace and satisfaction that the singer-songwriter  has found in her personal life after moving back to her hometown and growing into a new confidence that has evolved since her debut album, Lost and Found.  

Just over a year later, the Midlands based artist is set to release the deluxe version of Falling or Flying, unveiling five new tracks, alongside three remixes, ‘Backwards’, featuring Dirty Banger, and two remixes of her addictive garage jam ‘Little Things’ - one featuring Gypsy Woman, and the other with Nia Archives, the British producer, singer songwriter, and DJ.  Falling or Flying served as one of 2023’s most thoughtful and nuanced R&B albums of the year, and music lovers can be assured in expecting more introspective tracks that will bring us further inside the world of Jorja Smith.  

Tyla - TYLA (deluxe)

The South African Grammy-Award winning singer Tyla is returning on October 11th with the deluxe version of her self titled debut, TYLA. “Water,” Tyla’s first major label single, brought a rare sort of mesmerism to music, a contemporary take on pop-R&B, capturing the attention of millions overnight.  The 22-year-old’s pliant blend of R&B, soul, and amapiano shot her to seemingly instant elevation in the second half of last year, as “Water” gained the title of the anthem of the summer. Just over six months after its release, “Water” had earned Tyla the Recording Academy’s first-ever Grammy for African Music Performance, the 22 year old singer being in the same category as Burna Boy, Davido, and Asake.  Her debut album TYLA explored attraction, empowerment, relationships and puzzlement, the beat of amapiano and sounds of Tyla’s hometown, Johannesburg pulsating throughout.

On October 7th, the South African songstress revealed that the deluxe version of her album will include three new songs : ‘Shake Ah’, featuring Tony Duardo, Optimist, and Maestro, ‘Push 2 Start’, and ‘Back To You’. She also shared the deluxe album artwork, which included her drenched in a brown corset with a hose wrapped around her waist. As well as releasing her deluxe album, Tyla is set to return to South Africa for shows in December at the GrandWest Arena and Sunbet Arena, and is an artist who has proved early on in her career that her eclectic discography includes a sound for everyone.