Editing Rhythm and blues (section)

{{Short description|Music genre originating in the 1940s in the United States}}
{{About|the original form of R&B|the modern form, mixed with other genres|Contemporary R&B}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Redirect|RnB|the Japanese television station that uses the abbreviation RNB|Nankai Broadcasting|the EP by Ruger and Bnxn|RnB (EP)}}
{{Use American English|date=August 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox music genre
| name              = Rhythm and blues
| image             = File:Ruth-Brown-1955.jpg 
| caption           = [[Ruth Brown]] was known as the "Queen of R&B".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Ruth Brown, the Queen of R&B, was born 93 years ago today|url=https://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2021/01/ruth-brown-the-queen-of-rb-was-born-93-years-ago-today.html|access-date=January 18, 2021|website=Frank Beacham's Journal|archive-date=January 24, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124085629/https://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2021/01/ruth-brown-the-queen-of-rb-was-born-93-years-ago-today.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
| stylistic_origins = * [[Jazz]]<ref name=Encyclopedia>Jessie Carney Smith,ed. "Encyclopedia of African American popular culture" Greenwood, 2011, p.1163.</ref>
* [[blues]]<ref name=Encyclopedia/><ref name=folklife/>
* [[spirituals]]<ref name=Encyclopedia/>
* [[gospel music|gospel]]<ref name=Encyclopedia/><ref name=folklife/>
* [[boogie-woogie]]<ref name=folklife/>
* [[jump blues]]<ref name=folklife/>
* [[swing music|swing]]<ref name=folklife/>
| cultural_origins  = [[Deep South]], United States 
| instruments       = {{hlist|[[Double bass]]|[[drum kit]]|[[electric guitar]]|[[electric organ]]|[[horn section|horns]]|[[piano]]|[[saxophone]]}}
| derivatives       = * [[Beat music]]
* [[Brill Building (genre)|Brill Building]]
* [[disco]]
* [[funk]]
* [[hard bop]]
* [[hip hop]]
* [[mod revival]]
* [[post-disco]]
* [[rock and roll]]
* [[reggae]]
* [[ska]]
* [[smooth jazz]]
* [[soul music|soul]]
* [[zydeco]]
| subgenres         = * [[Alternative R&B]]
* [[Christian R&B]]
* [[contemporary R&B]]
* [[doo-wop]]
* [[quiet storm]]
| fusiongenres      = * [[Jazz fusion]]
* [[Latin R&B]]
* [[Minneapolis sound]]
* [[neo soul]]
* [[new jack swing]]
* [[raï'n'B]]
* [[Grime music#rhythm & grime|rhythm & grime]]
* various [[hip hop]] fusions
| regional_scenes   = 
| local_scenes      = * [[Motown#Motown sound|Detroit]]
* [[New Orleans rhythm and blues|New Orleans]]
* [[British rhythm and blues|United Kingdom]]
| other_topics      = * [[Black gospel music]]
* [[blue-eyed soul]]
* [[brown-eyed soul]]
* [[rare groove]]
* [[slow jam]]
* [[urban contemporary music]]
}}
'''Rhythm and blues''', frequently abbreviated as '''R&B''' or '''R'n'B''', is a genre of [[popular music]] that originated within [[African American]] communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to African Americans, at a time when "rocking, [[jazz]] based music&nbsp;... [with a] heavy, insistent beat" was starting to become more popular.
In the commercial rhythm and blues music typical of the 1950s through the 1970s, the bands usually consisted of a piano, one or two guitars, bass, drums, one or more saxophones, and sometimes background vocalists. R&B lyrical themes often encapsulate the African-American history and experience of pain and the quest for [[freedom]] and joy, as well as triumphs and failures in terms of societal racism, oppression, relationships, economics, and aspirations.

The term "rhythm and blues" has undergone a number of shifts in meaning. In the early 1950s, it was frequently applied to [[blues]] records. Starting in the mid-1950s, after this style of music had contributed to the development of [[rock and roll]], the term "R&B" became used in a wider context. It referred to music styles that developed from and incorporated [[electric blues]], as well as [[gospel music|gospel]] and [[soul music]]. By the 1970s, the term "rhythm and blues" had changed once again and was used as a blanket term for soul and [[funk]].

In the late 1980s, a newer style of R&B developed, becoming known as "[[contemporary R&B]]". This contemporary form combines rhythm and blues with various elements of [[pop music|pop]], soul, funk, [[disco]], [[hip hop music|hip hop]], and [[electronic music]].