Urban pop

Contemporary R&B
Whitney Houston (1963–2012) is one of pop music's best-selling music artists of all-time.
Stylistic origins	Rhythm and blues pop soul funk hip hop
Cultural origins	Early 1980s, North America; New York City Los Angeles Atlanta Chicago Houston Montreal Toronto
Typical instruments	Vocals synthesizers keyboard drum machines drums horns (sometimes) talk box piano
Derivative forms	Neo soul nu-funk 2-step grime
Fusion genres
New jack swing hip hop soul 2-step crunk&B snap&B alternative R&B
Other topics
Musicians

Contemporary R&B, also known as simply R&B, is a music genre that combines elements of rhythm and blues, soul, funk, pop, hip hop and dance.

The genre features a distinctive record production style, drum machine-backed rhythms, an occasional saxophone-laced beat to give a jazz feel (mostly common in contemporary R&B songs prior to the year 1995) and a smooth, lush style of vocal arrangement. Electronic influences are becoming an increasing trend and the use of hip hop or dance-inspired beats are typical, although the roughness and grit inherent in hip hop may be reduced and smoothed out. Contemporary R&B vocalists are often known for their use of melisma, popularized by vocalists such as Michael Jackson, R. Kelly, Craig David, Stevie Wonder,Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey.

Contemporary R&B originated at the end of the disco era, in the late 1970s, when Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones added more electronics elements to the black music sound of the time to create a smoother dancefloor-friendly sound. The first result was Off the Wall (1979), that 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 colorful tapestry of lush ballads and strings, smooth soul and pop, soft rock, and alluring funk".