The Definitive List of Contemporary R&B Artists

The definitive list of the contemporary R&B artists that might potentially redefine music .

In 2021, the R&B / Soul artists to watch are making retro-futuristic Soul of epic proportions.
They are seamlessly infusing Jazz, Funk, Blues and Old Soul, Afrobeats, Trap, Electro, Hip Hop and R&B elements. They’re taking R&B / Soul music places that feel familiar but are delightfully fresh and uncovered. It’s an exciting time to be a lover of this genre.

Elaine

South African R&B singer and songwriter, Elaine, has already become a household name as the most streamed female artist locally, and now she’s introducing herself to the world.
The career-changing move for the 21-year-old Pretoria native was revealed when news of her signing to US-based international record company Columbia was announced.

Major artists such as Beyonce, Celine Dion, Adele and Alicia Keys are just some of the artists signed to the label.

Ami Faku

Amanda Faku is a South African musician, performer and songwriter. Faku rose to fame as a contestant on The Voice SA in 2017 and began getting recognition in the music industry. Eastern Cape born singer Ami Faku’s voice captured our hearts when her hit single Into Ingawe and her debut album Imali came out.

Gifted with the ability to work with various musical genres, Ami Faku finds her solace in the Modern Afro Pop genre. With influences from the likes of Daniel Caesar and Sabrina Claudio, with a touch of her Xhosa heritage, Ami Faku’s sound is unique and resonates with people from all walks of life.

Shekinah

Shekhinah Thandi Donnell, better known mononymously as Shekhinah, is a singer-songwriter originally from Durban.

Shekhinah was among the Top 32 of M-Net's Season 7 of SA Idols in 2011 and among the Top 6 of Season 8 of SA Idols in 2012. Her debut album Rose Gold was certified platinum by RiSA on 31 August 2018.

Straight after matric, her fresh pop sound was introduced to us when she featured fellow Durbanite Kyle Deutsch on her hit song, 'Back To The Beach' - a song she tells Keri that she would not want to perform ever again when asked to choose one song from her discography.

Amanda Black

Amanda Benedicta Antony, popularly known by her stage name Amanda Black, is a singer-songwriter and recording artist who achieved recognition in 2016 following the release of her hit single "Amazulu", which was nominated for several music awards.

She moved to Johannesburg in pursuit of her music career where she was approached by Ambitiouz Entertainment who offered her a recording contract. This is when she then released her official single titled ‘Amazulu’, a song off her debut studio album also titled ‘Amazulu’. The song received more than 4 million Youtube views. She also released her debut album Amazulu through Ambitiouz Entertainment and it brought her commercial success.

Ipeleng

A Cape Town-based artist and cover singer, Ipeleng independently released Unsolicited, a 7-track EP at the end of March 2020 and it has quickly become one of the most talked-about projects during the lockdown. This may in part be due to feelings of isolation that people may have been experiencing – and what better way to spend that time than with a project that demanded that all of those feelings be felt?