R&B music originated from rhythm and blues and soul music in the late 1970s. It incorporated elements of disco, funk, pop, and hip hop. Artists like Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones added electronic elements, influencing the emergence of contemporary R&B. In the late 1970s and 1980s, artists like Janet Jackson and Boyz II Men helped popularize the new R&B sound. In the 2000s, artists like Outkast found mainstream success blending hip hop and R&B. Typical R&B male artists wear minimal clothing like jeans and show tattoos to attract young female audiences, while females wear revealing outfits and makeup to convey sexuality but appeal to the male gaze. Some

1. Genre Research- R&B
History:
Contemporary R&B derived from the original rhythm and blues is a combination of soul, funk, pop, hip hop and dance. The music set out to make you feel free. This originated from the
disco era in the late 70’s in places like Chicago, Houston and Atlanta. Contemporary R&B is known for their use of melisma ( a group of notes sung to one syllable of text) for example,
R.Kelly and Mariah Carey. In the late 70’s artist like Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones added more of an electronic component to their Music and this is how contemporary R&B arrived on
the scene. Later on that year Janet Jackson released control which also had this new iconic sound that had everyone ready to get on their feet and dance. This triggered many other artists
to jump on to this particular style of music for example boyz 2 men, Keith sweat and Jodeci. In the 2000’s, urban music attained commercial dominance with a massive cross over success
on the Billboard charts with artist such as Outcast who had hits such as ‘Hey ya’ which topped the charts.
Men
Typically, men in R&B culture are usually topless for example Usher has minimal clothing in majority of his old videos. This is so that he attracts a specific audience which is usually young
females. The costume code is predominantly the same with all artists because they tend to wear jeans. They wear them so that they can see their underwear slightly at the top. This is also
to attract young women because it gives them the ‘bad boy’ look. This look originated from prisoners as they only had one size clothing so the skinny criminals would have baggy trousers
but this still was adopted by the black community and is still being worn this way today. In comparison to males in the hip hop industry they wear lots of gold chains and rings to portray
wealth and success, whereas males in the R&B culture don’t necessarily wear a lot of jewellery, they like to have subtle earrings or rings and chains because they want to appeal to target
audience. They do have an abundance of tattoo's for example Trey Songs and Chris Brown, they do this because it is personal and fans will feel more in touch with the artist.
The videos in which the artists star in, are quite sexual and they are filmed In sepia or dark scales which adds tone to their physique and adds an element of sexual attraction making the
female audience continue watching for their own purposes. They tend to use close ups and mid -shots to emphasise their features. For example Marques Houston – Naked.
Women
Women in R&B tend to wear minimal clothing, which consists of small skirts and dresses. They have a lot of skin on show such as their breast for the entertainment of a heterosexual male,
this is part of the male gaze theory. They are seen as objects and seen as extremely submissive for the men. The way in which they dress can be deemed as promiscuous. They would wear
very high heels to elongate their legs as men find long legs enticing and attractive however there are some ladies who prefer to wear trainers are do both for example Ciara.
Their hair and make up is usually very eye catching and dramatic so that they stand out from the rest. They can go from vibrant eye shadow colour to dark and mysterious depending on the
feel of the song. This shows that the women are in control of their appearance and of their life. In terms of jewellery it would be large hooped earrings and necklaces, they wear jewellery
that can be deemed to be ‘ghetto’ in some regards. Females convey their sexuality through there costume code and their facial code, as it makes them feel and look attractive. They are
perceived as goddesses, because they're worshipped by whole communities. However some females have broken the stereotype and have become more powerful and dominant for
example Ciara - Like a boy. This video shows this because she shows a more masculine persona.