13 Most Egregious Oversights in Rolling Stone’s Greatest 21st Century R&B Songs
I Monday morning quarterback 2024’s first arbitrary music list
It took Rolling Stone precisely three and a half days to return to the only trick left in the legacy magazine playbook that guarantees viral fodder: make a list! This time, the genre of choice is contemporary R&B, with the magazine taking on the Herculean task of compiling the 100 Greatest R&B Songs of the 21st Century.
I’ve long suspected that Rolling Stone and its ilk (looking at you Billboard) intentionally assemble crappy lists because utter lunacy sparks far greater social media fodder than safe but unexciting choices.
The number one song is a head-scratcher. (SPOILER ALERT) Usher’s “Confessions Pt.2” isn’t even the greatest song on its album. Or the second greatest. If we’re talking about the Deluxe edition, it's not even the third. Yet, overall, the 100 Greatest R&B Songs of the 21st Century list is pretty solid — at least by the admittedly low standard established by other recent offerings.
The giants of the era (Usher, Beyoncé, Mary, Mariah )place predictably high. Left-of-center alternative favorites (Frank Ocean, Childish Gambino, Janelle Monáe) are well represented. The list leans harder into neo-soul than hip-hop soul…
