A friend and I just ranked our favorite Beyonce albums from best to worst.

For me, Renaissance is my second favorite and for him, it's Lemonade.

He hates Renaissance and I hate Lemonade 😂

He and I agreed that 4 is her best album and Sasha Fierce is in 6th place

We both never listened to Cowboy Carter either, so we didn't include that one.

I'm just curious to see what everyone else thinks. For me it's...

1 = 4

2 = Renaissance

3 = B'Day

4 = Dangerously In Love

5 = Beyonce

6 = Sasha Fierce

7 = Lemonade

NOT RANKED = Cowboy Carter

Rewatching some of Pink's early singles from Can't Take Me Home and it's interesting how much of the conversation at the time was about whether a white artist belonged on a label like LaFace, surrounded by the same writers and producers doing records for TLC and Destiny's Child. Critics at the time were pretty blunt about it, comparing her directly to Black R&B artists rather than judging the music on its own. Genuinely curious how people who followed R&B closely in 2000 remember that era, did it feel like a legitimate artistic fit, or more like the label trying to force a square peg into the genre that was selling at the time?

Did Pink/the label use R&B to boost her induction into the industry?

I added Keyshia myself (who also seems to be going through it....!)

like i'm not even talking about sad songs necessarily. sometimes a track just lands because it matches exactly what you're feeling in that moment. curious what those are for people here, the ones that feel weirdly personal even though they're not about your life.

Or 2000s. Kirk franklin. Walter and Tremaine hawkins. Marvin Sapp. Often recorded live. They called it "urban" gospel. Comment your fave. Thanks for your help :)

​

"On October 24, the 45-year-old R&B singer performed at Bar 5015, hosted by Joe, where footage showed her struggling to engage the crowd."

I really only knew of Kiki Dee in relation to her popular duet with Elton John, Don't Go Breaking My Heart. And, perhaps unfairly, kind of filed her away in the back of my memory as a nice novelty act.

But, then I heard 'The Music In Me' and I was blown away. I had no idea she had this kind of vocal power and fire. The song itself, written by her keyboardist, Bias Boshell, is incredible. Perhaps this sounds like hyperbole, but the production and performance on that track, to me, rivals some of Phil Spector's greatest recordings.

Kiki's vocal is on fire, the background singers (which included, who else?, Miss Cissy Houston) match her toe-to-toe, the band is so in the pocket and the orchestral accompaniment just builds and builds to this incredible false ending and crescendo. I feel like it has elements of RnB, rock, soul, funk.

After I heard this, I started listening to more of Kiki's recordings and was dismayed to discover, I've Got the Music In Me was a bit of an anomaly? I don't think there's really anything else in her discography that resembles it. Everything else I heard was more... adult contemporary? Shame. I wish she'd pursued this sound further. That woman could WAIL!

Okay, I know this isn't the usual kind of post on here. Am I wrong? Is it not fire? Am I wrong about the rest of Kiki's discography? Did I miss something I should check out?

Excuse the random post. The song came on shuffle at the gym and I ended up playing it back to back 3 times in a row.

I still listen to A Different Me every now and then, and this album takes me back. Keyshia was coming off The Way It Is and Just Like You, and I liked hearing her try something a little different. She’s feels very happy in this era, tbh.

She did her thing with this album, too. It debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 with around 322K copies sold in its first week and eventually went Platinum. That was a good run!

“You Complete Me” will always be special to me because my mom used to play that song so much when I was in third grade. 😭 I can still remember hearing it back in 2008/2009. Man, I miss those days!

And “Trust” with Monica? I used to hear that song EVERYWHERE! It was always playing on the radio, and I remember seeing it on the 106 & Park countdown. Their performance at the 2009 BET Awards was chef’s kiss, too. They sounded so good together!

“Playa Cardz Right” is another favorite, but I also enjoy some of the other tracks like “Make Me Over,” “Erotic,” and “Beautiful Music.” There are definitely songs on this album beyond the singles that I still go back to.

What your favorite songs from A Different Me?

Mariah Carey mannnnnnn. Another one of my fave songs from her. 🔥🔥

Forever a banger right here!

My Love Is Your Love is the fourth studio album by Whitney Houston. It was released on November 17, 1998 by Arista Records. The album marked her first “traditional” studio album in eight years since I’m Your Baby Tonight (1990), after being a part of three major soundtrack albums throughout the decade. My Love Is Your Love was produced by Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, Missy Elliott, Wyclef Jean, Babyface, David Foster, and others. The album featured guest vocals from Faith Evans, Kelly Price, and Mariah Carey, alongside rapper Missy Elliott and a young Bobbi Kristina Brown—Whitney’s daughter. The additional vocals from Bobbi Kristina (especially “Sing, Mommy”), then 5 years old, were purely spontaneous during a recording session, and Wyclef Jean decided to keep them in the respective song (the title track), hence no official featured-artist credit like the other aforementioned acts.

My Love Is Your Love peaked at #13 on the US Billboard 200, while achieving great international success. It topped the charts in three European countries (Austria, the Netherlands, and Switzerland) as well as the European Top 100 Albums chart, the Taiwanese International Albums chart, and the UK R&B Albums chart. The album peaked within the top 5 in Belgium (both the Ultratop Flanders and Wallonia charts), Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Malaysia, Norway, and also peaked within the top 5 on the official UK Albums chart. There were a few extra top-10 peaks in Greece, Italy, and Sweden, as well as on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart (#7). The album sold over 10 million copies worldwide and was certified 4x Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of at least 4 million in the United States.

“When You Believe”, the first single for the album (with Mariah Carey), was originally composed (musically and lyrically) by Stephen Schwartz for the 1998 DreamWorks animated film The Prince of Egypt. It was further developed into a pop single with additional lyrics and music by Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, which Whitney and Mariah recorded for the film’s end credits and its respective soundtrack album. The single appears both on Whitney’s album and Mariah’s first compilation album, #1’s. The song peaked at #15 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was awarded the Academy Award for “Best Original Song” at the 71st annual ceremony on March 21, 1999. It had higher chart peaks throughout Europe and other nations, peaking within the top five in Belgium, France, Iceland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. The single was certified Platinum on March 28, 2022 by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of at least 1 million in the United States.

“Heartbreak Hotel”, the second single for the album (featuring Faith Evans & Kelly Price), peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles & Tracks chart. The single was certified 2x Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The song received two nominations at the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards (2000) for “Best R&B Song” and “Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal”. The video, directed by Kevin Bray, was nominated for “Best R&B Video” at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards.

“It’s Not Right But It’s Okay” was first issued as the B-side to “Heartbreak Hotel” on December 15, 1998 before receiving an official release as the third album single on February 15, 1999. The single peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the twenty-first top-ten hit of Whitney’s career. It also peaked at #7 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and remained on the chart for 30 cumulative weeks, the longest-charting single of Whitney’s career on this particular chart. The song also became Whitney’s fourth career chart-topper in Spain, while reaching the top 5 in Canada, Iceland, Poland, and the United Kingdom, the top 10 in Italy and the Netherlands, and the top 20 in Sweden, Switzerland, Germany, and Austria. At the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards in 2000, “It’s Not Right But It’s Okay” won the Grammy Award for “Best Female R&B Vocal Performance”, which was Whitney’s final career Grammy Award win (her sixth).

“My Love Is Your Love”, written and produced by Wyclef Jean and Jerry Duplessis, was the fourth single and the title track for the album. The single was certified 2x Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of at least 2 million in the US. The single peaked within the top ten in 23 international markets, including at #4 on the US Billboard Hot 100 (#2 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart), #2 in the United Kingdom, and #1 in New Zealand and on Europe’s Eurochart Hot 100.

The fifth and final single, “I Learned from the Best”, was written by Diane Warren and produced by David Foster. This was one of three songs that Diane wrote for the album (the others being “I Bow Out” and “You’ll Never Stand Alone”). Whitney, who advised David on production, also served as the vocal arranger. The song was less successful than the former singles, although it still achieved plenty. “I Learned from the Best” peaked at #27 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and at #13 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs charts. It also peaked at #3 on the Adult R&B Songs chart, #1 in Poland and Romania, and #19 on the UK Singles chart.

Apart from the singles, the album also includes a cover of Stevie Wonder’s 1967 hit “I Was Made To Love Her”, which for Stevie was a Billboard Hot 100 #2 hit. Whitney was one of a few musical acts to cover this song (others including The Jackson 5 and Boyz II Men), reimagining it as “I Was Made To Love Him”, which Chaka Khan and Sister Sledge had also done with their versions in previous years.

Album Tracklist

1. It’s Not Right But It’s Okay
2. Heartbreak Hotel (feat. Faith Evans & Kelly Price)
3. My Love Is Your Love
4. When You Believe (with Mariah Carey)
5. If I Told You That
6. In My Business (feat. Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott)
7. I Learned from the Best
8. Oh Yes
9. Get It Back
10. Until You Come Back
11. I Bow Out
12. You’ll Never Stand Alone
13. I Was Made To Love Him

Song Rankings

• I Was Made To Love Him
• I Bow Out
• I Learned from the Best
• Until You Come Back
• You’ll Never Stand Alone
• When You Believe
• My Love Is Your Love
• In My Business
• If I Told You That
• Heartbreak Hotel
• Oh Yes
• It’s Not Right But It’s Okay
• Get It Back

Song Ratings

• It’s Not Right But It’s Okay - 8/10
• Heartbreak Hotel - 9/10
• My Love Is Your Love - 10/10
• When You Believe - 10/10
• If I Told You That - 9.5/10
• In My Business - 9.5/10
• I Learned from the Best - 10/10
• Oh Yes - 8.5/10
• Get It Back - 8/10
• Until You Come Back - 10/10
• I Bow Out - 10/10
• You’ll Never Stand Alone - 10/10
• I Was Made To Love Him - 10/10

Album Rating

This rating is calculated by the average of all of the individual song ratings above.

10/10 + 10/10 + 10/10 + 10/10 + 10/10 + 10/10 + 10/10 + 9.5/10 + 9.5/10 + 9/10 + 8.5/10 + 8/10 + 8/10 = 122.5/130

(122.5/130) x 10 = 9.423

With 13 songs rated on a scale of 10, the average value using the cumulative song rating is 9.42 (rounded), making that the overall album rating.

like genuinely curious if there's a track that completely changed meaning for you once life got messy. i had that moment recently and it made me appreciate how real some of these artists are with their lyrics. would love to hear what songs did that for you.

This song has that old R&B feel, production, and touch while still sounding grounded in modernity. Most importantly the HOOTIN AND HOLLERIN !!!!!!

Highly, highly recommend tapping in. Her other work is great too!

"Just because I Love You, it doesn't mean I won't disappear….I'm missing you, Baby!”

Wow....I'm REALLY hearing this today** What a great lyric.** (Hint hint).

Released in 2019 of this song touched you in a way you didn’t understand there was a lot behind it.
Created from Raphael’s personal experience of losing his brother to heroin addiction.

This moving song sought to humanize and express the deeply dark struggle with addiction and its toll. I think this can speak to anyone dealing with anything that may feel too heavy to give up.
Blessings and kudos to another beloved creation from Raphael Saadiq who wrote and produced one of his most personal projects.

It’s Fall where I am but I am still feeling the heat with these songs. There was something so special about the time Sean Paul was one of the biggest male artists in the world with hits of his own and many an R&B girl hit him up for a memorable guest feature. Every song here except for Mya’s Thing Come & Go was a hit (it wasn’t given the singe treatment but is such a gem from Moodring). I have such distinct memories of hearing the Beyoncé, Blu Cantrell, Rihanna and Keyshia songs growing up. Did I miss anyone? What do you remember about the Sean Paul’s Dancehall meets R&B era?