People are digging into the depths of what they’re going through. R&B has roots in blues, so it’s not just singing about the good times.

Gizelle HernandezĪiko: It’s true self-expression. Taylor wears a Skims bodysuit, Balenciaga earrings and shoes, Chanel sunglasses, pins, necklaces, bracelets and belt.

Styling by Teyana Taylor and Kollin Carter. Taylor photographed Oct. 19 at Hubble Studio in Los Angeles. “R&B is always going to be the realest bitch in the world.” It’s a camaraderie rooted in the honesty and vulnerability that has always been R&B’s calling card. As the four women peel back the curtain on their experiences in the music business, it’s clear they have more to celebrate - like the growing feeling of sisterhood that has not only led them to collaborate more in the studio but also to share advice and support each other privately as they weather the glare of the spotlight. “R&B keeps evolving, keeps getting cooler, more personal,” says Kehlani. To them, the genre has never been in a better place. “It’s just like hip-hop was a ‘Black thing’ until Eminem sold 1 million in a week and white label executives figured out their kids were listening to hip-hop more than rock.”īillboard’s cover stars are unfazed by those obstacles, however. “The public doesn’t know the difference - only those at the labels who control the budgets,” says David Linton, a veteran label executive and the chairman of the nonprofit Living Legends Foundation, which honors trailblazing executives of color in the music industry. Some of that is an age-old issue: The industry has long put artists in boxes based on what they look like, not the music they actually make - and that’s especially true for R&B artists of color, who still encounter assumptions from industry gatekeepers about the reach of their music. It’s dope to hear everyone express that truth in their different ways.” “We’re still women who have experienced love and heartbreak. “Everyone has their own style and thing going on, but it’s all the same truth,” says Taylor during a lively virtual roundtable with the others in October. And reserved newcomer Summer Walker, 24, set records with her debut LP, Over It, which scored the biggest streaming week for an R&B album by a woman last fall. Triple threat Teyana Taylor, 29, showcased her straight-shooting modern soul on this year’s statement-making Juneteenth release The Album, which marked her first top 10 entry on the Billboard 200. The introspective Jhené Aiko, 32, pushed her atmospheric sound to experimental places on Chilombo, which in March also had a career-best No. 2 debut. With her confessional relationship anthems, the casually cool Kehlani, 25, scored a career-high No. 2 debut on the Billboard 200 in May with It Was Good Until It Wasn’t. Among them are the four cover stars of Billboard’s annual R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players issue.

Jhene aiko ways