Ari Lennox is one of today’s best examples that puts the “R&B is dead” debate to rest. Within the past five years, the D.C. vocalist and Dreamville signee has risen to stardom for the unfiltered honesty and authentic reflections that have helped her stand out in the modern-day R&B landscape. While some argue that the genre has lacked substance, passion, and soul in recent years, Lennox’s endearing music —a mix of contemporary and neo-soul elements— proves that R&B is evolving into some grander.
This year, the songstress is up for “Outstanding Female Artist” at the 2024 NAACP Image Awards. The nomination follows her near-classic albums, 2019’s “Shea Butter Baby” and 2022’s “age/sex/location,” that’ve made her discography one to envy. Beyond her LPs, though, Lennox also has a handful of empowering anthems that give new meaning to her vision of R&B.
Lennox caught the attention of R&B lovers in 2018 when she dropped her seductive smash single, “Shea Butter Baby,” featuring J. Cole. The compelling track about the singer’s desires combined her sensual sound with a familiar R&B groove, birthing something that would reignite the genre for years to come.
Lennox teamed up with an R&B superteam — comprised of Jermaine Dupri, Bryan-Michael Cox, and Johnta Austin — to add some flavor to her heartfelt sound, coming up with the confident uptempo anthem “Pressure.” The contemporary track takes inspiration from a ’70s soul hit (Shirley Brown’s “Blessed Is The Woman (With A Man Like Mine)”) and doesn’t mince words about urging a lover to “apply that pressure.”
One thing about Lennox, she’s going to make sure songs like “Queen Space” remind us to protect our energy from those undeserving of it. Her uplifting Summer Walker-assisted track gives a powerful message about holding oneself to the highest standards.
By Njera Perkins
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