How BJ The Chicago Kid Can Restore R&B To Its Former Glory | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Entertainment

How BJ The Chicago Kid Can Restore R&B To Its Former Glory

The future face of R&B.

13
How BJ The Chicago Kid Can Restore R&B To Its Former Glory
Saint Heron

If you're like me, you grew up on R&B, whether it be old school artists like the Temptations and Teddy Pendergrass, or '90s artists like Boyz II Men and Jodeci. These artists, as well as their contemporaries, all had the ability to truly sing. Not only that but they were able to convey true emotion in their songs, whether that emotion was love, heartbreak or even pure bliss. These two things mixed with soul touching music strictly can't be matched.

Unfortunately, R&B is a slowly dying music genre. In a world where artists like The Weeknd, Chris Brown, and Beyoncé have to make their songs crossover to appeal to the mainstream media, their songs tend to be more on the pop spectrum than anything else. They haven't necessarily lost their roots, but Chris Brown's music certainly does not sound anything like the innocent boy who was trying to win over a girl by dancing and singing "yo" to her.

There are a few artists who are still putting out quality, soulful music, like Musiq Soulchild and Anderson Paak, but none of them have the chance to change the game like BJ the Chicago Kid. Bryan James Sledge was born to church choir directors in the city he has affectionately named himself after. He says that he became inspired to pursue a music career after seeing Janet Jackson perform on tour in Chicago. He has performed backup for gospel duo Mary Mary, is featured on Stevie Wonder's album "A Time To Love," and is on Kanye West's single "Impossible." He has also written songs for artists like Shirley Caesar, Lalah Hathaway, Joe and Crystal Aikin. He is definitely a multifaceted artist, but what he does best is sing from the heart.

If you can't hear the raw emotion in this man's voice and see his promise, R&B just isn't for you. BJ has a soft, gentle voice, which is perfect for delivering his beautiful love songs. His first major label album but second studio album "In My Mind" shows that his inspiration is Chicago soul music and he both honors and renews this classic form of music. But BJ isn't just some modern day imitation of classic R&B singers. On the contrary, he brings his own unique flavor to each one of the songs he sings. His music is modern, yet timeless.

BJ the Chicago Kid has the chance to bring R&B back to into the spotlight. He has one of the smoothest, most soulful voices I've heard in a long time and I know for certain, there is a large portion of this country that is missing this type of music. Hopefully, he can start a resurgence in the R&B community and have other singers want to go back to their roots, too.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Gilmore Girls
Hypable

In honor of Mother’s Day, I have been thinking of all the things my mom does for my family and me. Although I couldn’t write nearly all of them, here are a few things that moms do for us.

They find that shirt that’s right in front of you, but just you can’t seem to find.

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

10 Reasons To Thank Your Best Friend

Take the time to thank that one friend in your life you will never let go of.

4260
Thank You on wooden blocks

1. Thank you for being the one I can always count on to be honest.

A true friend will tell you if the shirt is ugly, or at least ask to borrow it and "accidentally" burn it.

2. Thank you for accepting me for who I am.

A best friend will love you regardless of the stale french fries you left on the floor of your car, or when you had lice in 8th grade and no one wanted to talk to you.

Keep Reading...Show less
sick student
StableDiffusion

Everybody gets sick once in a while, but getting sick while in college is the absolute worst. You're away from home and your mom who can take care of you and all you really want to do is just be in your own bed. You feel like you will have never-ending classwork to catch up on if you miss class, so you end up going sick and then it just takes longer to get better. Being sick in college is really tough and definitely not a fun experience. Here are the 15 stages that everyone ends up going through when they are sick at college.

Keep Reading...Show less
kid
Janko Ferlic
Do as I say, not as I do.

Your eyes widen in horror as you stare at your phone. Beads of sweat begin to saturate your palm as your fingers tremble in fear. The illuminated screen reads, "Missed Call: Mom."

Growing up with strict parents, you learn that a few things go unsaid. Manners are everything. Never talk back. Do as you're told without question. Most importantly, you develop a system and catch on to these quirks that strict parents have so that you can play their game and do what you want.

Keep Reading...Show less
friends
tv.com

"Friends" maybe didn’t have everything right or realistic all the time, but they did have enough episodes to create countless reaction GIFs and enough awesomeness to create, well, the legacy they did. Something else that is timeless, a little rough, but memorable? Living away from the comforts of home. Whether you have an apartment, a dorm, your first house, or some sort of residence that is not the house you grew up in, I’m sure you can relate to most of these!

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments