90s R&B Group
tagStarted 1990Peak 1992-1998Last big hit 2000
Located in 1 route
Multi-tracked harmony ensembles that fused barbershop-tight blends with hip-hop swing and new jack production. Lush stacked backgrounds, gospel runs, a cappella intros and trading leads over swung drum programming. Big sentimental ballads and slow jams built on intricate vocal arrangements and showpiece bass-to-falsetto range.
History
Boyz II Men's 1991 debut Cooleyhighharmony, produced partly by Michael Bivins, revived the harmony group for the hip-hop era and broke chart-longevity records. Jodeci added raw gospel-soul edge, and a wave of male vocal groups followed across the decade before solo R&B and the group's own splits ended the boom.
Defining artists
Essential listening
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooleyhighharmony
- https://www.udiscovermusic.com/stories/cooleyhihharmony-hip-hop-doo-wop-genius-boyz-ii-men/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boyz_II_Men