Browsing Tag

Dark RnB

PINAR mastered the art of dark RnB melancholy with her debut single, Almost Believe

Posted on 28 September 2026

After spending years keeping her talent hidden, PINAR stepped out with a boundary-breaking dark RnB-pop debut that spellbinds from the first breath. Almost Believe introduces the Turkish-rooted, Germany-born, England-based singer-songwriter as an independent artist who has been writing in private for years, waiting until one track finally demanded to be heard.

Latin guitars weave shadowy melodies through the slow, atmospheric production, while PINAR’s layered vocal harmonies give her debut a theatrical, almost baroque art-pop feel without tempering any of the intimacy or soul within the more traditional echoes of RnB pop. The song sits in the space between doubt and hope, where part of you knows you may be holding onto an idea in vain, but another part still wants to believe it. The emotional dissonance ricochets through the production, refusing to leave the soft euphonic glow of the release to feel fragile..

There is a dark, cinematic pull here that fans of BANKS’ moody RnB architecture, Sevdaliza’s spectral drama and FKA twigs’ art-pop intimacy will understand immediately, but PINAR’s voice carries its own siren-esque invitation. Her harmonies move like smoke around the confession, drawing you deeper into the mind of one of the most fascinating new RnB acts we have heard this year.

PINAR let her demons out to play with her debut; she is absolutely going to slay with her sophomore.

Almost Believe is now available on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Chalant hooks us up ‘For a Night’ with his injection of dark RnB

Posted on 21 May 2022

After garnering a serious amount of traction around his debut single, the Sydney-based alternative artist, Chalant, has dropped his dark, grungy slice of RnB, For a Night. If you can imagine what it would sound like if Frank Ocean and Trent Reznor met in the sonic middle, you will get an idea of how emotionally intense this production is as it balances on wailing synths, oscillating bass and dark monochromatic textures.

Never afraid to gaze into the most malignant facets of the human condition, Chalant is quickly making a name for himself in the field of high fire social dissections. With a perspective that is just as refreshing as his sound, it is only a matter of time before Chalant sees the top of the charts.

For a Night is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

CRVS Serrano – all of a sudden you know whats best: darkly era-defining RnB

Posted on 10 May 2022

‘all of a sudden you know whats best’ is the darkly era-defining latest single from the Philadelphia-born, Florida-based songwriter, artist and songwriter, CRVS Serrano. The 90s and 00s influences are easily legible around Serrano’s dark signature, which is signed through the trippy yet melodic flow and the beats that melt against the lush modernist RnB production.

Lyrically and vocally, Serrano doesn’t fail to bring you into the plaintive frustration the single transpired from. But there’s enough urban alchemy in the mix to guarantee you’ll have more oxytocin than you did before you hit play.

After signing to the label, Bounce House in 2020, he’s taken his career to new heights alongside artists such as Karol G, G Herbo, and IV4. With an EP in the pipeline, he’s undoubtedly one to watch.

CRVS Serrano’s latest single is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

QueenK melds RnB with trip-hop in her soberingly evocative release, My Butterfly

Posted on 23 February 2022

RnB and trip-hop collide in QueenK’s latest seductively demure multi-lingual release, My Butterfly, which switches between the independent artist’s mother tongue and English; to mesmerising effect.

My Butterfly falls into the short and sweet trend with a duration of just 1:55 minutes, but QueenK wasted no time in the hypnotic release that mourns the loss of butterflies and questions their existence in her absence. The lyric, “my butterflies don’t fly like they used to”, is particularly striking when versed by QueenK’s vocals that wouldn’t be out of place in a David Lynch production.

My Butterfly was officially released on January 7th. You can check it out for yourselves by heading over to YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

cee cooked up a salacious storm in her dark RnB single, IN MY BED, featuring Dohm.

Posted on 15 October 2021

For her latest sultry dark RnB single, IN MY BED, up and coming artist, cee collaborated with rap artist Dohm, who brought a transfixing dynamic to the release. IN MY BED gives you both sides of the story in a stormy, torrid love affair, the kind that thrives on sexual energy, but in the cold light of day, the differences are too stark to maintain the spark.

You couldn’t ask for a more transfixing dark, trappy RnB hit; with the slick and atmospheric production paired with cee and Dohm’s collaborative chemistry, we fell for it, melodic hook, line and sinker.

If any indie RnB artist has what it takes to climb the charts, our money is on cee.

IN MY BED is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

CSC Papi is set to release his ethereal RnB track, Chauffer.

Posted on 2 August 2021

Cleveland, Ohio Pop, RnB and hip hop fusionist CSC Papi is set to drop his most evocative track to date with his latest single, Chauffer. The reverb-drenched atmospheric track puts emotion at the forefront, but the dak moody RnB track is all about the ensnaring hooks that pull you right into the soul of the mix.

His masterful vocal canter and commitment to creating synergy between instrumentals, vocals and lyrics, ensured that Chauffer hit hard and hit like no other. The radio-ready single deserves to go viral.

You can check out Chauffer on Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Gybz strips the glamour from superficial pleasure with his dark RnB single, Sad Boy Hours.

Posted on 31 July 2021

Alt RnB artist Gybz has released his viscerally raw single, Sad Boy Hours, which reflects on our tendency to seek superficial pleasure when we are at our lowest points.

The striking lyrical honesty paired with the suitably harsh electronica textures in the dark RnB track pulls you in deeper to the single that floors you with lines such as “Don’t take it so personal, I want it to be heartless”.

After so many artists have romanticised exactly what Gybz strips the glamour from in Sad Boy Hours, calling the Manchester-based artist revolutionary is far from hyperbolic.

Sad Boy Hours was released on July 29th; it is now available to stream on all major platforms via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

UK-based artist Soul has released his ethereal RnB trap track, move on.

Posted on 29 July 2021

https://soundcloud.com/soul_233/move-on

UK-based RnB artist Soul has made an ethereally dark contribution to the genre with the release of the standout single, move on. The steady, deadpan vocals occupy plenty of space in the soundscape that finds its structure through downtempo, melodic trap beats.

Soul may be fresh from his inception, but the self-taught artist is discernibly well-practised in the art of expression. His melancholy-erring sound extends compassion instead of self-apathy while he explores the dark places our minds can take us to.

We’ve come a long way in recent years with opening up the conversation around mental health. Raw tracks such as move on are only going to make it easier to break the stigma and move away from our tendency to leave mental scars on people we once found affection for.

move on is now available to stream on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Seeing the bigger picture: Ziyaad Luceō transcends perceptions on ‘Through These Eyes’

Posted on 5 January 2021

Ziyaad Luceō is back with his spectacular signature voice and blushing beat via new single ‘Through These Eyes‘.

The experimental artist Ziyaad Luceō is a new school musician with a zest for making sounds that we can only dream of and he is on his absolute top form here.

”Wish I can see what you see when you look at me.”- Ziyaad Luceō

Dark R&B, alternative, and hip-hop all meshed into one sound, this is an artist that likes to try things out and make his own road, through the twists and turns and into our hearts with a song that is like no other. He experiments with an impressive and translucent energy that you can feel inside the deepest part of your bones.

With a voice that grabs tight and keeps it for a while, toying with it and taking you on a journey through the unknown basement of 2020, this is an artist who is only getting started and already making a massive impact with his loyal following.

His eyes are looking beyond the obvious and wants to truly feel how we are feeling inside, so he can make music that satisfies our very existence.

‘Through These Eyes‘ from Toronto’s Ziyaad Luceō is a new-wave delight that packs in more treats that a box of tasty chocolates. You get the feeling that he does this for the love and is only just getting started. This unique type of music is what its all about, as copying other artists is like cheating yourself of all your inner creativity. Life is meant to be a fun journey after all, not a copy and paste exercise that holds you back from being the real you.

Stream here for this top track on Spotify and see his story via IG.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen