A Sense of Doubt blog post #3709 - Symptom of Life - a neo-soul mix for Music Monday for April 14, 2025

A Sense of Doubt blog post #3709 - Symptom of Life - a neo-soul mix for Music Monday for April 14, 2025

When soul great Angie Stone died recently in a car crash (she was the same age as I am), I saw that she was described as a neo-soul artist, which is one of those terms I was not quite sure of, so I investigated.

I wanted a mix that focused exclusively on women artists and the only men in the choices as supports for those women.

I gathered a lot of songs and cute and culled and ended up with 52 tracks, one for each week of the year, and it's not a definitive collection. I was more interested in artists I had never heard of. I like discovering new artists. But I wanted a strong set of songs by Angie Stone as the mix is dedicated to her, RIP. I also wanted some artists who are important to me, such as Eykah Badu, Sade, Ibeyi (my latest), H.E.R. (a find a few years ago), India.Arie, Mary J. Blige, Aaliyah (RIP), Tanerélle and Missy Elliott's "The Rain" from her debut album Supa Dupa Fly. And of course, Nina Simone. Originally, I had TLC's "No Scrubs," just because I love the song, and it does have a crooney vibe. But I swapped it for a SZA track when I saw someone qualify her as neo-soul, and I do LOVE SZA.

I have been listening to all these artists for sometime with Ibeyi being the most recent, so just since last year.

When I finished the mix, I realized I had left out Lauryn Hill (whom I adore), Jill Scott, Alicia Keys, and other greats. Plus, I only have one Sade song.

I also wanted to add at least one cut (I have two) from Grammy winner Doechii, the first artist to win with a mixtape, and the third woman to ever win Best Rap Album for Alligator Bites Never Heal. The other winners are Cardi B and Lauryn Hill. I think these Doechii songs are close to or are neo-soul like much of Lauryn Hill's who also won Best Rap album.

This is for Angie.

ANGIE STONE DIES IN CAR CRASH - PBS

I have been working on this mix for some time. While I searched for neo-soul music or soul music that I decided I wanted to include anyway, I found other people's mixes and already posted about one of them:

Monday, March 10, 2025

A Sense of Doubt blog post #3674 - "Muh Everyday" - Soul Mix by Andile Bhungane - Music Monday for 2503.10

I have others that I may share in a future blog post, so holding off for now.

I named the mix for a song I found by Willow, one of the many artists I discovered making this mix.

I now love these new artists I just discovered: Tems, Willow, Elaine, Savannah Cristina, Lee-Soulaé, Ayo, and many more.

I hope you enjoy.

Thanks for tuning in.

SYMPTOM OF LIFE - A NEO-SOUL MIX

TRACK LIST

[1] Angie Stone - Wish I Didn't Miss You

[2] WILLOW - symptom of life

[3] Tems - Burning (Official Video)

[4] Erykah Badu - Back In The Day

[5] H.E.R. | Damage live on Jimmy Kimmel

[6] Elaine - You're The One (Official Music Video)

[7] Tems - Free Mind

[8] H.E.R., John Mayer - Hold On (Live) [Crossroads 2023]

[9] Mary J. Blige - I'm Goin' Down

[10] Missy Elliott - The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly) [Official Music Video]

[11] Aaliyah - Rock The Boat (Original Video)

[12] Ibeyi - Tears Are Our Medicine (Official Audio)

[13] Chipego - SAID I DO (Audio)

[14] Tanerélle - Nothing Without You (Official Live Video)

[15] Tems - Free Mind (Music Video)

[16] Savannah Cristina - Worthy of Love (Official Music Video)

[17] Angie Stone - Sometimes

[18] H.E.R. - The Journey (Audio)

[19] Erykah Badu Otherside Of The Game Live

[20] Ibeyi - Sister 2 Sister

[21] Tanerélle - Lovin' You (Official Video)

[22] India.Arie - The Truth (Official Music Video)

[23] Lee-Soulaé - You have no idea 🌹

[24] Floetry - Say Yes (Official Video)

[25] Ibeyi – Juice of Mandarins (Official Lyric Video)

[26] Tanerélle - Let Me In (Official Lyric Video)

[27] Erykah Badu Orange Moon

[28] Angie Stone - Baby

[29] Ibeyi - Made of Gold feat. Pa Salieu (Official Music Video)

[30] Doechii - ALLIGATOR BITES NEVER HEAL (Audio)

[31] Everything Is Recorded - Never Felt Better (ft. Florence Welch & Sampha)

[32] Mary J. Blige - Be Without You (Official Music Video)

[33] Erykah Badu - Certainly (Live1997)

[34] Jazmine Sullivan - Girl Like Me (Live From the Tiny Desk Home Concert) ft. H.E.R.

[35] Sade - Room 55 (Audio)

[36] Nina Simone - You Don't Know What Love Is

[37] Celeste - Both Sides of the Moon (Live)

[38] Ayo - Love Song (Official video)

[39] Rorisang Sechele - Tsoga (Official Music Video)

[40] Kelela - Far Away (Official Video)

[41] Ravyn Lenae - One Wish feat. Childish Gambino (Official Music Video)

[42] Simply Falling - Iyeoka (Official Music Video)

[43] Angie Stone - Happy Being Me

[44] Lila Iké - Too Late to Lie (Official Video)

[45] Doechii - BLOOM (Audio)

[46] Kandace Springs - You Don't Know What Love Is

[47] Tems - Crazy Tings (Official Video)

[48] SZA - Good Days (Official Video)

[49] Tanerélle - Us (Visualizer)

[50] Tems - Love Me JeJe (Official Video)

[51] Sebastian Mikael - Time (Official Music Video)

[52] Aaliyah -Try Again (Original Video)

Angie Stone

It was easier to just copy the AI answer to NEO-SOUL.

Neo-soul is a subgenre of contemporary R&B that emerged in the late 1990s, blending classic soul sounds with elements of hip-hop, funk, rock, and electronic music, known for its conscious lyrics and strong female presence. 

Here's a more detailed look at neo-soul:

Key Characteristics:

• Blending of Genres:

  Neo-soul incorporates elements from various genres, including soul, hip-hop, funk, jazz, rock, and electronic music. 
• Conscious Lyrics:

  Neo-soul often features lyrics that address social and political issues, reflecting a sense of Black cultural consciousness. 
Strong Female Presence:
The genre has been noted for its prominent female artists and their contributions to the movement. 
Traditional R&B Influences:
Neo-soul draws heavily from the sounds and styles of classic R&B and soul music. 
Less Conventional Sound:
Compared to contemporary R&B, neo-soul often has a more experimental and less mainstream sound. 
Notable Artists:
Some of the most prominent neo-soul artists include D'Angelo, Erykah Badu, Maxwell, Lauryn Hill, Jill Scott, and Alicia Keys. 

Origins and History:

Late 1990s Emergence: The neo-soul movement emerged in the late 1990s, with artists like D'Angelo and Erykah Badu paving the way.
Roots in Progressive Soul and Jazz-Funk: Neo-soul has its roots in the 1970s progressive soul and jazz-funk movements.
The term "neo-soul" was coined by music industry entrepreneur Kedar Massenburg, according to Wikipedia, to market and describe the genre.
Many neo-soul artists were raised in an era of Black Power and soul music, which influenced their music and worldview. 

Examples of Neo-Soul Artists and Songs:

D'Angelo: "Brown Sugar," "Flyin' Away," "Voodoo" 
Erykah Badu: "On & On," "Love Higher," "Didn't Cha Know" 
Maxwell: "Sumthin' Sumthin'," "Get Along With You," "Golden" 
Lauryn Hill: "Doo Wop (That Thing)," "Ex-Factor," "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill" 
Jill Scott: "A Long Walk," "My Life," "I Wish" 
Alicia Keys: "You Don't Know My Name," "Fallin'," "If I Ain't Got You" 
Other Notable Artists: India.Arie, Musiq Soulchild, Raphael Saadiq, Angie Stone, and more 

Further Exploration:

For those interested in diving deeper into neo-soul, this guide from MasterClass provides a comprehensive overview of the genre's characteristics and notable artists. You can explore the historical context and cultural significance of neo-soul in this article from Carnegie Hall. To discover a curated selection of essential neo-soul tracks, check out this "Neo-Soul Essentials" playlist on Apple Music. If you're curious about the production side of neo-soul, this guide from UJAM offers insights into the genre's instrumentation and mixing techniques. Finally, for discussions and debates about the origins and definition of neo-soul, you can read this Reddit thread. 

FOUR INTERVIEWS WITH FOUR OF THE ARTISTS    

https://thenewsguru.com/news/i-love-kanye-west-tems-confesses/

https://www.allure.com/story/willow-cover-interview

https://thefortyfive.com/interviews/doechii-interview-alligator-bites-never-heal/

https://wwd.com/eye/people/h-e-r-reveals-all-identity-the-bay-area-prince-lauryn-hill-1202777633/

PICS OF SOME OF THE ARTISTS    

DOECHII

SZA

Rorisang Sechele

AYO

Lee-Soulaé

Chipego

WILLOW

TEMS

ERYKAH BADU

Mary J Blige

IBEYI

H.E.R.

Sade

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- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2504.14 - 10:10

- Days ago: MOM = 3574 days ago & DAD = 229 days ago

- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I post Hey Mom blog entries on special occasions. I post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day, and now I have a second count for Days since my Dad died on August 28, 2024. I am now in the same time zone as Google! So, when I post at 10:10 a.m. PDT to coincide with the time of Mom's death, I am now actually posting late, so it's really 1:10 p.m. EDT. But I will continue to use the time stamp of 10:10 a.m. to remember the time of her death and sometimes 13:40 EDT for the time of Dad's death. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.