A successful relationship requires a little give and take. So sings Joe on his new single “Compromise,” the official second single off his upcoming album, Doubleback: The Evolution of R&B, following the well received “I’d Rather Have A Love.”

‘Compromise/Let’s chop it up and get to a solution/Ain’t no need to take it there/It’s called a compromise/Make a love 365 day resolution,’ sings Joe over the bass-heavy track.

Indie R&B/soul songstress Algebra Blessett is starting the summer off on a high note with the release of “Nobody But You,”  the first single off her sophomore album, Recovery.

Produced by Shannon Sanders (he produced Anthony David’s “”Can’t Look Down”), the mid-tempo ballad is a feel good track that celebrates the monogamy.

Recovery will feature production Kwamé Holland, and Bryan-Michael Cox; and will be released later this year.

Flashback 15 years ago this week. The Year is 1998. Bill Clinton is President of The United States, gas is $1.15 per gallon, and Brandy and Monica’s Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins-produced duet “The Boy Is Mine” is enjoying it’s third week atop Billboard’s R&B Singles chart—a spot it would hold for a eight weeks.

The song, which was likened to the new age female answer to Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney’s 1982 duet “The Girl Is Mine,” found the two stars feuding over winning the affection of the same man.

Aside from being a chart topping R&B hit, “The Boy Is Mine” peaked at number one of the Hot 100 charts for a record breaking 13 weeks, becoming one of the longest running  number-one songs in music history. Unsurprisingly it sold nearly 3 million copies, and helped the two singers take home the Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.

Although the ladies musically reunited for 2011’s “It All Belongs To Me,” “The Boy Is Mine” will go down in history as their greatest collaboration, and according to Billboard, one of The 40 Biggest Duets of All Time.

#RetroCentric

On my list of powerhouse vocalists who didn’t get and haven’t gotten their just due, Tanya Blount is definitely in the top 10. The Washington D.C. native is best known for her supporting role in the 1992 film ‘Sister Act 2: Back In The Habit,’ which found her singing a game-changing rendition of “His Eye Is On The Sparrow” alongside Lauryn Hill, a ‘Girl-you-betta-sing’ inducing contribution on the cast’s cover of Ashford & Simpson’s “Ain’t Not Mountain High Enough,” and a soulful spin on the nursery rhyme “Mary Had A Little Lamb.” Simply put, the girl can sing, but things never really took off for her musically.

Unfortunately her 1994 debut album, Natural Thing, wasn’t a huge success. The project spawned only one top 40 Billboard R&B hit, “Through the Rain,” while two other singles—”I’m Gonna Make You Mine” (#57) and “Hold On” (#66)—failed to match or surpass the “success” of “Rain.”

Fastforward to 2013. In the nearly 20 years since her debut, Blount has stayed busy doing stage plays, recorded “Right Here” for the soundtrack of Tyler Perry’s 2008 film The Family That Preys, raising four children, and being married to gospel singer, Michael Trotter. But now, she’s making her way back to music—finally.

The now thirty-something songstress has released “Butterfly Beautiful,” an inspirational ballad that finds her embracing her beauty, strength and voice in a sea of opposition.

While the song feels unpolished production wise in some parts, and showcases the fact that Blount doesn’t have that crisp ping of yore, her vocal prowess is undeniable, and unmatched by many of music’s most successful.

Welcome back Tanya…

— @iamjustinjoseph

Listen to “Butterfly Beautiful” below:

India Arie has never assimilated her sound to the norms of popular music, and she doesn’t plan on conforming anytime soon. The four-time Grammy winner has released “Just Do You,” a veritable anthem of personal strength, and the second single off her upcoming album, SongVersation.

While the song sounds sonically like Arie’s good friend and sometime collaborator Anthony David’s “Can’t Look Down”—maybe a result of them both being produced by Shannon Sanders—the piano driven tune is definitely true to form Arie.

SongVersation will be available on June 25.

Looks like Estelle is out to heat up the summer! The UK singer is releasing a string of new songs via her new EP series, Love & Happiness. The latest: “Till Tomorrow” and “Whatever You Like.”

The two singles offer fans a different side of the Grammy winning artist.  “Till Tomorrow,” is a groove-heavy cut, complete with a hard hitting hip-hop beat offset by a jazz tinged piano. While “Whatever You Like” featuring Roses Gabor finds her in a smooth, bright place. Both prove to be quite the departure from her past offerings, but it’s a welcomed departure.

The songs are featured on ‘Love Jones,’ the first volume of her new EP series ‘Love & Happiness,’ alongside the recently released “Call These Boys.”

The upcoming EP’s include Vol. 2: Waiting to Exhale, and Vol. 3: How Stella Got Her Groove Back.

Listen to “”Till Tomorrow” and “Whatever You Like,” and download the “Love Jones” EP at estelledarlings.com

How should you be spending your summer? On a beach? Maybe. At Happy Hour? Perhaps. Driving around with the windows rolled down and Yuna’s “I Wanna Go” blasting through the stereo? Absolutely.

The Malaysian singer-songwriter will have you California-dreaming with her latest release, that is the musical equivalent of a cool breeze. Thankfully the video doesn’t stray far from that easy-breezy spirit, finding her skating, dancing and frolicking among the flowers as her photographer love interest follows closely.

“I Wanna Go” is the first single off her recently released Sixth Street EP.

John Legend is proving he is truly what’s good in music! The Grammy winning singer/songwriter has released “Made To Love,” a Kanye West-produced track that comes with all the hand-claps, drums, and vocal sampling a fan of West’s 2008 album 808s and Heartbreaks could desire.

“Made To Love” is the latest single off Legend’s upcoming album, Love In The Future.

What say you? HIT OR MISS?

Using never-before heard vocals from the late Aaliyah, Chris Brown’s latest single “Don’t Think They Know” is definitely a milestone in the legacy of the R&B singer who died in a tragic plane crash in 2001.

The song is the follow-up to Brown’s hit single, “Fine China,” and the latest single off Brown’s upcoming album, X, slated for release on July 16.

What say you? HIT OR MISS?

For two decades, R. Kelly has created some of R&B’s greatest love songs. From his breakout Public Announcement assisted 1992 album, Born Into The 90s, to 2012’s Write Me Back—not to mention his catalog of songs written for other artists—Kellz has created the perfect soundtrack for all areas of your love life—the good, the bad, and the sexy. In celebration of Centric’s upcoming #RKWeekend, we’ve named R. Kelly’s Top Ten Love Songs in no particular order below:

1. “It Seems Like You’re Ready”
Album: 12 Play (1993)

2. “I Can’t Sleep Baby (If I)”
Album: R. Kelly (1995)

3. “Just Like That”
Album: TP2.com (2000)

4. “Never Leave”
Album: Chocolate Factory (2003)

5. “Half On A Baby”
Album: R (1998)

6. “Step In The Name Of Love”
Album: Chocolate Factory (2003)

7. “When A Woman Loves”
Album: Love Letter (2010)

8. “Love Letter”
Album: Love Letter (2010)

9. “Dedicated”
Album: Born into the 90s (1992)

10. “If I Could Turn Back the Hands of Time”
Album: R (1998)

Tune in this Saturday, June 22 at 8P/7C  for Centric’s R. Kelly Takeover Weekend in celebration of Black Music Month.

#RKWeekend