Introduction
“B.S.” by Jhené Aiko and “Be Without You” by Mary J. Blige are songs in the blues genre and rhythm; however, the two songs are over a decade apart. “B.S.” was released in 2020, and “Be Without You” was published in 2005. Every artist’s style is exceptional; however, they connect the audience in one genre, in that they value the soulful view of the songs. Thus, to understand these songs more and their importance in the music business, this paper compares and contrasts the two songs: “B.S.” by Jhené Aiko and “Be Without You” by Mary J. Blige. Both “B.S.” and “Be Without You” assist the audience to dig into a soulful aspect since they can acquaint their life encounters with the examples the artists convey in their melodies. Besides, the songs narrate stories that seize the audience’s thoughts from the start so that they can establish the plot of the narratives. Whereas both Aiko and Blige’s songs share particular similarities, the two songs differ in several ways, such as social aspects. In “B.S.,” there is an aspect of women empowerment that exists in the current world such that women artists like Aiko express their ability to let go of relationships or be without a man if they are not by their wishes (Aiko). On the other hand, RnB legends like Blige gravitated toward love and struggled for it irrespective of the fights (Blige). The similarities and differences these songs portray help listeners understand how music genres keep changing as years pass and producers and singers continue to discover new ideas.
Discussion
Aiko and Blige’s songs have similarities in the perspective of chord changes, rhythm, feeling, and melody. The melodies in both “Be Without You” and “B.S.” songs incline towards each other since it is simple to comprehend the words according to the average momentum. As a result, the audience digs into a soulful aspect so that they acquaint their life encounters with the examples the singers convey in their songs. Blige’s singing emanates from the point of pain since she sings about how she plans to go beyond the relationship she strives for with her partner and settle with him. Additionally, she explains the agony in her heart when she is not with her partner (Blige). Likewise, Aiko’s singing is grounded on the agony in such a way that she articulates how she is wary of being unacknowledged by the gentleman she adores (Aiko). Thus, the soulful feeling in both incidences echoes with calm and warm melodies.
The rhythm in both “B.S.” and “Be Without You” songs is also the same due to the chord changes and arrangement of the beats. The piano keys audibly display a soft tune that slides with the rhythms to unite with soulful lyrics. Thus, with such rhythms, listeners can understand the motions of the two songs and how they keep on moving. Furthermore, both “B.S.” by Aiko and “Be Without You” by Blige songs narrate stories that seize the attention of the audience from the start to the end. This enables the audience to establish the plot of the narratives.
Even though both “B.S.” by Aiko and “Be Without You” by Blige songs share particular similarities, such as rhythms and a soulful plea to the audience, the two pieces differ in many ways, such as social viewpoint, lyrics, and the setting of the song structure, and vocal richness. First, songs in the current years, such as “B.S.” by Aiko, contain fewer words than those of the past, like “Be Without You” by Blige. Current RnB artists like Aiko concentrate on beat dynamics and a slight lyrical demonstration (Aiko). On the contrary, RnB singers of the earlier decades like Blige concentrated on the storytelling features and richness of the words. Hence, Blige’s song, “Be Without You,” has a deep storytelling feature than Aiko’s song, “B.S.” (Blige). Moreover, the lyrics convey different ideas; thus, one can connect such differences to the social context of every musician.
Second, in “B.S.” by Aiko, there is a component of women empowerment that prevails in the current world in such a way that women musicians like Aiko express their ability to let go of relationships or be without a spouse if such spouses are not by their wishes (Aiko). On the other side, RnB legends like Blige gravitated toward love and battling for it irrespective of the battles. Thus, Blige is not ready to let go of her relationship with her partner. Besides, she is prepared to go beyond relationship struggles with her man and settle with him. Third, the structure of “B.S.” lacks a bridge due to the freestyling component. On the contrary, “Be Without You” tails a verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge plan. This implies that bridges are not compulsory in songs since they are just a way of putting another feature of emotional effect to the song. Last, the vocal strength in Blige’s song is obvious since it is established in the improvisation, vocal twists, and dynamic harmonies. On the contrary, Aiko’s song contains great connections; however, the changing vocal aspects are restricted. Hence, it operates as an optimistic kind of music, helping the audience understand the messages.
Conclusion
In summary, song genres keep changing as the decade passes since producers and artists discover different dynamics in the musical and social setting. However, the melody, tempo, and rhythm similarities underline blues and rhythm as common genres in the music business. Even though both “B.S.” and “Be Without You” songs share particular similarities, such as a soulful plea to the audience, the two songs differ in many ways, such as social viewpoint, lyrics, and the setting of the song structure, and vocal richness. Based on the social context, “Be Without You” by Blige advises listeners to fight for their loved ones regardless of their challenges. On the contrary, “B.S.” by Aiko empowers women to let go of relationships that do not go according to their desires.
Work Cited
“Jhené Aiko – B.S. [Remix] Lyrics | Lyrics.Com.” Lyrics.Com, 2020, https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/37417332/Jhen%C3%A9+Aiko/B.S.+%5BRemix%5D.
“Mary J. Blige – Be Without You Lyrics | Genius Lyrics.” Genius, 2005, https://genius.com/Mary-j-blige-be-without-you-lyrics.
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