R&B in the Korean music scene has always eluded me. I have no intention of delving too deep unless given a reason, so I stick with what K Pop has to offer. Unfortunately I always get the same things over and over again.
Musically R&B has to find a place somewhere. In the US, there are few acts who exist in the mainstream but keep their R&B roots. Contemporary R&B usually exist to allow for a larger population to enjoy your work. However R&B in itself is still a more or less thriving genre. It is not as popular as it once was, but still holds success and is slowly blooming musically.
In SK however, it seems R&B does not have the same weight as it could in the states. Despite not being the popular choice, some how Idol pop has taken over. Within idol pop, a lot of the creative ability, and possible musical aspirations are stripped for popularity and success (which in itself is never guaranteed).
All this is to say that Korean R&B does not have the same value as it would in the states. There are not many singers who I would dub with the R&B title, or even sing R&B music.
JYP has a more rhythmic quality to their music, while YG is basically black people inspire us, so they sometimes have R&B motifs. SM is generally strict pop, however with certain groups like SHINee and TVXQ they will insert R&B (notice these two groups are considerably flexible groups). However you have very few singers who are R&B in style.
Baek Yerin of 15&, Taeyang of Big Bang, and Kyungsoo from Exo are three who I immediately think of as R&B singers. Others just get away with easy enough imitations (and a lot of riffing and running).
Me personally, R&B singers have a certain style to them. They grew up listening to it, and sing in a certain way and it is clear.
It's rarely about tone.
ANYWAY...LONG INTRODUCTION TO SAY THAT THERE IS AN R&B SINGER NAMED CRUSH.
Crush: Hug Me (ft. Gaeko)
It's very typical in R&B sound, but it doesn't sound like 2007-2008, which is a positive. Also the video is so mid 2000's. The overall aesthetic is pretty typical in my opinion. However it is nice to have someone who exist outside the norm of K Pop. He released an ep, so be on the look out for that.
