Detroit soul artists get some ink in NYTimes

A couple of Detroit soul artists show up in a soul music run down feature in the NYTimes.

Excerpt:

Twenty years ago some of these records might have been called “quiet storm,” and nowadays there’s overlap between smooth jazz, gospel and adult-oriented R&B. Kem, who like K’Jon is from Detroit, has released a pair of albums, “Kemistry” and “Album II” (Motown), that have helped shape the genre’s sound.

Additionally, particularly for artists from the Midwest, adult soul is the soundtrack to dance night. K’Jon cut his teeth singing on the Detroit ballroom circuit: his most recent independent album, which also featured “On the Ocean,” was called “The Ballroom Xplosion” (Up & Up).

Detroit ballroom is a sister style to Chicago stepping, a scene that was given national attention when R. Kelly began incorporating its gently sliding sounds into his own; the second half of the video for “On the Ocean” is a compelling advertisement for the Detroit style, with its intricate twirls and zigzag footwork.

Read the entire article here.