Diary of A Mad Band by Jodeci
Released: December 21st, 1993
Coming in just as the year wound down, Jodeci’s second album (like R. Kelly’s 12 Play) is an important moment in contemporary R&B. It was one of the albums that helped close the door on the New Jack Swing era, giving way to “hip-hop soul,” a sound that was somehow both more aggressively tied to hip-hop while also more musically organic and classic soul-influenced. At the helm was DeVante Swing, who’s productions would come to redefine the genre.