Chinese R&B music is a genre that blends soulful vocals, contemporary R&B and pop beats, cultural fusion, and creative lyrics that create a unique music style.

Over the past decade, it has grown into a vibrant scene, with artists experimenting with Western-style beats while incorporating Chinese lyrics and traditional elements. Whether you’re looking for soothing ballads, upbeat grooves, or innovative sounds that push the boundaries of what is considered R&B, Chinese R&B offers a diverse and exciting listening experience. Even more so for those like me who value Asian cultures and Asian music, regardless of whether I understand the lyrics fully or not.

In this article, I will be introducing some must-listen-to Chinese R&B artists and some of their songs that I have come to love.

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Chinese Artist Recommendations

Sunkis

Sunkis is probably one of my favorite Chinese artists! He’s Taiwanese American, and I definitely think that makes his music even more delightful to me. Interestingly enough, I had actually originally found him through his sister because I watched one of her vlogs from their trip to Taiwan, but at the time I didn’t even know it was him which I thought was funny.

I mean it wholeheartedly when I say I have yet to hear a song of his that I don’t rock with! He has a very smooth voice, and his vocals always match the beats perfectly! He’s a mix of pop and R&B, which its my vibe. Not only does he blend Chinese and English together in his music so deliciously, his music videos are very aesthetically pleasing and the topics in his songs are relatable. I believe he’s only a few years older than me. [A/N: He’s 26 I discovered, so I was correct]. I think this fact also just makes me like him and his music even more. Plus I have eyes, and he’s a very attractive man. Who doesn’t like an attractive man with a beautiful voice? But I digress.

Here are some of my favorite songs of his:

J.Sheon

J.Sheon’s has always been a hit for me since I found his music. I believe I found him randomly on YouTube through a Youtube recommendation while listening to Emily Mei’s song Venom. Around that time I had been trying to get into more Chinese R&B songs, especially by Taiwanese artists, so when I saw J.Sheon’s song called 別問很可怕 [Don’t Ask] I clicked it. I immediately liked it and looked into the lyrics, which I also thought were good, and then that made me look up more of his songs.

His vocals always match so well with the melodies in his music and he also sings so well in English and Chinese. Not to mention his music videos are always so visually pleasing and have really good fashion! He’s very good at conveying certain emotions through his voice and his visualizations, and I could understand what was being conveyed without even really knowing the lyrics. You can vibe from the melody alone, that’s how good he is!

Here are some of my favorite songs of his:

Karencici

Like J.Sheon, I also found her randomly. I was on TikTok and came across a post about “people sleeping on Chinese R&B” and I had to stop and watch. In the TikTok video, Karencici’s song Bad Girls Behave played and it was an instant I need to find that song. I kid you not it took me far too long to find the name of the song and who it was by, which made me mad but I was determined. Once I finally found her, I added that song and I kid you not the video was fire. It was absolutely a late 90s, early 2000s R&B vibe that I was rocking with, and the choreography and fashion were chief kiss!

Of course, after seeing how tea that song was I had to go find more by her, and she kept that same pattern going in all her music videos. The fashion was perfect, the vibe of the music video was delicious, and her voice gave exactly what it should regardless if she sang in Chinese or English! Like Sunkis, she’s also a handful of years older than me, so the topics in her songs I could resonate with and that just gave her more brownie points.

Here are some of my favorite songs of hers:

The Crane [鶴]

The Crane was one I hadn’t immediately liked, cause it was different than the music I normally listen to but after listening to his music a few times I was rocking with it. I’m pretty sure I found him through an ad on Instagram, and at first, I almost dismissed it because the video was odd and then looked like a high-quality ’80s food commercial at one point. But for some reason, I waited and watched it and then I actually listened to music and it was a vibe!

His music is perfect to just vibe with in the comfort of your room, or while studying. To me, he’s a mix of R&B and kind of Jazz-like. His beautiful vocals are very low and smooth, which always fits his smooth beats perfectly, and I also really like his lyrics and fashion! Not to mention, his music videos are really fascinating, sometimes you probably wouldn’t be able to tell what the song is about based on the video itself. I think that’s also why I like his music and the videos, you actually have to think about what he’s trying to convey. He has a very artistic and individualized style to his craft, from the video and lyrics to the fashion and beats.

Here are some of my favorite songs of his:

Khalil Fong [方大同]

I actually discovered Khalil through a Chinese friend of mine who I had asked for some Chinese R&B recommendations from. My friend had sent me Khalil’s song Love Song. At the time, I was still at a very elementary level in my Chinese learning so I don’t think I knew a single word he said that wasn’t English, but I could very much hear the R&B in his voice immediately without even knowing the lyrics. This instantly motivated me to research him and listen to more of his music.

This man is basically the pioneer of Chinese R&B and he’s well known, which I thought was freaking cool. His vocals are so beautiful with an obvious 90s, 2000s R&B quality to it. He brings a very unique style that is a distinct fusion of Chinese and Western R&B styles. Everything from his music video to the lyrics to his raw vocals and how they match with the beat is very R&B. While his videos are definitely old and low quality, they just add to the vibes! His voice is so soothing to listen to and he’s amazing at conveying emotions through his words, even if you can’t understand. His vocal skills are superb.

Here are some of my favorite songs of his:

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Definitely check out these artists! They deserve the recognition and you won’t regret listening to them. Not only do all of them have unique vocals, but all of them use very pleasing visuals, and even if you don’t know what they’re saying sometimes, the vocals, vibes, and melodies are enough incentives to add them to your playlists!

Feel free to leave a comment if you know any of these artists or if you checked them out and gave them a listen after reading this article!