Behind the pen: 20 of the best songwriters in R&B history

Although Babyface has his own hit records, a lot of his accolades come from writing and producing songs for other artists. He’s not just one of the best songwriters in R&B, but he’s one of the best songwriters in general across different genres. His songwriting discography is massive; he’s written hit songs such as TLC’s “Baby, Baby, Baby,” Boyz II Men’s “End of the Road,” Whitney Houston’s “I’m Your Baby Tonight,” Bobby Brown’s “Every Little Step,” and Beyoncé’s “Best Thing I Never Had.”  

Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis have always been the production-songwriting duo that knows how to bring the best out of the artists they collaborate with. With over four decades in the business, they’ve been able to change the trajectory of many artists' careers. Some of the hit songs they’ve written include Mary J. Blige’s “No More Drama,” New Edition’s “Can You Stand the Rain,” Cheryl Lynn’s “Encore,” and Janet Jackson’s “I Get Lonely.” 

Missy Elliott is the definition of a renaissance woman: She’s a rapper, singer, producer, dancer, and songwriter for herself and other stars. It’s no easy feat to be the first female rapper inducted into the prestigious Songwriters Hall of Fame, but with a resume like Elliott’s, it’s an honor that was a long time coming. Throughout her career, she’s written classic R&B tracks such as Aaliyah’s “If Your Girl Only Knew,” Mya’s “My Love is Like…Wo,” 702’s “Where My Girls At,” and Jazmine Sullivan’s “Need U Bad,” just to name a few.

Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson had such an illustrious career. Not only were they husband and wife, but they were also singers and one of the most in-demand songwriting duos of our time. Throughout their career, they wrote some timeless classics such as’ “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” Ray Charles’ “Let’s Go Get Stoned,” Chaka Khan’s “I’m Every Woman,” and the Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell duet “You’re All I Need to Get By.” In 2002, Ashford and Simpson were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. 

Jermaine Dupri has always had an ear for talent, so it’s no wonder he started his own record label So So Def, in which he signed artists like Kris Kross, Da Brat, Jagged Edge, Bow Wow, and Xscape. In addition to finding talent and helping to mold them into stars, he’s also written hit songs for plenty of artists. He’s been the pen master behind a string of Billboard chart-toppers including Usher’s “Burn,” Jagged Edge’s “Where the Party At,” and Mariah Carey’s “We Belong Together.” In addition to working with legacy artists, he also works with the newer generation of R&B artists such as Muni Long and Ari Lennox. 

Curtis Mayfield started his career as a member of The Impressions before venturing into a solo career as an artist and songwriter. Throughout his career, he wrote hit songs such as Aretha Franklin’s “Something He Can Feel,” The Staples Singers’ “Let’s Do It Again,” and The Impressions’ “People Get Ready.” Some of his own hit songs include “Freddie’s Dead” and “Superfly.” A number of artists have sampled Mayfield’s discography including Drake, Mary J. Blige, Mac Miller, Lucky Daye, and Wale. 

In addition to crafting his own hits like “I Luv Your Girl” and “Rockin’ That Thang,” The-Dream knows how to work magic for some of the best R&B, hip-hop, and pop artists in the game. Throughout his career, he’s racked up accolades such as Songwriter of the Year at both the Billboard Awards and iHeart Radio Music Awards. Some of the songs he’s written include Mariah Carey’s “Obsessed,” Usher’s “Moving Mountains,” Mary J. Blige’s “Just Fine,” and Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)," which won a Grammy Award for Song of the Year.

Disco band Chic was formed in 1972 by Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers. In addition to creating the band’s hit songs like “Good Times” and “Le Freak,” Edwards and Rodgers were responsible for hits for several other artists. The duo wrote smash singles like Sister Sledge’s “We Are Family” and Diana Ross’ “I’m Coming Out.” 

Bryan-Michael Cox has over two decades in the industry and he’s worked with some of the best of the best. Throughout his career, he’s crafted some R&B favorites like Aaliyah’s “Come Over,” Chris Brown’s “Say Goodbye,” Jagged Edge’s “Let’s Get Married,” Mariah Carey’s “Shake It Off,” and Mary J. Blige’s “Be Without You,” (which Billboard named the most successful R&B song of all time). 

Singer, producer, musician, songwriter — Stevie Wonder just does it all. With a career spanning over six decades, not only has he written his own hit songs like “I Was Made to Love Her,” “Higher Ground,” and “As,” but he’s also been the pen master for other artists. Throughout the years, he’s written hit songs such as Michael Jackson’s “I Can’t Help It,” The Spinners’ “It’s a Shame,” and Rufus and Chaka Khan’s “Tell Me Something Good.” 

When it comes to the Philadelphia sound of the ‘70s that pushed R&B and soul groups to a new level, they have Thom Bell to thank for it. Throughout his career, he produced and wrote songs for a number of soulful artists including The Delfonics’ “La-La Means I Love You,” The Stylistics’ “You Are Everything” and The Spinners’ “I’l Be Around.” In 2006, Bell was inducted into the prestigious Songwriters Hall of Fame.

One of the cool things about Mariah Carey’s songwriting prowess is how she can improve a listener’s vocabulary. Some of her musical peers have stated that she brings a thesaurus with her to the recording studio, so that says a lot about how much she believes in lyrics telling the right stories. In her discography, she’s been known to use words that are not usually heard in everyday life like “acquiescent,” “ambivalent,” “ominously,” or “incessantly.” She even dropped an album in 2014 titled Me. I Am Mariah…The Elusive Chanteuse, it’s no wonder the Guinness Book of World Records coined Carey as the Songbird Supreme. Some of Carey’s hit songs include “Hero,” “Always Be My Baby,” “Honey,” and “We Belong Together.” 

Rodney Jerkins is a songwriter and producer who took over R&B and pop in the ‘90s and 2000s. Some of the most memorable songs that he wrote for other artists include Mary J. Blige’s “I Can Love You,” Michael Jackson’s “You Rock My World,” Destiny’s Child’s “Say My Name,” Whitney Houston’s “It’s Not Right But It’s Okay,” Beyoncé’s “Deja Vu,” and the Brandy and Monica duet “The Boy is Mine.” To this day, he’s still writing hits for artists like H.E.R., Summer Walker, Khalid, and SZA. 

Dallas Austin has been in the music industry since the late '80s, but started to hit his stride as a producer and songwriter in the ‘90s and beyond. Austin is most known for writing songs such as Boyz II Men’s “Motownphilly,” Blu Cantrell’s “Hit ‘Em Up Style (Oops),” Monica’s “Don’t Take It Personal,” and TLC’s “Creep.” In 2019, Austin was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. 

Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff were an in-demand songwriting and production duo, who helped usher in the Philadelphia soul sound of the ‘70s. Gamble and Huff were all over the R&B soul sound, crafting hits like The O’Jays’ “Back Stabbers,” The Jacksons’ “Show You the Way to Go,” Billy Paul’s “Me and Mrs. Jones,” The Intruders’ “Cowboys to Girls,” and Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes’ “If You Don’t Know Me By Now.” Not only are they proud Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees, but their catalog has been sampled by several artists such as Jay Z, Angie Stone, Mary J. Blige, Kanye West, and more. 

Teddy Riley is a singer, producer, and songwriter known as the creator of his own subgenre — new jack swing — in which he infused sounds of hip-hop, pop, and R&B. Throughout Riley’s career, he’s crafted hit songs such as Guy’s “Let’s Chill,” Blackstreet’s “Don’t Leave Me,” Keith Sweat’s “Make It Last Forever,” and Michael Jackson’s "Remember the Time." In 2023, Riley was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. 

Smokey Robinson was the founder and lead singer of his soulful group The Miracles. In addition to writing hit songs for the group like “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me” and “Ooo Baby Baby,” Robinson’s songwriting helped turn the Motown Records label into a powerhouse. He wrote songs for other artists including Mary Wells’ “My Guy,” The Supremes’ “The Composer,” and The Temptations’ “My Girl.” 

When people think of Michael Jackson, they typically think of him as a singer and show-stopping performer, but the man also known as the King of Pop was quite the songwriter as well. Not only did he contribute to songs by The Jacksons such as “Can You Feel It,” and “This Place Hotel,” but he also penned his own hits such as “Billie Jean,” “Beat It,” “The Way You Make Me Feel,” and “Heal the World.” With over 200 songs written in his arsenal, he became a Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee in 2002. 

LaShawn Daniels was a songwriter and vocal arranger who often worked closely with Rodney Jerkins. Throughout his career, he penned some classic hits such as Destiny’s Child’s “Lose My Breath,” Tamar Braxton’s “Love and War,” Brandy’s “What About Us?,” Janet Jackson’s “Feedback,” and Toni Braxton’s “He Wasn’t Man Enough.” 

R&B fans have plenty of songs from the ‘90s and 2000s to thank Johnta Austin for. Throughout his career, he’s penned classics such as Tyrese’s “Sweet Lady,” Aaliyah’s “I Don’t Wanna,” Chris Brown’s “Yo (Excuse Me Miss),” Trey Songz’ “Can’t Help But Wait,” and Mary J. Blige’s “Be Without You.” He also contributed to several songs on Mariah Carey's 2005 album The Emancipation of Mimi, including “It’s Like That,” “Shake It Off,” and “We Belong Together.” In 2010, ASCAP named “We Belong Together” as the song of the decade.