K. Michelle

An R&B singer who blends searing honesty with modern soul music, Memphis-born K. Michelle revelled in her fully realized self in her music and on TV during the 2010s and ’20s. After abandoning her law-school plans to pursue music full time, K. Michelle signed her first record deal in 2009; her first single was the jittery collaboration with hip-hop doyenne Missy Elliott “Fakin’ It,” but its attendant album was cancelled because of a label-reorganization shuffle. K. Michelle took that as an opportunity, though, releasing a series of mixtapes that had her playing around with current R&B hits and, in 2012, joining the cast of VH1’s Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta. That upped her profile, and in 2013 she released her major-label debut, Rebellious Soul, which showcased her versatile lyricism and formidable voice on tracks like “Can’t Raise a Man” and “Pay My Bills.” Since then, she’s balanced her reality-TV notoriety with increasingly strong albums that have revealed the breadth of her musical background. More Issues Than Vogue, released in 2016, invited Jason Derulo along for the ride on the whooping “Make the Bed,” while 2020’s All Monsters Are Human brought a bit of country twang into the mix on “All the Lovers” and some bedroom vibes to a New Edition classic on “The Rain.”