What makes a great R&B video? Charisma. Choreography. Sensuality. The kind of moving image that becomes impossible to shake every time you hear a song. In the '90s, R&B music videos were in their prime, and just as compelling as the gangster rap epics that dominated much of the decade. R&B artists had to step up with classic clips that might not have been as uptempo as everything else on MTV, but still evoked feelings of love and left people wanting to see them again the second they ended.
The era yielded endless sets of iconic imagery, the influence of which still persists to this day. Some heavyweights absolutely dominated this golden era of rhythm and blues visuals, while others made a brief, but grand, impression and faded away. Whether you're getting ready to argue this, or getting ready to bump-and-grind, these are The Best R&B Videos of the 90s for you to play for any occasion.
Janet Jackson "Go Deep" (1998)
TLC "Unpretty" (1999)
Brandy "Baby" (1995)
Mya f/ Silkk The Shocker "Movin' On" (1998)
Aaliyah "One in a Million" (1996)
Ginuwine "Pony" (1996)
R. Kelly "I Believe I Can Fly" (1996)
Monica "The First Night" (1998)
H-Town "Knockin the Boots" (1993)
Donell Jones f/ Left Eye "U Know What's Up" (1999)
Dru Hill "These Are The Times" (1998)
Keith Sweat "Twisted" (1996)
K-Ci and JoJo "All My Life" (1998)
Boyz II Men "Water Runs Dry" (1995)
Brian McKnight "Anytime" (1997)
Usher "My Way" (1998)
Aaron Hall "I Miss You" (1993)
D'Angelo "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" (1999)
Next "Too Close" (1998)
Jodeci "Get On Up" (1995)
TLC "Creep" (1994)
Mariah Carey "Always Be My Baby" (1996)
Bell Biv Devoe "Poison" (1990)
Sade "Cherish The Day" (1993)
Destiny's Child "Bills Bills Bills" (1999)
Montell Jordan "This Is How We Do It" (1995)
Brandy and Monica "The Boy Is Mine" (1998)
Mariah Carey f/ Ol' Dirty Bastard "Fantasy (Remix)" (1995)
Total "Can't You See?" (1995)
Whitney Houston "I'm Every Woman" (1992)
TLC "What About Your Friends" (1992)
20. TLC "What About Your Friends" (1992)
Director: Lionel C. Martin
Album: Ooooooohhh.... On The TLC Tip
Talk about a time trip. Before TLC became the representation of sexuality and class with CrazySexyCool, the trio looked more like by-products of the New Jack era. Not that this was a bad thing, because it did give us this "What About Your Friends" video. The fashion choices—especially the late-Left Eye's huge top hat and that famous condom covering her left len—was so ahead of its time that it's ironically become timeless. It's something special to see the girls having so much fun, at the very beginning of their careers, too. —Brian Josephs