It’s About Time

Guided by three friends from Brooklyn and the Bronx, <i>It’s About Time</i> kicked off a new R&B era by encouraging young, black female artists to be themselves. “Blak Pudd’n” and “Downtown” address sex from a lady’s perspective, while SWV take control of a hip-hop beat on “Anything.” With a hook you simply can’t get out of your head, “Weak” is a ’90s R&B standard, but it’s “That’s What I Need” and “You’re Always On My Mind”—a pair of lush, hypnotic ballads—that epitomize the trio’s mature-beyond-their-years vibe.