It may not have been a good week in Washington or in Iraq (is it ever?), but this week has certainly been good for soul music fans. Here are four r&b artists that P+P thinks you could use to update your music library.

Amy Winehouse is a British jazz and soul singer who recently made her debut in the U.S. with her second album entitled Back to Black, out last Tuesday. I first heard her music while listening to my launchcast player on yahoo music (an excellent source for internet radio because it allows you to customize what you hear while randomly selecting music that it thinks you might like). Her style of soul with its punkish, bluesy vibe is a definite throwback, nothing I’ve ever heard before. This past February she won a Brit Award (the equivalent of the Grammy’s) for Best British Female Artist. Her first album, Frank released in 2003 went Platinum and earned a #13 spot on the UK charts.

Another Brit is making moves on the airwaves with the release of her third album, Introducing Joss Stone, hitting stores this past Tuesday. Nineteen-year-old Joss Stone, a native of Dover, Kent, England, first caught the attention of the American music scene in 2003 with the release of her debut album, The Soul Sessions. Since then, she has gone on to perform with big names like Stevie Wonder, Blondie, and Gladys Knight. Switching from innocent blonde to funky redhead, Stone has a completely new attitude with this album. Highlights on the album are the collabos with Lauryn Hill and Common, and her new 70s’ish-style single “Tell Me About It.”

Atlanta-native Lloyd also released his second album last week, entitled Street Love. His single “You” featuring Lil’ Wayne currently sits at #9 on Billboard’s U.S. Hot 100 chart. His R&B sound is more hip-hop than soul. I was not very impressed when he first debuted in 2004 with his single “Southside,” a duet with Ashanti. But with his latest album I think Lloyd has the potential to reach Usher status. If you like r&b and club beats, then you’ll definitely enjoy this cd.

Musiq Soulchild is back again with his fourth album, Luvanmusiq. Trying to take a more hip-hop approach this time around, the album definitely does not do him justice like his previous three albums. But his unique, soulful voice is still there. With only about three or four solid tracks on this cd, it’s probably best to shop this one on iTunes. Otherwise, it serves as good, chill background music.