Hip hop soul is sub-genre of Contemporary R&B which fuses R&B, neo soul, and dance elements with hip hop. The term did not originate until the promotion for Mary J. Blige's debut album What's the 411? in 1992 when Uptown Records proclaimed her to be the "Queen of Hip Hop Soul" and generally describes a style of music that blends soulful R&B singing and raw hip hop production. The genre served as a middle point between two other hip hop/R&B blends, new jack swing and neo soul, and while it was most popular during the mid-1990s with the "Queen of Hip Hop Soul" Mary J. Blige, Jodeci, and Aaliyah, it still finds popularity with newcomers such as Ashanti, Beyoncé, Alicia Keys, Keyshia Cole, and Amerie.