70s Soul Music: The Artists Who Redefined a Genre

70s soul music picked up where Motown's tightly controlled hit machine left off.

It pushed the genre somewhere far more personal.

Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder led the way.

They used their newfound creative freedom to write about the world instead of just romance.

From there, the decade split into a dozen different directions at once.

Lush Philadelphia orchestration
Darker, funk-driven introspection
Cinematic soundtrack work
The eventual sparkle of disco

This is a look at the artists and records that shaped 70s soul music.

It's one of the richest stretches in the genre's history.

Hand-drawn Sketch Note infographic about 70s soul music, showing a 14-year-old Michael Jackson singing Ben, Johnnie Taylor's platinum single Disco Lady, and MFSB's TSOP, the Sound of Philadelphia

The songs and movements that shaped 70s soul music.

Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder Broke Free From Motown

By the 70s, Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder had spent most of the previous decade inside Motown.

That system was famous for its tight creative control.

Once that grip loosened, both artists used the moment to push soul music into more ambitious, more personal territory.

Gaye's work covered remarkable range in this era.

"What's Going On": confronted war, poverty, and political unrest directly.
"Let's Get It On": turned toward something far more intimate.
"Got to Give It Up": proved he could fill a dancefloor too.

Wonder covered similarly wide ground, from the jazz-influenced tribute "Sir Duke" to the deeply autobiographical "I Wish."

Together, they set the tone for the rest of the decade.

Soul music could be socially conscious and deeply personal, yet still built for the radio.

Both artists proved a hit record and a real message weren't mutually exclusive.

Curious which other 70s soul acts you'd land on next?

Our Random Artist Picker pulls a new one every time.

Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff Built the Philly Soul Sound

Gaye and Wonder expanded what soul music could say.

Songwriters and producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff expanded what it could sound like.

Known as the architects of Philly soul, the pair built lush, string-laden arrangements.

Those arrangements sat over grooves that never lost their pull on the dancefloor.

That sound found its clearest statement in "TSOP," short for "The Sound of Philadelphia."

The instrumental, performed by the studio group MFSB, ended up defining an entire regional movement.

Philly soul's influence reached far beyond any single artist.

It shaped the production style that countless soul and disco records borrowed from.

That influence lasted the rest of the decade.

The lush, orchestral approach would even shape disco's string-heavy sound later on.

Soul Turned Inward: Sly & The Family Stone and The Temptations

Not every direction 70s soul music took was upbeat.

Sly & The Family Stone's "Family Affair" traded the band's earlier brightness for a moody, minimalist groove.

That shift signaled a darker, more introspective turn for the genre.

The Temptations went through a similar shift.

They moved from Motown-era pop structure into psychedelic soul territory.

Tracks like "Ball of Confusion" and "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" both opened with long, dramatic intros.

Those intros mirrored the chaos of the era.

Both records still found major commercial success despite their heavier subject matter.

That willingness to sit in discomfort, rather than resolve it quickly, stands out.

It's part of what makes this stretch of 70s soul music still feel vivid decades later.

Cinematic Funk and a Teenage Voice

Isaac Hayes took soul in a different direction entirely with "Theme from Shaft."

He brought a cinematic, funk-driven sound to film scoring.

The track set a new standard for what Black cool could sound like on screen.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, a 14-year-old Michael Jackson delivered something unexpected.

His vocal on the tender ballad "Ben" showed startling emotional maturity for his age.

That range, from Hayes' sweeping orchestral funk to a teenager singing with real emotional depth, is striking.

It shows just how much room 70s soul music made for completely different kinds of artistry.

70s Soul Music's Disco Turn

By the middle of the decade, soul's grooves had started accelerating into something new.

Johnnie Taylor's "Disco Lady" became one of the first singles ever to be certified platinum.
Donna Summer pushed disco into bolder territory, adding rock guitar to "Hot Stuff" and daring sensuality to "Love to Love You Baby," earning her the title Queen of Disco.
Chic's "Good Times" paired Nile Rodgers' guitar work with Bernard Edwards' bassline, a combination that went on to directly shape the sound of early hip-hop.

70s soul music never stopped evolving, right through to its disco period.

That final stretch of the decade shows how directly disco grew out of soul and funk.

It didn't appear out of nowhere.

The dancefloor sound of the late 70s was still soul music at its core.

It was just sped up for the club.

Want to hear how these tracks stack up against other decade favorites?

Our Random 70s Song Generator pulls a new one with every spin.

For a wider look at where rock was headed at the same time, see our 70s Rock retrospective.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who were the most influential 70s soul music artists?

Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder led the genre's shift toward more personal, socially conscious songwriting.

Producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff shaped its sound through the Philly soul movement.

Isaac Hayes, Donna Summer, and The Temptations each pushed the genre in different directions.

Those directions ranged from cinematic funk to disco to psychedelic soul.

What is Philly soul?

Philly soul was a sound built by producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff.

It's known for lush, string-laden arrangements layered over dance-ready grooves.

Its defining statement was "TSOP," short for "The Sound of Philadelphia."

That instrumental, performed by the studio group MFSB, became one of the movement's most recognizable tracks.

How is 70s soul music connected to disco?

Disco grew directly out of soul and funk rather than emerging as a separate genre.

Tracks like Johnnie Taylor's platinum-certified "Disco Lady" and Chic's "Good Times" show that connection clearly.

Chic's groove in particular went on to directly influence the sound of early hip-hop.

Was Michael Jackson part of the 70s soul scene?

Michael Jackson was part of the 70s soul scene.

He was just 14 years old when he recorded the tender ballad "Ben."

That performance showed real emotional depth at a young age.

His solo career didn't fully take off until later in the decade.

How did soul music change after the Motown era?

Artists like Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder gained newfound creative freedom outside Motown's tightly controlled structure.

They used that freedom to write about social and political issues, not just romance.

That shift opened the door for soul to become more introspective and experimental.

It eventually evolved into disco by the end of the decade.