Presented anonymously, contemporary R&B artist H.E.R. debuted on major-label RCA in 2016. H.E.R., Vol. 1, released for streaming and as a download that September, was a seven-track EP of downcast post-breakup material, mostly ballads, that sounded both vulnerable and assured. Promotion was limited, but labelmates Alicia Keys and Bryson Tiller helped spread the word through social media. Among the selections was a cover of Drake’s “Jungle,” which helped send the set to number 28 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. A similarly styled follow-up, H.E.R., Vol. 2, arrived in June 2017.