The term "Rhythm and Blues" or "R&B" was coined by Jerry Wexler (who went on to be a famous record company executive and producer) when he was working as a journalist at *Billboard* Magazine, circa 1952. ([Wikipedia link][1]). *Billboard* published a weekly chart displaying their estimates of the relative position of retail sales of single recordings which were also broadcast on radio stations with an African-American audience, and the chart was called "Race" (as in "racially-oriented", or perhaps "oriented to the minority race" which in the United States of America meant African-Americans). Recordings made by and marketed and sold to African-Americans had previously been called "race records". Wexler proposed the name "Rhythm and Blues" at a staff meeting of *Billboard* magazine when they discussed wanting to change the name of the "Race" chart to something else, and his suggestion was accepted.

As was mentioned earlier, influential radio personality Alan Freed coined the term "rock and roll" circa the mid-1950s. Freed seems to have intended the usage to refer to music made by both African-American musicians and white musicians.

Quickly, though, in popular usage in the United States of America, "rock and roll" came to refer to music of a certain style recorded by white musicians and marketed and sold to a white audience. "Rhythm and Blues" refers to music that was recorded by African-American musicians and marketed and sold to an African-American audience.

Note that the key to this is the term "marketed and sold". Both "Rock and Roll" and "Rhythm and Blues" came to be designations used by the commercial music industry to describe how the music was marketed and sold, and to whom it was marketed.

Notwithstanding, there are certainly distinct artistic characteristics to each kind of music.


  [1]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Wexler#Career