Short clip of Stephanie Mills speaking on the whitewashing of R&B music.

Wear My Dawg's Hat

Superstar
Joined
Nov 18, 2016
Messages
3,532
Reputation
1,950
Daps
15,033
Reppin
The Land That Time Forgot
The bolded is too true

Black folk want the best, and not pay for it in terms of entertainment.

And this is why traditional black music by black artists -- r&b, jazz, blues, reggae -- has basically
evaporated from a popularity standpoint and has become marginalized "heritage" music.

Without the sales support, you cannot maintain a black-run music industry, like we had with Motown,
Philadelphia International, Stax, Uptown, Sugarhill Records, So So Def, SOLAR, etc.

Black millennials complain about being not being assimilated into the white-controlled industry, so
they can be the next Adele or Ariana.

Black millennials have ZERO interest in building music economies the way Berry Gordy, Sylvia Robinson,
Gamble and Huff, Don Cornelius and dikk Griffey did.
 

The M.I.C.

The King In The West đź‘‘
Supporter
Joined
Dec 2, 2015
Messages
25,120
Reputation
14,993
Daps
106,697
Reppin
Charlotte - Washington D.C.
My uncle got out of the record industry back in the mid 2000's.

I remember him telling me that black music from the 60's to 90's was really considered a segment unto itself, meaning it was virtually unmolested by the outside influence of the major (distribution) record companies as long as the return was there. I say "outside" because, R&B back then was more community than anything else and it was really locked down to black artists, black producers, etc...it was all black. NYC and LA had black owned record companies all over the place in the 70's, 80's and early 90's that stayed pumping out good music that didn't have to follow "guidelines".
 

The M.I.C.

The King In The West đź‘‘
Supporter
Joined
Dec 2, 2015
Messages
25,120
Reputation
14,993
Daps
106,697
Reppin
Charlotte - Washington D.C.
And this is why traditional black music by black artists -- r&b, jazz, blues, reggae -- has basically
evaporated from a popularity standpoint and has become marginalized "heritage" music.

Without the sales support, you cannot maintain a black-run music industry, like we had with Motown,
Philadelphia International, Stax, Uptown, Sugarhill Records, So So Def, SOLAR, etc.

Black millennials complain about being not being assimilated into the white-controlled industry, so
they can be the next Adele or Ariana.

Black millennials have ZERO interest in building music economies the way Berry Gordy, Sylvia Robinson,
Gamble and Huff, Don Cornelius and dikk Griffey did.

Where are these music economies at now?

Every single one of them sold their companies off. Now why is that?
 

Booker T Garvey

Veteran
Supporter
Joined
Aug 17, 2014
Messages
29,774
Reputation
4,002
Daps
124,293
Yeah, I seen in the other thread. Someone tried to tell me that I had no idea of what was going on. Like this is really something that I’ve been saying for a while now as well. It’s obvious that there is an agenda going on in the industry. There are double standards too. Sam Smith is another example of white privilege in regards to “soul” music. And I don’t even think he’s that good tbh.

Sam Smith is TRASH. He’s the most boring/bland “superstar” that’s ever lived, he just stands there nervously and sings. He’s being pushed by the powers that be in his community.

Mark my words, he just announced that he feels like a woman in a man’s body: he’s going to transition or go drag, create an alter ego pop starlet and WILL replace beyonce. <<< sounds crazy? Watch.
 

Booker T Garvey

Veteran
Supporter
Joined
Aug 17, 2014
Messages
29,774
Reputation
4,002
Daps
124,293
Like I said in the other thread, if we really cared about traditional R&B, Tanks last 3 albums would've all went triple platinum. We ask for it but don't support it on a large scale when it comes out.

People also need their music marketed to them directly like mindless cattle, they don’t wanna have to click, browse, or search for anything -

this is why deep pocket labels will always have the upper hand.
 
Joined
Oct 22, 2017
Messages
34,006
Reputation
2,054
Daps
166,410
And this is why traditional black music by black artists -- r&b, jazz, blues, reggae -- has basically
evaporated from a popularity standpoint and has become marginalized "heritage" music.

Without the sales support, you cannot maintain a black-run music industry, like we had with Motown,
Philadelphia International, Stax, Uptown, Sugarhill Records, So So Def, SOLAR, etc.

Black millennials complain about being not being assimilated into the white-controlled industry, so
they can be the next Adele or Ariana.

Black millennials have ZERO interest in building music economies the way Berry Gordy, Sylvia Robinson,
Gamble and Huff, Don Cornelius and dikk Griffey did.

Mixtapes killed the game, too. A mixtape is essentially a compilation of free music that we'd otherwise be paying for.
 

Tribal Outkast

Veteran
Joined
Nov 22, 2016
Messages
36,685
Reputation
5,927
Daps
112,955
People also need their music marketed to them directly like mindless cattle, they don’t wanna have to click, browse, or search for anything -

this is why deep pocket labels will always have the upper hand.
That’s all I’m saying. It’s not hard to do this, just play a dope song from artists we don’t know and see what happens.
 

Wear My Dawg's Hat

Superstar
Joined
Nov 18, 2016
Messages
3,532
Reputation
1,950
Daps
15,033
Reppin
The Land That Time Forgot
She is speaking the truth. Many of us been saying this from jump street. As long as you have your Adele's and your others imitating the shyt we do, there'll be no need for Black artists anymore. Just watch.

How is this new in any way?

Benny Goodman was performing black music.

So were: The Beatles, Elvis, The Rolling Stones, Janis Joplin, The Average White Band Led Zeppelin, Eric Clapton.

Bruce Springsteen has spent 45 years mimicking Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett.

And Stephanie should know better about telling this history. Her black producers took her sound and went on to work with a new, young white female singer in the early 1980s. They never looked back.

original

Reggie Lucas

"We followed this up with “Back Together Again”, which in 1980 was a top 20 hit for the same team of Flack and Hathaway. We were able to parlay this into a career as independent producers. Successful recordings with Stephanie Mills, Phyllis Hyman, and many others followed. “Never New Love Like This Before” was an #4 Billboard pop hit for Stephanie Mills and we received a Grammy for it in 1980.

I wrote “Borderline,” Madonna’s first Top 10 Pop single from the album, and “Physical Attraction.” The Madonna album went triple Platinum, with songs that reached the Top 10 worldwide and produced six of the eight tracks on the album."
 

TheDarkCloud

Superstar
Joined
Mar 18, 2017
Messages
5,624
Reputation
1,447
Daps
22,721
How is this new in any way?

Benny Goodman was performing black music.

So were: The Beatles, Elvis, The Rolling Stones, Janis Joplin, The Average White Band Led Zeppelin, Eric Clapton.

Bruce Springsteen has spent 45 years mimicking Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett.

And Stephanie should know better about telling this history. Her black producers took her sound and went on to work with a new, young white female singer in the early 1980s. They never looked back.

original

Reggie Lucas

"We followed this up with “Back Together Again”, which in 1980 was a top 20 hit for the same team of Flack and Hathaway. We were able to parlay this into a career as independent producers. Successful recordings with Stephanie Mills, Phyllis Hyman, and many others followed. “Never New Love Like This Before” was an #4 Billboard pop hit for Stephanie Mills and we received a Grammy for it in 1980.

I wrote “Borderline,” Madonna’s first Top 10 Pop single from the album, and “Physical Attraction.” The Madonna album went triple Platinum, with songs that reached the Top 10 worldwide and produced six of the eight tracks on the album."

Cultural appropriation is definitely not new. But I think the issue these days is that the relevancy of the Black artist is dwindling. Even going back to the 60s, 70s and 80s - yeah, you had your culture vultures and copycats but Black artists and musicians were still recognizable in the mainstream.

These days - you don't know who is what anymore.
 

Wear My Dawg's Hat

Superstar
Joined
Nov 18, 2016
Messages
3,532
Reputation
1,950
Daps
15,033
Reppin
The Land That Time Forgot
My uncle got out of the record industry back in the mid 2000's.

I remember him telling me that black music from the 60's to 90's was really considered a segment unto itself, meaning it was virtually unmolested by the outside influence of the major (distribution) record companies as long as the return was there. I say "outside" because, R&B back then was more community than anything else and it was really locked down to black artists, black producers, etc...it was all black. NYC and LA had black owned record companies all over the place in the 70's, 80's and early 90's that stayed pumping out good music that didn't have to follow "guidelines".

All true.

During the 1970s, The big music corporations saw the rise of the black music industry and wanted in:

"This story begins in 1972, when a few enterprising master's students at the Harvard Business School prepared a study, commissioned by one of Columbia's execs, detailing how the Columbia Records Group could better integrate the then largely independent black music industry into the mix. The now infamous Harvard Report -- officially known as "A Study of the Soul Music Environment" -- has often been referred to as a sinister blueprint aimed at arming a litany of "culture bandits" with the theoretical tools to return black culture to a neo-colonial state.

What those MBA students articulated was a no-brainer marketing plan, informed by the commercial success of Motown and the cynical (though not mistaken) view that the Civil Rights "revolution" likely had more to do with the realities that black folk had disposable income and white folk consumed a hell of a lot of black popular culture than anything to do with real structural change in American society.

Rhythm and Bullshyt?: The Slow Decline of R&B, Part One: Rhythm & Business, Cultural Imperialism and
 
Joined
Jun 11, 2013
Messages
41,559
Reputation
6,368
Daps
109,088
Reppin
Birmingham, Alabama
Someone in the other thread wrote this long ass post trying to tell me the Jazmine Sullivan wasn’t a good example of this whole dilemma. If she were white, she’d be selling a lot more records.

Sounds like ya'll are blaming White people for fukking with White Artist. How come black people aren't buying Jasmine Sullivan's records? Ya'll was pissed at Chrisette Michele for doing the Trump thing, but wasn't buying her shyt in the first place.
 

Wear My Dawg's Hat

Superstar
Joined
Nov 18, 2016
Messages
3,532
Reputation
1,950
Daps
15,033
Reppin
The Land That Time Forgot
Where are these music economies at now?

Every single one of them sold their companies off. Now why is that?

They sold their companies the same way David Geffen sold Geffen Records, Chris Blackwell sold Island Records and the A&M guys sold A&M Records: to reap tremendous wealth from the businesses they built.

My question now is: what happened to the 21st Century next generation wave of 20 somethings and 30 somethings music entrepreneurs after Russell Simmons, Puffy Combs, Jay Z, Dr. Dre, Master P, Andre Harrell, LA Reid, etc?
 

TheDarkCloud

Superstar
Joined
Mar 18, 2017
Messages
5,624
Reputation
1,447
Daps
22,721
Sam Smith is TRASH. He’s the most boring/bland “superstar” that’s ever lived, he just stands there nervously and sings. He’s being pushed by the powers that be in his community.

Mark my words, he just announced that he feels like a woman in a man’s body: he’s going to transition or go drag, create an alter ego pop starlet and WILL replace beyonce. <<< sounds crazy? Watch.

Sam is okay. Some of his songs are decent and he has s decent singing voice but he's definitely a a cabaret act. He's the male equivalent to Adele. He carries himself like a serious singer/songwriter so it gives off the illusion that he's legitimate even though he's extremely subpar.
 
Top