So I was watching an old performance of Prince & The Revolution at the American Music Awards, and Madonna is giving the award for the best "Black group" or something to that affect.

I found myself cringing. I hated that term growing up because it implied that somehow soulful music was not universally enjoyable. I remember tripping out on George Clinton, being blown away by Prince, and totally fascinated by Aretha Franklin's "Natural Woman" which surfaced during a few airings of China Beach.

What struck me as strange is that I always expected Hollywood and the music industry to be a step ahead of society as a whole (not so much reflective of it's attitudes). But it appears that even though these Music Industry award shows where reaching out and trying to incorporate various forms of music, they reflected indirectly (or directly) the racial attitudes of a certain portion of white America at the time.

It reminds of the days when Asians, like myself, were sexless nutes on T.V. shows and movies (think geeky Indian guy on the short circuit movies, the racist and demeaning Asian jokes of Eddie Murphy, and Long Duck Dong from 16 candles), which albeit were funny, only served to exasterbate racial attitudes of Asians during my youth.

Was there an undercurrent of racially biased "classification" during the 80's that I didn't fully catch on to? I always hated the term "black music" but not becuase I thought it was racist. I simply thought it limited the scope of R&B, hip hop, and funk, which I thought were more universal--certainly more so than Country or Western.


What's your take?

Wow, long duck dong was offensive? I thought he was the best part of that movie and I couldn't be farther from a racist. Just wasn't raised that way. In fact, people who judge people based on skin color, gender, sexual orientation, music taste or any other thing based on culture, opinions or outward apprearances are a half a step up from pre-cambrian man to me. It's beyond ignorant. I know it exists but in today's information age it's another level of ignorance that I have a hard time with.

When I hear the term "Black Music" (interchanged with "Race Music"), it reminds me of American popular culture in the 40's and 50's ignoring great blues and jazz artists because of said ignorance. It took others imitating it for it to gain popularity with Elvis ripping off Big Mamma Thornton with Hound Dog. I mean, England broadcast Chicago Blues artists on televison in the early 60's and started the British invasion. The Stones recorded at Chess studios just because it was Chess studios. American culture at it's best.

Slave2daGroove said:

Long Duck Dong to me reminds me of the Black-Face performances of the early 20th century.

Though I find him hilarious, and I love the "No Mo Yanky My Wanky" line in the movie, it was a one dimensional portrayal of Asians in a wasteland of Asian role models. It's not so much that it was a damaging figure--it was that those kinds of portrayals were almost the only portrayals of Asians.

I remember, I was in college by the time I saw the first black couple even kiss.
I remember laughing with joy when I saw Danny Glover take Kirsty Alley in that Civil war movie that aired on Network television and give hers some of his Alabama Black snake. THAT was a scene that I thought was important for the country to see.

Imago said:

Imago said:

yes there was. just as it remains today. people just use more 'politically correct' terms if you want to call it that, to mask it.
not all "black music" is r&b, but it never fails that when that catagory is presented, only black faces are shown (nominated). and the opposite for things like rock or alternative; (a catagory that only seems to cater to a rock audience anyway). but i think the thing i find most annoying, just like here the music section, is that POP music or sometimes dance, IS NO DIFFERENT than the r&b music. yet 'white faces' are the ones that get the most recognition. fuck...it's r&b producers generally making those hits.

people who say things like "I hate R&B", "r&b is this or that..blah blah blah"
yet praise people like Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera (who deserves it btw. lol), even dare i say it.... MADONNA, KYLIE, (and you know thiose are my ladies ) and the like... well you do the math. and fuck the bullshit with oh "i like Beyonce, Mariah Carey, and TLC ..." you might as well say i don't hate this race ,my best friend is; you get the picture. lol! blame it on what's fed to people by radio, television, internet, so, whatever!!.

i think R&B and POP (which stands for popular yet people can't seem to grasp that for some reason ) should be presented as one. or at least more defined as to why it's segragated from mainstream pop.

award shows should just be cut down to an hour. no catagories just winners. you know who won the damn awards. just invite them to sing their hit songs hand out the awards and call it a night.

to add....

it just sort of makes you wonder if there was no "black music" or "r&b" catagory, how many black people would actually get nominated in the other catagories. lol.


now let's talk about MI GENTE LATINA!! why didn't you make a stink about that Imago!?!?!

I was watching The Last Dragon a few days ago, and the scene where those guys were singing Sukiyaki to Leroy had me in tears, they're basically mocking eachother.

Sum Dum Goy!

CHIC0 said:

I always thought Latino was an ethnicity moreso than a color. I mean, I know white latinos and I know black latinos. All of them are excessively hung, but there's variations in their skin tone.




spelling edit
[Edited 2/20/07 19:24pm]

Imago said:

Lord...why did i even ask.

CHIC0 said:

Sometimes I get the feeling you don't appreciate my contributions to this forum.

Imago said:

oh i DO apprciate you! besides, you can make it up to me in other ways...

CHIC0 said:

I'm standard duck ding dong at best.

I just wish there was more black rock music. It would be so awesome to see black bands up for Best Rock album awards. Mmm hmm.

Imago said:

I don't know why. Before 1948, r&b albums were called Race Records

Imago said:

What's the name of the movie??

Was it a comedy??

Imago said:

I think he had more to do with radio and how the industry was marketed. Like there were no Black artists on Mtv.

Portuguese are always depicted as small, fat, with moutaches and smelly!