April 17, 2008. LOS ANGELES (Reuters Life!) - It's the end of the line for the Soul Train Music Awards, which have largely been ignored by the African-American stars the event aims to honor.

A spokeswoman said the show would not go ahead with its 22nd annual installment this year, but a reason was not specified.

At last year's event in Pasadena, most of the winners did not show up, including such A-listers as Beyonce Knowles, Mary J. Blige, John Legend and Gnarls Barkley.

The show takes place a few weeks after the Grammys, the music industry's top awards. Similarly themed ceremonies like the BET Awards have also provided some competition.

Perhaps more critically, the underlying syndicated dance show "Soul Train" ended its historic run in 2006. It was distributed by Tribune Entertainment, which exited the syndication business when billionaire Sam Zell took its Tribune Co. parent private late last year in a highly leveraged deal.

The "Soul Train" TV show has served as an important promotional springboard for black music's biggest stars since launching in national syndication in 1971. It claimed to be the longest-running show airing in first-run syndication.

The franchise is the brainchild of Don Cornelius, an ambitious Chicago DJ who decided in the late '60s that there was a need for a TV show featuring young black people dancing to recorded music. Few shared his view, and he self-funded a pilot in 1969. It aired on a Chicago TV station the following year, and quickly became a hit.

Cornelius, famed for an expansive afro in his younger days, hosted the show for the first 22 years. But he has kept a low public profile and rarely consents to interviews. He tearfully accepted a Grammy Award for lifetime achievement in 2005.



[Edited 4/17/08 8:35am]

Sad.

But why did the honoured artists not attend? Is it a stupid show? Ayedunno, I just know Soul Train from stories on here and, weird enough, movies and youtube clips.

I stopped watching the show years ago but did not know it had ended. Thanks.

It's a shame that it had to end but I kinda look at it as a sign as to how much bad shape R&B is right now. I don't know why the artists didn't attend but the last time I watched the Soul Trian Awards, it was so painful. It was in an airport hangar I think and hardly any of the stars were there. In fact, they showed the award show during the day, not at night like they used to. I guess this is really the end of the line for the SOOOOOUL TRAIN! It was a fun ride while it lasted.

HamsterHuey said:

I can remember a couple of good shows, like the year that Janet Opened with I Get Lonely.. But i do know that last year hardly anyone showed up

HamsterHuey said:

Soul Train used to be the bomb back when I was a kid in the mid 80's. They've been showing reruns of episodes from the 1970's and early 80's and the show was even better. I was too happy when Prince FINALLY went on the show in 1994. They played great music, had great guest, and had great dancers with the hottest moves. I even learned a few dance moves from Soul Train. Those were the days.

Sad, but it's been over for a while now for them.

Cinnamon234 said:

So true plus the BET Awards have taken up much of Soul Train's audience so it was inevitable unfortunately.

banks said:

Interesting that u bring this up. The tide was starting 2 change in about 1995 - 1997. Hip hop started 2 over shadow the rest of the show. In 1996 2pac showed up and acted a damn fool and disrupted the show (not shown on TV) and the following year Biggie was killed outside one of the Sprite night events in Santa Monica. The attendance at the these event was really good prior 2 these incidents. After the Biggie murder, everything took a turn 4 the worse. IMHO.
[Edited 4/17/08 9:45am]

Graycap23 said:

Yeah 2Pac and BIG gave Soul Train a bad name after that. After Janet in 1998, I stopped being a fan of the show because for me, Janet was the reason I watched it that year, lol. I only watched it sporadically after that. Thankfully the BET Awards is more entertaining.

I watched the BET awards a couple years ago because Prince was performing. Sadly, The BET Awards and the Soul Train Awards reward mostly R&B music and musicians. R&B has become something I can't stomach(R&B/Shit Hop) and I refuse to listen to most of it or watch anything related to this now corrupted genre of music. I personally won't be missing the Soul Train Awards as I stopped tuning in since the mid 90's.

dseann said:

Good point but the main reason I do watch the BET awards is for the legends they have on the show. They always outshine the younger acts.

Timmy84 said:

There was a year when Gladys Knight was given a lifetime achievement award and she got up there and sang all the newcomers under the stage. You also have a good point.

dseann said:

Gladys just... I still get goosebumps from that night! She's just the fucking best...

I wonder who's gonna be the next lifetime achievement winner this year.

HamsterHuey said:

Because most of the popular black artists (especially Beyonce, Usher, Jay-Z, and Mariah) are too much of a higher level of success for it. That's why.

TonyVanDam said:

That and Biggie's murder just a few minutes after the show ended.

that show sucked.


BET is needs to keep honoring the ol'schoolers to keep the ratings up.


What ever happen to that VH1 Diva show?

Rhondab said:

The Divas show got canceled partly to low ratings I think.

And yeah BET definitely needs to keep rearing in the legends.

LOVE. PEACE. AND SOOOOOUUUUULLLLL!!

TonyVanDam said:

2 high 2 support what put u on in the 1st place? That's DEEP.

Graycap23 said:

Well you know what happens when R&B artists suddenly cross over. Me and my momma always discuss it whenever these shows come on.

Timmy84 said:

"We" will never get "IT".

Graycap23 said:

Basically. And even though some of their shows were at a high school auditorium, it wouldn't have hurt to show up. I know Ron Isley did.

Timmy84 said:

Support your OWN.....or pay the price. Blacks used 2 own their own Pro-ball clubs and other ventures. How many 2 we OWN now? ZERO.

Graycap23 said:

I'm beginning to think there's a behind-the-scenes reason why the show was canceled: no one came up with the money to put the show at a respective place therefore troubles with the show's actual airings and no one knowing it was on when it'd come on at 4:30 in the morning. It's sad when you think about it.

dseann said:

YEAAAHHH! Gladys turned it out and showed them how to really perform!!

Timmy84 said:

No sponsors.....no show.
[Edited 4/17/08 14:44pm]

Graycap23 said:

"Soul Train" basically ran out of sponsors.

Damn. I remember going to the very 1st Soul Train awards in 1989 and now the shit is done. Then again, it lost a lot of credibility over the years, especially when it gave the Aretha Franklin Lifetime Achievement Award to Ashanti one year. Ridiculous. Then there was the time when Beyonce (I think it was her) was winning awards for the same damn album she won awards for the year before LOL! That's when the shit started to really go downhill. And yeah, the violence that was connected to it as well had something to do with it.

MuthaFunka said:

Yeah.