Hip-hop has run out of ideas. And if you need proof, consider that Lil Wayne’s doing a rock album.
By: Rob Fields | Posted: April 21, 2009 at 6:49 AM

Know what the problem is with black folks? No imagination.

Sounds crazy, I know, but consider black music.Every significant moment in America’s history has been accompanied by its own soundtrack. And black musicians have often written the music and the lyrics. But what’s our soundtrack now?

The music industry has imposed the same low expectations on black artists and black life that politicians and pundits have imposed on black folks with respect to education, business and simply managing our daily lives. And we’ve let it happen.

The blues and jazz gave meaning to our lives in the 20th century, and it still enjoys a fringe following. But it doesn't fit this new age. R&B is formulaic and predictable. And hip-hop? In its commercial form—the stuff that hammers us from radio and video outlets—has painted itself and its fans into a corner, boxed in on all sides by what Brown professor Tricia Rose calls the pimp-gangsta-ho triumvirate.



Essentially, we've let a small group of hip-hop "artists" of limited experiences, education and vision set our cultural agenda. In this age of expanded possibilities, it is time to broaden our musical influences. Hip-hop is out of ideas. If you need convincing, consider this: The best-selling rapper of 2008—Lil Wayne—is doing a rock album. Yes, a rock album.

It’s time to give black rock another look. From artists as diverse as TV on the Radio, Shingai Shoniwa of The Noisettes, Gnarls Barkley, Santigold and The Family Stand, to performers at the recent South by Southwest Music Festival like Ben Harper, Whole Wheat Bread, BLK JKS, Janelle Monae and Ebony Bones, black rockers take to heart the idea that our imagination and creativity are boundless.

Take, for instance, Grammy winner Janelle Monae. She created a dystopian landscape in her album Metropolis: The Chase Suite, that is part Blade Runner, part Fritz Lang's Metropolis. It's a radical, yet accessible, departure from the “keep it real” orthodoxy that pervades most of what's on black radio's playlist. And having seen hundreds of fans flock to her Central Park SummerStage show in NYC last summer, I wasn't the only one who saw her bring something refreshing and exciting to music. The tagline on the signs that many fans waved underscored a simple truth: “Imagination Inspires Nations.”

Black rock artists have gotten past the fear that prevents many of us from fully following our interests, even when those interests aren't seen as "traditionally" black. "I grew up listening to Joy Division, New Order, Echo & the Bunnymen, the Cure…." says TV on the Radio's Kyp Malone. "I simply identified with something in the [white rock] music.” He took that music as inspiration and, along with his bandmates, created Dear Science, the sharp, angry and euphoric genre-mashing album that Rolling Stone and SPIN unanimously named their 2008 album of the year. It was also one of the blackest albums I've heard.

Black rock can change lives. It changed mine. In the 1980s, I was a regular, middle-class kid from the Midwest, who started listening to Top 40 radio in eighth grade as a reaction to the repetitive playlists and limited subject matter on black radio. Top 40 radio introduced me to artists like Journey ("Who's Cryin' Now") and Styx ("The Best of Times"), who moved me with their melancholy and soaring guitar solos. AC/DC's "Back in Black" gripped me with its signature opening riff. And I found it impossible to ignore the incredible songwriting and storytelling that went into The Eagles' "Hotel California." For me, rock was simply more creative and raw than the slick, synthy sounds on black radio. It still is.

To reclaim our place as musical innovators, we need music that's up to the task. We need artists who have the courage to explore new sounds and ideas. But there's no way today's artists can do that if their grasp of music history only extends to the latest ‘80s record Diddy sampled.

Just as Stevie Wonder counted Joni Mitchell and her experimental chord structures as one of his big music influences, Beyoncé now credits Etta James and the roots of rock 'n roll for helping her to find more expansive ways to be herself.

The Black Rock Coalition's manifesto says, "Rock is black music, and we are its heirs." These times call for substance, not swagger. Rock, America's subversive, anarchic, rebellious gift to the world, is ours, and we need to stop treating it like some bad four-letter word.

Rob Fields writes about black rock and the evolving black imagination on his blog, boldaslove.us.

LINK

The midget/gremlin that appears on the front of Rolling Stone Magazine is NOT rock & roll. He's not hip-hop. He's merely a "rapper" to those brainwashed by the top 10, 20, and 40 on the radio and BET.

Not really related but.....


Lately I've been listening to ALOT of Jimi Hendrix. I know I'm late to the party but he really is brilliant! O my goodness, I haven't even been able to fully digest his music yet, but I just had to mention him for a minute

He's good, I like him, but he needs to stop swagga jacking Prince

http://www.youtube.com/wa...oi0cJ1Eb_0

StarCat said:

Amen.

nurseV said:

MajesticOne89 said:

exactly and some of the commenters actually believe it's Camron's beat

he looked like such an idiot with a guitar in the let it rock video

I'm not saying it looks odd cause he's black, I'm just saying it's odd cause he's such a gangster idiot who could not play any instrument if his life depended on it and sounded like such a moron rapping lyrics like "angels like angela" and thinking he's so witty.

nurseV said:

That's a non-album mixtape track, and you guys still managed to hunt it down TO HATE ON IT. wtf!

Had no idea that clicking on a thread called "Rock Is Black Music Too" would be another Lil Wayne/rap hate thread.

I agree with what the guy is saying. We gotta reclaim rock for real, it's music for everybody but black folks who love current R&B/rap think rock is "white" when it's never been "white".

Really. I fuckin' hate these fake-ass hip hoppers.

PFunkjazz said:

Then let's discuss any single one of the other artists mentioned in THIS paragraph:

Thanks for posting the article!

It's definetely time for somethin' different.

I wish there was a magazine that would highlight these artists. Something like Wax Poetics, but with a more "pop" kind of facade.

There's definetely an audience.. I've seen kids wearing Misfits or Dead Kennedys t-shirts around my way. And girls dying their hair like Santigold. I mean not in droves, but it's noticeable to me.

I give Diddy props for pushing (however small the amount) an artist like Janelle Monae.

Warner Brothers needs to release J*Davey's cd already!

I've been hearing a bit about BLK JKS. There was a FADER feature on them in March '08.

Cinnie said:

I'm always with black rock, but fuck the hip-hop bullshit. You can find my threads on TVOTR, Family Stand, Ben Harper, Danielle Cotton, King's X, Earl Greyhound, 24-7 Spyz, Living Colour, Fishbone. Real rockers not poseurs.

alphastreet said:

That's true. He needs to learn to play it or put it down.

alphastreet said:

He is.
Have you seen this movie?

http://www.youtube.com/wa...aoYTgbUmdc

If you haven't, you should. Its one of Luc Besson's best in my opinion.
It also makes Wayne pretty clever IF he's seen it and is making a cultural reference. Wayne's actually a pretty decent rapper, he just makes unusual rhyme references and if you don't know what he's talking about, he sounds nuts.

nurseV said:

Oh how I hate that word.

Timmy84 said:

It's weird that music has to be about color.
Why can't rock music, R&B, rap, any kind of music, just be for different kinds of people?
I guess it's a bigger issue in the States than here in Finland, though.
[Edited 4/30/09 0:49am]

FuNkeNsteiN said:

The issues run much deeper than it appears on the surface. Part of it is about cultural acknowledgment and influence. The U.S. has always had a problem admitting certain truths. Many-a-time history has been rewritten to serve the ego of mainstream America. If all were on an equal playing field, this would be less of an issue but as it stands, lies create counter-cultures and backlash. A lot of black people feel "we invented this shit and when we did, y'all didn't want nothin' to do with it, until you found out how good it was, then you claimed it and put your faces on it and pretended like we didn't have anything to do with it"
Of course, I'm paraphrasing from several sources on the thoughts about rock from the words of several of its black innovators. Its a scathing truth that gets overlooked by many. Just as Elvis was declared the "king of rock and roll" by America's mainstream back in the day, Eminem is obviously slated to be declared the "king of rap" by the majority in this day or in the near future. The story continues.
Deep down, it IS about the music and how it makes you feel. The problems arise when those that founded the music that's making everyone feel so good are slighted, either financially or via lack of credit for their work or both.
That has been the repetitive behavior of the U.S. musical mainstream and there are no signs that its going to change, so of course the victims are going to complain.
It is then when all of the "equality" talk usually starts or the "get over it" speeches start. That's when the resentment starts and its in those times when the "underground" becomes stronger. It is part of the reason hip-hop exists today. Personally, I don't believe in "taking back" a genre. If you're going to do it, JUST DO IT and do it well.

BlaqueKnight said:

Good points, blaque.
I do admit, I've heard the arguments before, and I do understand what you are talking about. Guess I'm just one of those "why can't we all just get along" type of people, that I find it weird

http://www.lilwayne-online.com/ and http://www.youtube.com/wa...ekQ9QAUZYU

glad RS put Wayne on the cover.....proof that RS is crap and care only about selling their magazine

i'm afraid this Lil'Wayne-rock gimmick is not gonna work but hey, if he inspires black kids to get into rock more - then it is a good thing
[Edited 4/30/09 4:01am]
[Edited 4/30/09 4:03am]

from my opinion rock obviously comes from blues. Chuck BERRY was one of the first rock stars, Muddy Waters etc.
Besides punk and electro, wasn't every new sensation inspired by black music?

PFunkjazz said:

Iam with you there.

who better than Lil Wayne to introduce rock music to the black community? he is getting more respect than Tupac.....that is how big he is

never thought i would live to see the day when a "thug wearing saggy pants" rapper does a rock album

unfortunately i do not think anyone will buy it, except for white kids

and so then Lil Wayne will debut at #1

watch!
[Edited 4/30/09 5:35am]

graecophilos said:

Everything worth listening 2? Yes. (Exception.....Kraftwerk)
[Edited 4/30/09 6:55am]

Noooo, don't take rock away from us, it's all we have..lol

It didn't help that a bunch of orgers dissed Gnarls Barkley when I mentioned their last album. Bad orgers.

I have to admit I don't know a single song from Lil Wayne. I'm sure I would hate it.

Cinnie said:

What I am not hating on Wayne as a matter of fact I like him very much I am just unhappy that he did this song. It happens to be my fav song of all time and I think that if an artist does a remake or whatever they should do it justice and do it right! Who hates rap? I happen to listen to my fair share and some is really good.

FuNkeNsteiN said:

And..

MajesticOne89 said:

people can't leave things alone...