the fact that BET let this man go amongst other things and then sold its soul for real, is one of the biggest crimes. AND Amerie continues to impress me as an artist, not just musically, but being able to talk about herself and craft, without sounding like a moron who rehearsed the talk, and being nothing more than a puppet (no names but you can insert many). The link is below to the 11 minute interview

Gotta love the term "Sonically Segregated" perfect way to sum up radio and labels

http://video.pbs.org/video/1326676569

ameries aighht shes got a few good songs.

Watched about 7 minutes of it and she's amazing. She never gets the props that she deserves for being an independent female in the industry who has kept some artistic integrity. Going to watch the rest when I get home from work.

is she just now figuring out that radio is sonically segregated? or how about the fact that the genre that she performs in is the dominant one? and is this just sour grapes because she's getting the short end of the stick now, whereas she used to reap the rewards of it?

i mean i like her, don't get me wrong. but i'm not going to sit through 11 minutes to hear her tell me about something i figured out when i was 13.

errant said:

Actually she isnt talking anything about the genre, second she isnt an RB female in terms of what is considered an RB female, its that simple. People that lump her in the Rihanna mold are seriously living on another planet, that RB that Rihanna is considered the queen of right now is not the RB that she is playing, AMerie is on another level from any of those so called mainstreamers, the "sonic segragation" she speaks of has nothing to do with her sales, which she doesnt care about, which she says at the end of this interview, id like to hear Rihanna Beyonce and Mariah say that. The segration she is speaking of has nothing to do with the type of music, if you hear her she is speaking about the fact that radio is playing what it thinks people are into, and it being a narrow snapshot of what is out there, nothing about genre's or anything like that. And for the record she never "reaped rewards" lets get real already, she barely was a gold selling artist, not sure what dream world people are in when they think they know her sales, she has two gold records and two top ten singles.

I dont think she is playing sour grapes, because she could sit in this interview and get dirty and name names about the theft and underhanded stuff that went on to get her off columbia, but she didnt. She tends to call people out , how is that sour grapes? Def Jam dropped the ball and didnt deliver her cd to half of the Best Buy locations so she was pissed at them for missing that, how is that wrong for her to point out on her site? If your job lost your paycheck or stole money from it, would you stay silent?
[Edited 11/11/09 21:02pm]

I like Amerie but let's cut the b.s.
She isn't doing anything different from what's
out there. It's cliche for any artist of this generation
to say they are doing something different. She's got one
song with a rock guitar riff and another where someone
is playing a few bass licks. The fact that she stated on
Tavis that she worked with Lil Weezy says enough. Then
she's got a duet with Trey Songz who is certainly your
new male flavor of the month artist. I've been actually
rooting for her but this project falls short of glory.
If you wanna talk about good female projects that's
happening to close out the year start with Melanie Fiona
and Angie Stone's new release coming Nov.23.

phunkdaddy said:

You see thats where the double standard comes in, i heard the new angie stone and its nothing new from her at all, she has hit a wall with her work. Melanie Fiona is good, but lets be real, she is a big time Prince biter. Actually Amerie is doing something different in a genre that is going nowhere fast, i see threads on this praising Robin fucking Thicke, are we serious?? Has anyone seen him in the new Leighton Meester video doing his "homeboy" stance, this guy is a big cliche, and yet he gets a pass big time. The Amerie project is light years ahead of anything going on RB female, most RB females cant even talk about their projects, most people who talk about Amerie liked the first record and honestly if you liked the first record, then you are stuck in a groove, that was not a good record plain and simple, i dont care that it was a hit, dont make it good, and most Amerie fans regard it as their least favorite.

To lump Amerie in with Beyonce,Mariah,Ciara and Rihanna is like saying John Mayer and Ryan Adams are on the same level of talent. Sorry its a blanket statement that holds no water, im hearing nothing from those other artists that im hearing on the Amerie record, the Lil Wayne addition was clearly that, a Def Jam idea to get some sales, they werent even together for it, he emailed his verse in, and for Trey Songz it was the same thing, Def Jam and Mr Reid brought him in and to cover a song that to me, has been given way too much credit, and to me both tracks should have been left off, so in that respect i would agree, but thats clearly a label afterthought and it was wrong as usual.

Funny how guests are ok when its others that we like using them. Mariah and Toni Braxton have Trey Songs on new remixes and everyone is going nuts for it and not calling it anything.

lastdecember said:

Not true.Mariah gets alot of criticism on this site for using "rent-a-rappers" on her albums,and there was a recent thread on the Toni Braxton/Trey songs single,and it wasn't getting a great response at all.

Phunkdaddy is right.Amerie isn't doing anything different or unique.

SoulAlive said:

Well hoenstly if you can listen to her last two albums and say that is what mariah and beyonce and rihanna are doing, then you arent listening to the albums at all, sorry. And others like Robin Thicke are getting praise for doing songs that are just what you will get from every other soul male singer at this point and i keep hearing that "hes different" with the exception of him being white thats his only difference from other males in his genre
[Edited 11/12/09 6:22am]

Having heard the album it's not as disappointing as I thought but I don't think she's breaking any new ground here but so what? I'm only concerned with does she still appeal to me and I'd say yes.

She definitely could have left Trey and Weezy off. I don't know anyone who wants to hear Trey other than his fanbase.

phunkdaddy said:

I got her album and I was not too moved. There were like 3 or 4 songs that were ok, however nothing experimental or out of the loop with other rhythm and blues female artists. She may not be a SOUL artist however she still tried to pack a punch on this latest record but being short of anything that will last more then the month it was put out in my opinion. There just want alot of depth to go through on the record. I'd explain better wich tracks Im talking about however I dont have my ipod next to me. Loved the art for it.

If you want to talk about someone who really took it to the left was Solange...now that's a similar singer's album that had depth, thought and movement.
[Edited 11/12/09 6:40am]

The tracks I definitely like are Heard ‘Em All, Flowers, Red Eye, More Than Love, Why R U, and the You’re A Star (Interlude). That’s 6 out of 14.

JackieBlue said:

1. Tell Me You Love Me 3:07 $0.99
2. Heard 'Em All 3:23 $0.99
3. Dangerous 2:49 $0.99
4. Higher 2:52 $0.99
5. Why R U 3:17 $0.99
6. Pretty Brown 4:02 $0.99
7. More Than Love 4:15 $0.99
8. Swag Back 4:30 $0.99
9. You're A Star (Interlude) 1:52 $0.99
10. Red Eye 4:12 $0.99
11. The Flowers 5:17 $0.99
12. Different People 3:56 $0.99
13. Dear John 4:12 $0.99
14. Heard 'Em All Remix


You didnt like Higher! Thats my ISH right there.

paisleypark4 said:

It's okay but it wasn't instant love so I didn't add it but I can listen to it.

Well first SOLANGE totally was biting off her with her album, listen to "Because i love it". Sorry but i cant lump Amerie in with Rihanna or Ciara because those 2 and others like them are doing what they are told to do, they dont write, produced or arrange, Amerie does all that and more, she even did the artwork on the record, so right there, sorry, but that is breaking ground in genre where everyone does what they are told for the most part, gets produced has their songs layed out for them etc... If i could have done anything for this album it would have been to cut it down to 10 tracks, i would have left off Pretty Brown (sorry never liked this song for the most part) lil wayne's remix which is a joke, then lost Different People and Dear John (this song has been out for five years now) and then it would have been IMO a 1-10 no skipping required album.

JackieBlue said:

Higher is her best song ever, too bad Def Jam is just as dumb as Columbia and thinks "Pretty Brown" is the single to release, but, is it what it is, labels are clueless anyway.

SoulAlive said:

Exactly Soul. I was actually the one to post the Toni B.song with
Trey Songz. I stated right then and there vocally Toni sounds good
but the track was average and the fact that she had to resort to
doing a duet with Trey Songz was lame. Also i've been hard on Toni's
last two projects. Her last good complete album was the Heat in 2000.
As far as Mariah, she has been hit or miss lately. Mimi was good but not
great. EM=MC2 or whatever that album was complete garbage with the
exception of Touch My Body which i know isn't a favorite here.
I will say she rebounded somewhat on the new project but still not great.
Her new cd intrigues me more than this mess Amerie has thrown together
and i was certainly rooting for her.

lastdecember, people are pissed @ Mariah & Toni for having wack ass people behind them lol.

lastdecember said:

Cool if you dig it. That song imo is nowhere near as good as
Talkin to me or 1thing.

IMHO, when you put a great song like "Higher" in there with a stupid remake of "Pretty Brown Eyes" with Trey No-Songz and a remix with Weezy, you defeat the purpose of making great albums. Amerie knew radio was "sonically segregated" when her sales didn't match up with debuts by Ashanti and Tweet. Remember those three were matched up in 2002.

lastdecember said:

Please do explain.

I could see if you said she was a Motown biter.

I would take a Motown biter any day over a wannabe Mary J. Blige. Give me some Melanie Fiona please!

Not saying Amerie is a MJB biter because she's not, it's in general lol.
[Edited 11/12/09 11:46am]

Timmy84 said:

Amerie is cool, and has some really nice songs, but I don't see her as that special and different from many other female r&b artists. She has her sound, but IMO it's still too mainstream to praise her the way you constantly do, lastdecember. And her voice is unfortunately the kind that gets kind of annoying after a few songs. I still see her being among the better popular female artist though.

JackieBlue said:

Well i agree on that, but that is not her call, if your doing an indie cd then you are the boss. That call was made by Mr.Reid straight out, you know the guy that everyone pats on the back on this forum for bringing MIMI out again. To me "off topic" there are no GREAT ALBUMS anymore from anyone for the most part, ESPECIALLY in rb beccause of this dumb-ass idea that just because u can get 80 minutes on a disc U HAVE TO, that im sorry has been RB's and Hip hops POISON, that trend still isnt dieing.

VenusBlingBling said:

Mainstream to me is your getting played, and Amerie is not getting played. Im not hearing anything in RB on bet or radio that even has the hint of a LIVE instrument or an Unlayered Vocal

phunkdaddy said:

Mariah hasnt been intriguing in over a decade, if you dont dig the Amerie then cool, its far from a mess though, its actually her most cohesive record. Mariah i wont even discuss because she is a done deal at this point, im not even going to listen more than once to an album of hers at this point because its all the same blueprint, the only change on this one, was no guests, but she is totally remixing the whole album with every big name rapper/rb singer, so she isnt doing anything new.

great interview. I often wonder why Tavis doesn't have a blog yet?

lastdecember said:

Her call or not, it stunts the album IMO. I personally have never liked L.A. Reid and think he's part of the problem.

While live instrumentation is very refreshing in R&B these days I don't think it's inclusion means an album is automatically superior. Still, I'm not crazy about it I think overall In Love & War is a solid album but that's just my opinion.
[Edited 11/13/09 6:02am]

JackieBlue said:

EXACTLY. And Pretty Brown Eyes wasnt even a remake..more so it was just sampled in the song....and to be honest this could have been a i-tunes left over....a couple of songs could have...LOVED THE ARTWORK..but it misrepresented the sound of the album in my opinion and I HATE THAT!