Are there any decent contemporary funk artists, Prince aside? And funk artists who are not just rehashing old stuff, going for a 'retro' sound, but who are actually doing something fresh?

There must be. Who are they?

Doves,
Mel!ssa

Sorry, Prince is the last line of Real Funk.

Meshell and her crew are awfully tight. The Roots, D'angelo, Rahsaan Patterson, Mint Condition (wherever they are), Timbaland and all the artists he produces...

Sure, there are decent alternatives to Prince -- there always have been.

ThreadBare said:

Mint Condition is the best out that Bunch Mentioned IMHO.Highly Versatile.also Brand New heavies.FishBone is bad as well.depends on your tastes though.Robert Cray Band is pretty funky as well IMHO.

mistermaxxx said:

My gosh, you're right! How could I forget Fishbone? "Give a Monkey a Brain" was on heavy rotation on my player, a few weeks ago. Successive jams. Those brothers are tight.

Thanks.

Isn't Fishbone a Ska band? D'Angelino, The Roots, that's all RnB but with like a bohemian like style...urban if you will, mixed with Trip Hop or something. But D'Angelo...nah, not Funk.

Timbaland, HAH! Brand New heavies are Acid Jazz/Soul. Robert Cray Band, as great as he and his band are, he be Blues/Blues Rock.

Please, refer to The Funk Bible for what Funk is. Especially track 8 and track 9.

FlyingCloudPassenger said:

Music is Music Period.Fishbone was Grooving the Funk on "Everyday Sunshine"&there Re-Make of Curtis Mayfield's 'Freddie's Dead".stop using the White Record Industry's Coded Names for Music.Brand New Heavie's are funky period.Robert Cray band worked with Willie Mitchell&His Memphis Soul band on His 1999 Project&that was Soul.tired of Damn labels.it ain't there except for Suits.

FlyingCloudPassenger said:

Yup, that is a load of b*llsh*t.

Even George Clinton commented on Prince's funk as; "not as nitty gritty as it should or could be."


I guess that is on record. Live Prince is funky, but he blends too many grooves to be one thing over the other.

People saying he's a jazz musician are partly right; he incorporates jazz in his own blend of music...

Hedwig said:

It's "BULLSHIT".

mistermaxxx said:

Okay, that's it...

Music is music, period.

Fishbone was grooving the Funk on "Everyday Sunshine" and their re-make of Curtis Mayfield's "Freddie's Dead".

Stop using the "White Record Industry's Coded Names" for Music. Brand New Heavie's are funky, period.

Robert Cray band worked with Willie Mitchell & his Memphis Soul band on his 1999 Project & that was Soul.

Tired of Damn labels. It ain't there except for suits.



Okay, there, fixed it. Now we can all READ it.

If Fishbone was grooving the "Funk", you just used the "label". Music is...a...label. And what is a label anyway? It's an identification of some sort, right?

I don't know who Willie Mitchell is, I'm no well versed, hip, "I hear it all" kind of person, I'm sure Robert made fantastic music, much props to him, but there again...you used the label "Soul".

I think James Brown set the foundation of Funk way back. Some tracks on The Black Album are serious grit and heat. I'm not sure WHEN George made that comment. Was it in reference to Around The World In A Day? Who knows?

No one says "Give me that MUSIC feel to the groove". They will say "Give me that FUNK feel to the groove" IF they want a Funky feel.

If music is music, then give me funky Mariachi's.

Some people would disagree with me,but I would say that Jamiroquai is a great contempory funk band.Their last CD 'A Funk Odyssey' contains some of the best funk music I've heard in years.

DavidEye said:

JK is what I call
Dishwasher Funk
I prefer
the
Polyester Players
here in LA

FlyingCloudPassenger said:

not funk!? man, you've definitely no idea what your talking about. if 'chicken grease' or 'playa playa' isn't funk than i don't know what funk is! and have you seen the brother live? guess not.

Yeah, I'd go for D'Angelo. Looking forward to his new album. Anyone know when it's due?

D'Angelo is the man. His previous releases are great! He has such potential to be a huge, enduring musician, but if he keeps playing the thug lover, he won't last another year. D needs to get his act together and get back into the studio. He should seriously look into learning from the master (Prince). They should spend more time together and Prince should teach him about endurance and staying true to ones art.

FlyingCloudPassenger said:

Dude, I agree MisterMaxx on this one. Your responses seem steeped in labels instead of an analysis of folks' songs. Shucks, Primus' "Mr. Wendle" (sp?) has some funk to it (as does "My Name is Mud"). Fiona Apple's "On the Bound" is funky, too. Anyone can be funky.

And how did I forget the wonderful Nikka Costa?

ThreadBare said:

Right, Nikka's funky. Yes. I agree Primus has a real Funky twist to them.

kisscamille said:

When has D played "the thug lover"?

Thanks, darlings. Yeah, Me'shell is damn funky, forgot about her. I didn't know D'angelo was still making records. . .and Nikki Costa? Really? Well, good. Thanks for the ideas!

Doves,
Mel!ssa

Essence said:

He don't write like Tank,Jaheim or Ja Rule or the way 2Pac did.His Image might strike some fear in some folks but His Music isn't Scary at all IMHO.

mistermaxxx said:

It's the "Thug" hairstyle (Why couldn't he have a more acceptable style than cornrows?) and the "Thug" name (Why couldn't he just use his "Christian name" of "Michael"? It's such an unthreatening name right from the bible).

Essence said:

Man you know what time it is? let a Black Man Express Himself.I already Know that D'angelo is too Black for some folks.

mistermaxxx said:

While we're on the subject what's with being a naked "Thug lover" in his video? He should don a neatly fitting suit, flash those pearly whites and do a nifty shuffle and jive to please America's viewership.

Essence said:

a Sisqo Hair do&a Nick Ashford Suit would do well for His Longevity.

Essence said:

He did it strictly for the women and it WORKED. Every female I ran into used to talk about that video when it came out. Can you imagine being a man and one of your homies coming over the crib and you're up there watching THAT video, wouldn't look too good. I still, to this day haven't seen the whole video.

But I think D'angelo is gonna be one to watch{musically speaking that is}. Brown Sugar was an amazing debut. The followup record was good too. He's not as prolific as LIL MAN, but then again everyone has their own way in which they work. He's a talented brother.

Brother915 said:

"One to watch (musically speaking that is)"? Damn man your so macho, I've seen "Untitled" video many times beginning to end, I must be watching him for kicks.

Essence said:

(LOL). Just having some fun that's all!!!

Brother915 said:

Yeah I know man, just trying to get you in touch with your feminine side.

Wow, I certainly have been misunderstood. What I meant when I said "thug lover" was, he better not get arrested again or he will never be anything more than a thug lover. The man has real talent and I would like to see him go far, but getting arrested isn't going to help him. As far as the comments about D being "too black"...I think many of you are just a little "too much". Get over it already!!!

kisscamille said:

An arrest for car offences makes him a "Thug lover"? He's never once linked himself with the term "thug" (Unlike R.Kelly, 2Pac etc etc) so it just seemed strange to label him with it is all.