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Grammy Awards A Step Back For Soul Music http://www.soultracks.com...012-grammy
The collective gasp you heard halfway through the Grammy Awards broadcast on Sunday night was from the soul music community, aghast over what they had just witnessed. People were already getting a little ticky on Facebook and Twitter as performance after performance came forward on Sunday night with very little nod to soul, gospel or even jazz music. Classic rock fans were in nirvana (no pun intended) as great bands like the Foo Fighters, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, a reunited Beach Boys and even the Beatles (through two performances by Paul McCartney) dominated the stage with fine performances. And the Grammys got it 100% right as Adele’s brilliant 21 received every award possible. Adele displays what is best in popular music and in 2011 she brilliantly culled elements of rock, country, folk and even some R&B into a cohesive whole that we'll be talking about for years. But on a night when soul music legend Diana Ross was to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award, the current, vibrant form of her genre was completely ignored, with soul only receiving peripheral, historical half-nods in mini-tributes to Whitney Houston and Etta James.
Then, at that midway point of the show, insult was added to the perceived injury as the award for Best R&B Album was presented. The category had an unusually strong group of nominees this year: Ledisi is a singular voice, and while nominated in prior years she hasn’t yet won a much deserved Grammy. Kelly Price swept the SoulTracks awards in December for good reason: Her self-titled album was simply glorious. Former teen star El DeBarge received a welcome Second Chance in the past year with the redemptive album of the same name. And R. Kelly threw his longtime critics (including me) a curve by showing he had the talent to make memorable music even on someone else’s turf. Oh yes, and there was also Chris Brown, whose nomination in the category was like the old Sesame Street song “One of these things is not like the others.” While a fine dancer, as a vocal artist he is not in the same league as Ledisi, Price or DeBarge, nor was his album in any way properly categorized with the others. But soul fans let the odd nomination grouping roll right off us, because, of course, there was no way Brown would win…until he did. The response in Twitterland was swift and furious. And while everyone has his or her own tastes, thousands of postings wondered aloud under what critical criteria could this result happen, except a simple adoption of the Soundscan sales numbers. That Brown was nominated in the same category as Ledisi and Price - and that he won - appeared to support the “conspiracy theory” of some music fans who frequently complain that the Grammys just don’t understand the breadth of black music. And it didn’t help that on this same night Diana Ross received only fleeting recognition for her Lifetime award while Brown and Rihanna performed not once but multiple times.
Since the Milli Vanilli fiasco, an embarrassed Grammy committee has been careful to choose the Best New Artist each year based on real artistic merit, regardless of popularity. That’s how the talented Esperanza Spalding won last year and folkster Bon Iver took the award this year. But in the R&B album category, year after year the awards simply play out like the Billboard charts – as if the voters never even listened to the nominated albums. And, when combined with the choice of performances for the evening, it would not be surprising if rock or country music fans left the Grammys with the impression that the state of black music today is epitomized by Chris Brown, Rihanna and the perplexing, insulting Nicki Minaj.
I’m not sure whether it is worse to be ignored or misrepresented, but the many talented artists we cover on SoulTracks would be justified in feeling both slaps from the Grammy Awards this year. On the sacred evening when the music industry celebrates its diversity, talent and character, and on a stage full of great rock and country performers whose styles were heavily influenced by jazz, the black church and rhythm & blues, it was frustrating to see the status of those varied styles in 2012 demonstrated in a minimalized, one-dimensional manner that doesn’t move much beyond hip-hop. But, sadly, that’s exactly what we received on Sunday. And once it all sank in, that collective gasp after the Best R&B award slowly turned to disappointment -- disappointment that on the same night that a beautiful woman with a once-in-a-generation voice was honored, the influential, seminal forms of American music that were the basis of her training now appear to have to prove themselves to the music establishment all over again. Read more: Chris Rizik: The 2012 Grammy Awards were a step backward for soul music | SoulTracks - Soul Music Biographies, News and Reviews "It's not nice to fuck with K.B.! All you haters will see!" - Kitbradley
"The only true wisdom is knowing you know nothing." - Socrates | |
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Eh, for one thing I think the writer needs to give up on the idea of "soul music" in the 21st Century. Soul died a long time ago and it is not coming back, at least not in the mainstream. The award in question was for best R & B album, not best soul album. As far as "R & B" goes that term is just code for black. For example, if Adele was black she would be classifed as an "R & B" artist. If Whitney Houston was white there is no way that she would be considered an R & B artist. I'm not familiar with any of the albums that were nominated but I don't think it is much different in the other categories. I feel a bit uncomfortable defending the Grammys as I think the whole thing is very silly but commercial performance is always one of the factors that go into deciding the winners.
I do think that the writer may have a point that all black music is bundled together under very few categories but with the recent scaling back of how many categories there are things will probably only become worse in the future. | |
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Remember when there were Grammy nominee albums put out simply for r&b and hip hop music before they scrapped it? I have a couple of them, I wanted them because most of the songs I'd liked in those years were on the albums and I never got around to buying the originals. [Edited 2/18/12 2:50am] | |
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Hmm...soul music still does exist, it just isn't in mainstream. I will forever love and miss you...my sweet Prince. | |
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bite your tongue!
Raphael Saadiq, Ledisi, Meyer Hawthorne, and Jill Scott put out quality albums that fit somewhere in the soul category. Van Hunt's album certainly pushes the edges of "soul" music with his 2011 album. Badu and others are making thought-provoking albums with nice grooves, and I haven't even mentioned Maxwell's last and upcoming efforts and D'Angelo's planned project.
Soul is alive. Good night, sweet Prince | 7 June 1958 - 21 April 2016
Props will be withheld until the showing and proving has commenced. -- Aaron McGruder | |
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I know you qualified your statement about soul music being dead, but it's going in some very interesting directions.
Thank you! Yes, Soul music is still alive. Maybe not so much in it's original form but it's still here. It will never die. I believe the writer was concerned that the average person tuning into the Grammy Awards who is uneducated about Soul/R&B music would think Chris Brown, Rhianna and Niki Manaji are a respresentation of black music in general. And that's some scary shit! "It's not nice to fuck with K.B.! All you haters will see!" - Kitbradley
"The only true wisdom is knowing you know nothing." - Socrates | |
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Pretty much | |
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did anyone notice Bruno Mars doing a great James Brown somewhere near the opening? highlight of the night for me | |
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Part James, part Elvis, part Prince . . . all Bruno. Gained a lot of respect for him. Good night, sweet Prince | 7 June 1958 - 21 April 2016
Props will be withheld until the showing and proving has commenced. -- Aaron McGruder | |
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I really enjoyed his performance and also gained respect. How-some-ever, I gotta say that great as it was, that performance was a rehash of yester-years, before Prince was ever a tingle in John Nelson's left ball. Part James (I thought Little Richard) , part Elvis...only part Prince perhaps in that he also re-invented those dudes.
That said, my partner was like "Oh you're liking this because he's like a young Prince." | |
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YO
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And he looked like Sheila E. The Most Important Thing In Life Is Sincerity....Once You Can Fake That, You Can Fake Anything. |
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Lets see; First of all we had Mr I can show everyone I can dance Chris Brown and Ms. I can't sing at all Rhiana bot of whom preformed twice and then we were further insulted by a no singing, no dancing and barely rapping showing of Niki Manaj. I understand the shock value especially when it comes to marketing such as Lady Gaga. Im not a fan of Lady Gaga but at least she can sing. play an instrument, write her own music and be provacative and for that I give her credit | |
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Bruno Mars actually reminded me or Terence Trent Darby more than Prince.
I am not a fan of his, but that performance was not what I expected from him, and it did gain him a little respect.
Highly derivative, but still very good My Legacy
http://prince.org/msg/8/192731 | |
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Now see . . . Good night, sweet Prince | 7 June 1958 - 21 April 2016
Props will be withheld until the showing and proving has commenced. -- Aaron McGruder | |
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I agree with this article. The Grammys is just a tragedy to me. [Edited 2/19/12 17:57pm] Stevie Wonder = EARTH
Prince = WIND Chaka Khan = FIRE Sade = WATER the ELEMENTS of MUSIC | |
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NDRU said: Bruno Mars actually reminded me or Terence Trent Darby more than Prince.
I am not a fan of his, but that performance was not what I expected from him, and it did gain him a little respect.
Highly derivative, but still very good Co-sign 'dre Tried many flavours - but sooner or later, always go back to the Purple Kool-aid!
http://facebook.com/thedrezoneofficial Http://Twitter.com/thedrezone | |
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What I want to know is why he was nominated in the RnB category. Because he's black? His record is straight pop music. It's funny that they have to squeeze us all into one tiny black box! The Grammy's took a step back period. I especially didn't dig the the really dark themes played out by Ms. Minaj. What a strange way to pretty much end the evening with all that demonic stuff after opening it with a prayer. I won't waste my time watching again that garbage again. Not a fan of most mainstream music. How many more times do we have to see Coldplay? How about Of Montreal. No thank you! Release Yourself | |
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I could'nt agree with you more. It was a true embarrasment for R&B fans! I usually look forward to seeing the grammys but next year I will probably not watch it as to me it seems as if the voters are out of touch with our audience. If I want to see a freak show I'll do better by looking at pictures of Ripley's "beleive it or not". To end the show with Nikki Minaj was a slap in the face by the grammy community. | |
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The Grammies, Oscars and other shows are a waste of time if u want anything related 2 "soul" 2 be shown or respected. | |
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True, which is why sweeping generalizations about the death of soul music cannot be based on the outcome of the Grammy Awards. Good night, sweet Prince | 7 June 1958 - 21 April 2016
Props will be withheld until the showing and proving has commenced. -- Aaron McGruder | |
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