"Back in mah day"

These kinda threads are getting hella boring.

[Edited 5/10/12 11:53am]

AsherFierce said:

These kinda threads are getting hella boring.

I'm almost 30 and I'm tired of sounding like someone's granddaddy at 28.

smoothcriminal12 said:

AsherFierce said:

These kinda threads are getting hella boring.

Maybe................but just look at the talent level in 1982 vs now.

SAD transition.

728huey said:

using cookie-cutter beats played off of some computer, and all of it seemed sterile and lifeless.

See, that's the problem I have. Every time I turn on 106 & Park or turn on contemporary radio, the music itself is mostly computerized, recylced drum beats. It all sounds so much alike. I often times wonder if I would give a lot of these songs a chance if there were actually real instruments being played? The problem with the young producers is most of them don't know how to write music. They can write lyrics but they can't write the music to go along with it. They just hear a beat in their head and they run it thru a computer or they sample someone else's old school song where real instruments are actually being played.

Im not sure why people below the age of 30 complain about threads like this on a forum that is dedicated to a artist who is OVER 50. ...

So yes their going to be old ass music being talked about and yes their going to be old people complaining about the state of music

The primary users here for the most part are within the age range of Prince or well over 30, or their taste is not geared toward what is current... so of course their are going to be threads like this from time to time because music has changed so much. If some rather not talk about topics like this in threads ....then dont. Just like I find the constant Rihanna, Chris Brown and Beyonce threads annoying as hell but dont respond in them if I dont want to...Otherwise, just go to another forum that caters to current music since that seems to be an issue here for some...

Its funny because there are way more threads on Beyonce, Rihanna, Chris Brown, Usher, Katy Perry, etc here more so than an artist like Marvin, James, The Time, Stevie, etc... I would think on a Prince site there would be more of that particular era or other music in general....

What IS boring is people constantly complaining about why people have criticism on todays music like it doesnt get talked about here.. when it does ... ALOT more than the oldies.

^ I got love for the old music (Hell i wouldn't be on a prince site if I didn't.) All i'm saying is recycling the same old "today's music sucks" is hella boring. When dudes Timmy got a new music thread that has some hot shit on it. But nah, you gon keep bitchin'.

Ahh well, go 'head. I'mma listen to some Flo Rida.

AsherFierce said:

^ I got love for the old music (Hell i wouldn't be on a prince site if I didn't.) All i'm saying is recycling the same old "today's music sucks" is hella boring. When dudes Timmy got a new music thread that has some hot shit on it. But nah, you gon keep bitchin'.

Ahh well, go 'head. I'mma listen to some Flo Rida.

No that is not what is going on here...... its childish to label a discussion on how music has changed to people complaining but then again you posters do that with EVERYTHING.

No one is complainging in this thread and to be honest the original debate was on whether or not any NEW genres has been implemented in the industry over the last 20 years NOT on why todays music is bad but ONCE again people read into what they want around here

I thought it was pretty interesting. We all didnt agree but it was respectfully done. And from the looks of it, it seems you dont utilize Timmys thread based on the shit you listen to and then wanna turn around and bitch at people complaining on the state of the music industry and why they complain

People have a problem with people expressing their opinion on how POP MUSIC HAS CHANGED OVER THE YEARS but dont have a problem with useless threads people talk about that has nothing to do with music.....okay.

These youngins on this site need to shut up or leave ... simple as that. PROBLEM SOLVED

Im tired of these same posters younger than 30 labeling people as complainers when their simply just giving their 2cents on how music has changed on a site devoted to a man OVER 50 its ridiculous because that is the nature of some of these threads here by default and to be honest their very interesting and enlightening which is the whole purpose of message boards.

You dont have to be here really... instead of complaining about it like someone is making you be here and like 2012 music doesnt get talked about here, yes it does but that still doesnt mean how music has changed shouldnt be talked about either...

[Edited 5/10/12 12:35pm]

kitbradley said:

728huey said:

using cookie-cutter beats played off of some computer, and all of it seemed sterile and lifeless.

See, that's the problem I have. Every time I turn on 106 & Park or turn on contemporary radio, the music itself is mostly computerized, recylced drum beats. It all sounds so much alike. I often times wonder if I would give a lot of these songs a chance if there were actually real instruments being played? The problem with the young producers is most of them don't know how to write music. They can write lyrics but they can't write the music to go along with it. They just hear a beat in their head and they run it thru a computer or they sample someone else's old school song where real instruments are actually being played.

Computer programs and VSTs are just another musical instrument.

Afreakinmen mj - on both your quotes.

Exactly why I rarely comment anymore.

mjscarousal said:

AsherFierce said:

^ I got love for the old music (Hell i wouldn't be on a prince site if I didn't.) All i'm saying is recycling the same old "today's music sucks" is hella boring. When dudes Timmy got a new music thread that has some hot shit on it. But nah, you gon keep bitchin'.

Ahh well, go 'head. I'mma listen to some Flo Rida.

No that is not what is going on here...... its childish to label a discussion on how music has changed to people complaining but then again you posters do that with EVERYTHING.

No one is complainging in this thread and to be honest the original debate was on whether or not any NEW genres has been implemented in the industry over the last 20 years NOT on why todays music is bad but ONCE again people read into what they want around here

I thought it was pretty interesting. We all didnt agree but it was respectfully done. And from the looks of it, it seems you dont utilize Timmys thread based on the shit you listen to and then wanna turn around and bitch at people complaining on the state of the music industry and why they complain

People have a problem with people expressing their opinion on how POP MUSIC HAS CHANGED OVER THE YEARS but dont have a problem with useless threads people talk about that has nothing to do with music.....okay.

These youngins on this site need to shut up or leave ... simple as that. PROBLEM SOLVED

Im tired of these same posters younger than 30 labeling people as complainers when their simply just giving their 2cents on how music has changed on a site devoted to a man OVER 50 its ridiculous because that is the nature of some of these threads here by default and to be honest their very interesting and enlightening which is the whole purpose of message boards.

You dont have to be here really... instead of complaining about it like someone is making you be here and like 2012 music doesnt get talked about here, yes it does but that still doesnt mean how music has changed shouldnt be talked about either...

[Edited 5/10/12 12:35pm]

Terrib3Towel said:

I knew exactly how this thread would turn out.

and I'M TIRED of people complaining about just two genres (R&B and Hip-Hop)

but specially, I'M TIRED of people complaining about the sound/production...

for me, the most important thing of a song is the craft, the catchiness, how the verse flows into the chorus, how the melody sustains the whole thing...

so, the way I see it, there are two group of villians :

a) the folks that will ignore/shit on any new act just because it sounds "modern". ? Is that a problem? SexyBitch is still a killer neo- dance/pop song, and it doesn't really matter if you hate the guts/sound of Guetta or Akon, the song is still a killer, regardless of your personal taste...

b) the folks that overrate new acts/bands just because they don't sound hip/commercial/post-99, ignoring the fact that many of these supposedly great new acts can't write a memorable song to save their asses...that's why they don't have hits, and that's why they will never reach superstar status; I'm tired, for example, of sites overrating new bands that are supposed to be good just because they sound traditional, unlike the "crappy" sellout modern acts. So? Just because they don't sound modern, they are automatically good??? oh c'mon

in conclusion, I'll dig/support any new artist/band as long as she/he/they can write or co-write songs that I like, and I don't give a damn if the style is "old" or "modern"..."alternative" or "commercial", "organic" or "electronic", "loud" or "soft"... that's why I dig modern acts like Gaga, Britney, Rihanna, Coldplay, Adele, Guetta, or the singles of the BEP, for example...without feeling guilty about it, or without acting like 27 years old grandpa...

mjscarousal said:

Im not sure why people below the age of 30 complain about threads like this on a forum that is dedicated to a artist who is OVER 50. ...

So yes their going to be old ass music being talked about and yes their going to be old people complaining about the state of music

The primary users here for the most part are within the age range of Prince or well over 30, or their taste is not geared toward what is current... so of course their are going to be threads like this from time to time because music has changed so much. If some rather not talk about topics like this in threads ....then dont. Just like I find the constant Rihanna, Chris Brown and Beyonce threads annoying as hell but dont respond in them if I dont want to...Otherwise, just go to another forum that caters to current music since that seems to be an issue here for some...

Its funny because there are way more threads on Beyonce, Rihanna, Chris Brown, Usher, Katy Perry, etc here more so than an artist like Marvin, James, The Time, Stevie, etc... I would think on a Prince site there would be more of that particular era or other music in general....

What IS boring is people constantly complaining about why people have criticism on todays music like it doesnt get talked about here.. when it does ... ALOT more than the oldies.

Thank you. Your posts in this thread have been on point.

Dry and lifeless would be the best way to describe the music environment of today. This simply comes from the lack of production values with today's producers, they lack the musical knowledge and understanding their predecessors knew....However, that is through no fault of their own as music appreciation and education has been going downhill for the last 30 years.

Many of the artists from the 20s - 80s could all write music or at least play one instrument with reasonable compentancy. Once public school systems started cutting funding for art and music programs in the late 80s until recently, the knowledge base for musicianship dropped like a hammer and it is quite apparent for our R+B artist.

Can you name a recent production team as great as Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis? Teddy Riley? Brian Michael-Cox? Babyface?

All those guys listed could not only wrote hits for others, but play instruments and have a strong music background BEFORE being the biz....kids want to jump in on the MTV grind with no musical backing, hence why their "noise" is terrible.

gdiminished said:

Dry and lifeless would be the best way to describe the music environment of today. This simply comes from the lack of production values with today's producers, they lack the musical knowledge and understanding their predecessors knew....However, that is through no fault of their own as music appreciation and education has been going downhill for the last 30 years.

Many of the artists from the 20s - 80s could all write music or at least play one instrument with reasonable compentancy. Once public school systems started cutting funding for art and music programs in the late 80s until recently, the knowledge base for musicianship dropped like a hammer and it is quite apparent for our R+B artist.

Can you name a recent production team as great as Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis? Teddy Riley? Brian Michael-Cox? Babyface?

All those guys listed could not only wrote hits for others, but play instruments and have a strong music background BEFORE being the biz....kids want to jump in on the MTV grind with no musical backing, hence why their "noise" is terrible.

I agree but I can name 1 recent production team: Mint Condition.

Graycap23 said:

gdiminished said:

Dry and lifeless would be the best way to describe the music environment of today. This simply comes from the lack of production values with today's producers, they lack the musical knowledge and understanding their predecessors knew....However, that is through no fault of their own as music appreciation and education has been going downhill for the last 30 years.

Many of the artists from the 20s - 80s could all write music or at least play one instrument with reasonable compentancy. Once public school systems started cutting funding for art and music programs in the late 80s until recently, the knowledge base for musicianship dropped like a hammer and it is quite apparent for our R+B artist.

Can you name a recent production team as great as Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis? Teddy Riley? Brian Michael-Cox? Babyface?

All those guys listed could not only wrote hits for others, but play instruments and have a strong music background BEFORE being the biz....kids want to jump in on the MTV grind with no musical backing, hence why their "noise" is terrible.

I agree but I can name 1 recent production team: Mint Condition.

Yeah, but Mint Condition isn't that recent as they've been producing classics since the early 90s and they still sound as fresh as they did 20 years ago and would do well in any era of music, whereas Chris Brown brown would be sweeping up the stage after the show and Rhianna would be doing the catering in 70s based on thier musical abilities.

^

There the only real current semi mainstream group that is technically a real r&b band right now currently regardless of when they came out... anything in the 90s onward is really not that old but I see the point your making. Its ashame they havent gotten some sort of honor when they have been making music longer than acts like Beyonce, Rihanna, Chris Brown etc.

gdiminished said:

Dry and lifeless would be the best way to describe the music environment of today.

Can you name a recent production team as great as Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis? Teddy Riley? Brian Michael-Cox? Babyface?

Neptunes / Guetta / Daft Punk / Stuart Price/ Timbaland (before he got repetitive/lost his mojo)

just because those acts you mentioned are already classic, it doesn't mean they were perfect or better than the current producers, and don't forget that they were also MOCKED/CRITICISED during their heyday Teddy Riley's sound sounds hopelessly mechanic/repetitive today (I still dig it anyway), Babyface was always accused of being bland and a sellout who turned R&B into an adult/contemporary mess...and don't get me started on R.Kelly...

same old same old...

and it's funny cuz 00s commercial music OWES a lot to the 80s dance/pop music; any 00s dance/electronic artist/producer has cited the 80s sound as a direct influence. Just sayin'. For me, the Neptunes are a lot closer to the MPLSound than Teddy Riley or Babyface...

[Edited 5/11/12 7:59am]

JoeTyler said:

gdiminished said:

Dry and lifeless would be the best way to describe the music environment of today.

Can you name a recent production team as great as Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis? Teddy Riley? Brian Michael-Cox? Babyface?

Neptunes / Guetta / Daft Punk / Timbaland (before he got repetitive/lost his mojo)

just because those acts you mentioned are already classic, it doesn't mean they were perfect or better than the current producers, and don't forget that they were also MOCKED/CRITICISED during their heyday Teddy Riley's sound sounds hopelessly mechanic/repetitive today (I still dig it anyway), Babyface was always accused of being bland and a sellout who turned R&B into an adult/contemporary mess...and don't get me started on R.Kelly...

same old same old...

and it's funny cuz 00s commercial music OWES a lot to the 80s dance/pop music; any 00s dance/electronic artist/producer has cited the 80s sound as a direct influence. Just sayin'. For me, the Neptunes are a lot closer to the MPLSound than Teddy Riley or Babyface...

[Edited 5/11/12 7:48am]

Guetta and Daft Punk? That electronica stuff gets a swift boot out of here as they aren't really a benefit to the R+B style, but simply bogging it down with that horrible techno approach [ugh].

Timbo was an understudy of Devante Swing and Timbo owes his career to the man as he was the one who got him in the door and his work with Aaliyah, Missy, Ginuwine, Tweet, Justin T. and many others has been fantastic, he is the progression of Devante's style if anything else.

Neptunes come from the early nineties, hardly new to the game and the drum progressions they have in most of their songs are due to Pharrel's band exposure as a HS drummer...both are multi-instrumentalists and their work on Kelis' Kaleidoscope is quite remarkable. They'd easily be comparable to JJ/TL, but need more time.

Teddy's funky basslines still ring true and smooth melodic lines can still get a crowd jumping and a-foot-a-tapping....

We are getting sidetracked here, most of the artists mentioned has serious musical chops BEFORE they got the fame bug and it easily separates them from weak music and songs that will sound just as fresh in 85, 2015, and 2054, whereas Guetta's work will be dated in a few months.

You can't have a problem with something you don't pay attention to. There's plenty of records released since 1885 to listen to. If you've never heard it, then it's new. I don't know what the big deal is about having something that is newly recorded or that music is valid only if it charts in Billboard or if some magazine writes about it or put it on some "best" list.

[Edited 5/11/12 8:49am]

JoeTyler said:

gdiminished said:

Dry and lifeless would be the best way to describe the music environment of today.

Can you name a recent production team as great as Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis? Teddy Riley? Brian Michael-Cox? Babyface?

Neptunes / Guetta / Daft Punk / Stuart Price/ Timbaland (before he got repetitive/lost his mojo)

just because those acts you mentioned are already classic, it doesn't mean they were perfect or better than the current producers, and don't forget that they were also MOCKED/CRITICISED during their heyday Teddy Riley's sound sounds hopelessly mechanic/repetitive today (I still dig it anyway), Babyface was always accused of being bland and a sellout who turned R&B into an adult/contemporary mess...and don't get me started on R.Kelly...

same old same old...

and it's funny cuz 00s commercial music OWES a lot to the 80s dance/pop music; any 00s dance/electronic artist/producer has cited the 80s sound as a direct influence. Just sayin'. For me, the Neptunes are a lot closer to the MPLSound than Teddy Riley or Babyface...

[Edited 5/11/12 7:59am]

Neptunes and Timbaland are dope but I wouldnt put them in the same league as Jimmy or Terry but it doesnt mean I enjoy them any less but it is what it is, I think that poster was speaking in terms of exactly playing instruments not overall quality production and Timbaland has lost his mojo for a minute now...

I think that the sucess of Adele shows that people still like old school melodic pop music, but she is not innovative.

But as this topic is about todays R & B then I think that almost everything has been tried already. Nice and bit naive melodies of the 60s (The Supremes, Motown), more serious topics singer/songwriter period (Stevie, Marvin, Al Green), R & B mixed with disco (Off the wall, Earth, wind and fire), mixed with rock (Beat it, 1999/Purple Rain), soul/R&B mixed with rap in the 90s, rock mixed with rap (long run since RUN DMC feat Aerosmith Beastie Boys in the mid 80s). So then was the new jack swing, then more rap with whatever (classical music), then neo soul, which was great period IMO. Now they try to mix this with auto tune and Euro dance music, although the dance beat is killing the R&B feeling, sometimes only the singing reminds of some soul/r&b song.

What is next? I think more mixing with other styles. Maybe some Japanese melodies? Maybe Brazilian samba? There is not so much to try anymore...

But what will live on is still a good melody, good beat, good rhythm. So people like D´Angelo, Maxwell and Erykah, Jill Scott can have hit songs if they create really a record full of brilliant tracks. And there is Kanye, who seems to like experimenting a lot. He sounds fresh. He is not Prince of course, but today the picture is different and in today´s music scene he is as big as Prince was in 80s. in innovation/creativity

Of course the industry has changed. iTunes and the illegal downloading has turned the business back to the 50-60s when the focus was on singles, not (concept) albums. But I think if you have a good single, then another and another.... then people will buy the whole album eventually - it does not matter if it is MP3s or CD.

But the illegal part of the downloading has had an impact on recording industry, the (CD) sales are falling so the artist have started to focus on touring. In the 60-80s we had a lot of new stars who sold out stadium tours after 1-3 albums, but what is happening now? Lady Gaga, maybe Coldplay and Beyonce can really think about stadiums these days. That is only few artist in 1,5 decade. The guys with deep back catalogue sell out stadiums these days. But of course in the 60s there were no rock dinosaurs nowhere to be found also (from the 30s or 40s ), the industry is just that young.

But I am sure that good music lives on, but it just might be played on your old radio. You have to dig deeper to endless internet sites and discover.

My MAIN gripe, are the whiney male singers out now. What the fuck is that all about? I LOVE 80's R&B over ANYTHING. When there was a duet, you could tell who was the man, and who was the woman singing. Now it'll sound like 2 chicks. My cousin plays some dumb ass Chris Brown song where he says "Loving the crew" or some dumb shit over and over, and it sounds like he's straight up whining. Sing dammit! I can't even get into that shit. If the female is hurting you so fucking bad, then sing a song that makes me FEEL your pain. Stevie and Prince are just 2 examples of musicians who know how to convey feeling through music. I think that is the MAIN thing missing. No feeling in the music. Songs that make you dance, cry, think, etc., instead of booty and dance floor anthems.

ScarletScandal said:

My cousin plays some dumb ass Chris Brown song where he says "Loving the crew" or some dumb shit over and over

A) It's a Drake song

B) It's the Weeknd singing the hook.

Haven't read all the replies. I will say 106 & Park doesn't set the bar high for hip-hop and R&B. Most people just watch that show for guest appearances... not necessarily the "music". I dig music from the past because of the live instrumentation. I also dig the 80's because it blended both the electronic vibe/drum machine with live instruments. Today, I like a lot of music that comes out. I admit there is some "trash" music out in the R&B/Hip-Hop field, but there is also a lot of quality artist's today in these genres as well in my opinion.You have to know how to listen to hip-hop (in particular). I've listed a few:

Hip-Hop:

1) Common

2) Nas

3) Outkast

4) Lupe Fiasco (he touches on several different topics)

5) J. Cole

6) Big K.R.I.T

7) Drake

8) Kendrick LaMar

9) Jay Electronica (content is very in-depth)

10) Talib Kweli

R&B:

1) Bilal

2) Miguel

3) Chrisette Michelle

4) Jill Scott

5) Beyonce

6) Jennifer Hudson

7) Raheem Devaughn

8) Marsha Ambrosius

9) J. Davey

That's just naming a few off the top of my head which have content and nice instrumentation as the backdrop.

ScarletScandal said:

My MAIN gripe, are the whiney male singers out now. What the fuck is that all about? I LOVE 80's R&B over ANYTHING. When there was a duet, you could tell who was the man, and who was the woman singing. Now it'll sound like 2 chicks. My cousin plays some dumb ass Chris Brown song where he says "Loving the crew" or some dumb shit over and over, and it sounds like he's straight up whining. Sing dammit! I can't even get into that shit. If the female is hurting you so fucking bad, then sing a song that makes me FEEL your pain. Stevie and Prince are just 2 examples of musicians who know how to convey feeling through music. I think that is the MAIN thing missing. No feeling in the music. Songs that make you dance, cry, think, etc., instead of booty and dance floor anthems.

I agree with this.

Drake may be the worst artist of the 2000/10s. I've never seen girls go so crazy over someone so lame. Plus he's FUGLY.

I also think the urban labels/management/execs/promoters, etc are to blame also. In R&B, you only see solo artists. The big 7 to 9 piece bands are a thing of the past. The industry doesn't want to promote that anymore. Why pay a bunch of musicians when you could concentrate and pay on only one?

And the R&B/hip hop music channels (radio and video) force feed and hypnotize people into thinking that what they're hearing is great. As the other orger said, everything sounds the same..same beat/synth patch/sample/same subject,etc.

Today's R&B and hip hop is (kinda) targeted to the "under 25" crowd because their the ones that are still buying CD's and downloading music feverishly. I don't think all of it is bad, but the R&B from the 90's and backwards was better. More substance, creativity and meaning.

smoothcriminal12 said:

ScarletScandal said:

My cousin plays some dumb ass Chris Brown song where he says "Loving the crew" or some dumb shit over and over

A) It's a Drake song

B) It's the Weeknd singing the hook.

That just adds to my point. Can't even tell motherfuckers apart because they all sound alike. I wish these guys would stop trying to sound like Michael Fucking Jackson.

ScarletScandal said:

smoothcriminal12 said:

A) It's a Drake song

B) It's the Weeknd singing the hook.

That just adds to my point. Can't even tell motherfuckers apart because they all sound alike. I wish these guys would stop trying to sound like Michael Fucking Jackson.

I love his music but when The Weeknd sings...sounds like he's about to jump off a building every time.