Timmy84 said:

TD3 said:

Uh, I'll repeat.( IMO)

He also had some jazz in him. So I can't just call him R&B unlike D'Angelo, which is what we should be focused on here.

I would've focused on D' Angelo if someone hadn't made an erroneous statement. Besides, I wrote some sentences under that had everything to do with D'.

What is there to speak of, the man hasn't done squat in a decade plus? Wanna talk about the weather instead? At least it changes everyday....

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[Edited 11/26/12 17:39pm]

Alot of people here call Stevie Wonder "POP" which I can slightly agree but also disagree with.

The point is he has ENOUGH R&B in his catalogue to be called or labeled an R&B artist...period. He has R&B albums. Albums is PLURAL that means he has more than one and a enough to be called that not to mention and has done countless other genres.

Its absurd to just box his entire catalogue as pop because it isnt all pop.

It doesn't matter to me none what other have said Wonder is or isn't; In my opinion that man wasn't POP.

TD3 said:

It doesn't matter to me none what other have said Wonder is or isn't; In my opinion that man wasn't POP.

Me neither. I dont think his artistry or his catalogue is POP although he has songs that were popular. His music is beyond that.

TD3 said:

Timmy84 said:

He also had some jazz in him. So I can't just call him R&B unlike D'Angelo, which is what we should be focused on here.

I would've focused on D' Angelo if someone hadn't made an erroneous statement. Besides, I wrote some sentences under that had everything to do with D'.

What is there to speak of, the man hasn't done squat in a decade plus? Wanna talk about the weather instead? At least it changes everyday....

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[Edited 11/26/12 17:39pm]

OUCH!!!

@ "the man hasn't done squat"...

well yeah there ain't much about him to talk about...

His new songs sounded amazing at his recent show!

His show was an experience in itself. So worth it!

I wish him nothing but the best, and look forward to whatever it is that he chooses to release.

Once you hit a creative block it's tough to get back to working with the same pace as earlier.

The excitement in the music industry as a whole is largely gone. Artists still crave for attention (which is understandable) and when all of it goes to the manufactured pop acts it doesn't really motivate you to keep making a record after another. This seems to be the case with MANY artists these days in MANY different genres.

For that matter, I don't think people in general have such an appreciation for music and musicians with talent anymore. The whole world has been brainwashed to believe that only making a lot of money with any means possible and having a fit body is important.

^ In that case, it's been that way since the '80s.

TD3 said:

Steve Wonder WAS NOT POP. I"LL REPEAT NOT POP.

D'Angelo better thank baby Jesus his career wasn't during the Wonder era because he would've been dropped, kick to the curb, thrown to the chicken and pigs, stuck with a fork because he's done. Really he's in keeping with his generation attitude, they don't have a work ethic, and they don't follow through on pretty anything they do. Damn near everything they do is fuck-up... they seem to do that very well. Cry when shit doesn't go their way and self destruct when they have a loaf of bread under each arm. Pathetic.

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[Edited 11/26/12 17:33pm]

No, but his music was popular.

That's why his music -- R&B, Soul, Transcendent, Etc. -- was successful on the popular charts. No one's music need be POP to be POPULAR.

Nah, it's changed for the worse. If you were a teenager in the 1990s, you had musical talent and you told you wanted to become a musician people were supportive and thought what you were doing is cool. Now, they're just like "well, you're fucked".

novabrkr said:

Nah, it's changed for the worse. If you were a teenager in the 1990s, you had musical talent and you told you wanted to become a musician people were supportive and thought what you were doing is cool. Now, they're just like "well, you're fucked".

I don't know... but I see it very differently. Like it was already heading that way. To me at least.

If anything I think the artists still hadn't learned the lessons of the artists of old on how to make a revolution within the industry. They keep falling for the same old school bullshit. That can probably explain why some people think "it's getting worse"...

Plus D, Lauryn and them took five-ten years putting their stuff out when the scene had changed too quick though they were still popular, if not more. So I wouldn't think it was just the industry's changes that fucked them up.

mjscarousal said:

namepeace said:

I agree with your points and I didnt entirely blame it on the industry as well but the industry has fault in it and to me there is a distinction between an R&B and pop artist. Although Michael, Prince, Janet were pop stars especially the latteer they did sing enough to be called R&B artists. MJ even started out as R&B and did many genres Its not like they casually did one R&B song on each album and they sung many genres so I dont think that was a fair comparision. I cant say the same for Chris Brown, Rihanna and company etc.

I know you didn't blame it all on the industry. I think we're saying much of the same thing: Prince, Michael, Janet, and the R&B stars that came before them, they were popular stars making music (mainly) rooted in the R&B sound.

I do agree with all you said though. It does leave a void when these artists take LONG breaks like this. The only excuse I can come up with is artistic reasons but for some of these artists thats not the case. Its VERY sad how artists like D angelo and Lauryn Hill have not came out with an album in over a decade and they were the leading voices of a genre/era.

True. Many of the greats, like Prince and Michael, found their biggest hits to be like albatrosses . . . but they never took a decade off anxious that they couldn't repeat that success.

Prince in particular used it to take risks and put out tons of music in his prime. Ditto Stevie before him. They never had to deal with the industry as it has been for the D'Angelos and Lauryns, granted, but I wish they would do more.

Even Sade put out a good amount of material in the 80's BEFORE she went into semi-retirement.

What I'm just trying to say is that the cultural importance of music has diminished. I think that's one of the biggest reasons why people aren't feeling motivated to put so much work into it.

novabrkr said:

What I'm just trying to say is that the cultural importance of music has diminished. I think that's one of the biggest reasons why people aren't feeling motivated to put so much work into it.

It didn't diminish without help from the artists themselves. Labels were number-one yes, but artists should've known IMHO. They believed the labels until it was too late. Money always ruled the industry and it's just more apparent now but it's been that way a long time. That's just what I was saying... not saying you're wrong but that's just my view.

Besides, there's still hunger in real musicians even though they know they can only be heard online or on the underground. Maybe it's good that way until the industry finally collapses altogether and builds from the ground up. I'm still hopeful and I'm almost 30 so it ain't too late for me. Maybe too late for D'Angelo though.

novabrkr said:

What I'm just trying to say is that the cultural importance of music has diminished. I think that's one of the biggest reasons why people aren't feeling motivated to put so much work into it.

I would only amend that slightly. The music scene has been fully democritized in the digital age.

Musicians may not be able to have the same profound impact on our culture as a whole, as they did earlier.

But musicians still have profound impact from listener to listener. The Shins could be just as important to 10,000 dedicated fans as the Beatles were to 10 million fans. But as a whole they may only cause a ripple culturally. Most all of us can name artists over say, the last 10 years who've really made an impression on us.

There are a lot of artists who continue to put hard work into their music because they know they won't be completely lost in the shuffle.

Maybe it's those artists who were primed to make big impacts who are more hampered because meeting the expectations is hard -- even for established stars.

Yeah plus the industry needs to stop blabbering on about the next "legend-to-be", that's what kills these artists who probably do have potential to do better things. I'm sure D hearing he's the "next Prince" or "next Marvin Gaye" killed him too in the industry. Plus "that video" lmao

novabrkr said:

Once you hit a creative block it's tough to get back to working with the same pace as earlier.

The excitement in the music industry as a whole is largely gone. Artists still crave for attention (which is understandable) and when all of it goes to the manufactured pop acts it doesn't really motivate you to keep making a record after another. This seems to be the case with MANY artists these days in MANY different genres.

For that matter, I don't think people in general have such an appreciation for music and musicians with talent anymore. The whole world has been brainwashed to believe that only making a lot of money with any means possible and having a fit body is important.

Yea thats what I pointed out. Giving pop stars high awards and they havent even been in the industry for 20 years, (who also dont write their own music and cant even sing!) is a big of a let down for acts who have and still dont get no credit. ex. Mint Condition, Brandy, and so forth.

I really dont understand how a band like Mint condition do what they do after all these years. I have tremendous respect for them because they are great at what they do and despite lacking support from the industry and recognition they still do what they enjoy doing. So thats why I said its not completely the artists fault alone although they have to make the first steps.

[Edited 11/27/12 10:17am]

novabrkr said:

What I'm just trying to say is that the cultural importance of music has diminished. I think that's one of the biggest reasons why people aren't feeling motivated to put so much work into it.

I agree with this as well. Yea Yea yea... we know that the public has a lot to do with this.

HOWEVER, if the Grammys have a R&B song category and Kelly Price, Marsha, Chris Brown, Melanie Fiona, El Debarge s in it and Chris Brown wins that category, something is wrong with that picture I dont care what nobody says.

It has come to a point now that the quality is not important but instead the branding of the artists or popularity is what is important. So they can put a bunch of R&B artists in a category (just so it can look like a real competition) but they will throw in a pop star just to give it to them.

That is not fair and it is not right.

Its horrible what the music industry has turned into.

We have had R&B artists this decade come out with really GOOD stuff but their not getting acknowledge by the industry... So you cant blame them if their putting out the material and pushing to be creative, thats the industry problem.

Timmy84 said:

Yeah plus the industry needs to stop blabbering on about the next "legend-to-be", that's what kills these artists who probably do have potential to do better things. I'm sure D hearing he's the "next Prince" or "next Marvin Gaye" killed him too in the industry. Plus "that video" lmao

?uestlove must have been a horrible friend to have. Calling him the "promised one", "savior" of soul or whatever.

novabrkr said:

Timmy84 said:

Yeah plus the industry needs to stop blabbering on about the next "legend-to-be", that's what kills these artists who probably do have potential to do better things. I'm sure D hearing he's the "next Prince" or "next Marvin Gaye" killed him too in the industry. Plus "that video" lmao

?uestlove must have been a horrible friend to have. Calling him the "promised one", "savior" of soul or whatever.

Well, at least he did a mini tour.

rdhull said:

Well, at least he did a mini tour.

Emphasis on "mini".

rdhull said:

Well, at least he did a mini tour.

You can say that again.

Yeah, but it showed he has been working lol.