Scorpion said:

lrn36 said:

namepeace said:

Music is still around, though. I have faith.

Bruno's latest output just reminds me of the Whispers. You could just impose Bruno's head of all them and you wouldn't know the difference. Not only is he copying the musical structures of the early 80s, he is also emulating the production. It's too on the nose. Prince's 1999 has a very similar feel in composition to Sly Stone, but the production is all Prince. That's what make it sound fresh and new. Even the band Stray Cats who heavily borrowed from 50s rockabilly made their sound more punk, harder, and grittier to make sound new. The early 80s Briitsh sound was Motown with synths and a European flair. I don't see a reinterpreting of old sounds in this music, but just mere facsimile.

[Edited 2/2/18 12:51pm]

That's all true. I really was thinking of artists other than Bruno when I wrote this but those are valid points.

namepeace said:

MotownSubdivision said:

namepeace said:

That's all true. I really was thinking of artists other than Bruno when I wrote this but those are valid points.

I'm not hearing The Whispers in any of Bruno's music. The closest song to the LA sound he's done is "Callin' All My Lovelies"; it has the smooth, slick R&B production of the early 80s.

yes, i don't hear "the whispers" neither. bruno's album is actually very well produced and engineered, each song from chunky to too good to say goodbye has this crisp sonic quality to it. and ofc the title track is a masterclass in electro-funk. excited to see what's the sound he's going for next

MotownSubdivision said:

Scorpion said:

Bruno's wins & success is just confirmation of what Stephanie Mills said last year.

"They want R&B music - just not from us."

Usher and Chris Brown could have never recorded that album and been met with the exact same success and awards. Just like Beyonce recording "25" album would have never went diamond and won AOTY like Adele. It's not about the music. It's about internalized racism whether it's blatant or subconscious. Bruno was the safest option between a Kendrick/Jay and a Lorde. Black music without the black person singing it...easy win. I bet the Grammy execs felt they've done their job and bridged the diversity gap with this one and rectified the situation. SMH.

OK, Lorde isn't some paint-by-numbers pop artist but her work ain't in near the risky category either.

.

The Lorde ship is sinking alongside the Eminem and the Taylor Swift.

Ok, you disagree about the Whispers or Leon Slyvers influence, but you no one seems to be arguing that Bruno Mars bring nothing new to the table. Who is he? What drives him or inspires him other than copying old music? Is that too much to expect from an artist who people claim is the greatest of this era? In any other time, he would be considered a novelty act like Buster Poindexter from the 80s. But back then no one was proclaiming him the greatest artist of his generation. David Jo Hansen knew he was a novelty act and the audience knew it as well.

In the current pop landscape, Bruno is the most talented artist out there. He is 32 years old and has been in the game for almost a decade and he still has no central core to his artistic identity. He is content to merely copy than to push artistic boundaries or mix different styles of music to create something different. I'm not asking him to reinvent the wheel, just improve it a bit.

Masterclass

Scorpion said:

Bruno's wins & success is just confirmation of what Stephanie Mills said last year.

"They want R&B music - just not from us."

Usher and Chris Brown could have never recorded that album and been met with the exact same success and awards. Just like Beyonce recording "25" album would have never went diamond and won AOTY like Adele. It's not about the music. It's about internalized racism whether it's blatant or subconscious. Bruno was the safest option between a Kendrick/Jay and a Lorde. Black music without the black person singing it...easy win. I bet the Grammy execs felt they've done their job and bridged the diversity gap with this one and rectified the situation. SMH.

Please, Chris Brown already tried and failed with Heartbreaks to be as successful because he focused all his time and energy on talking about how much he wants to screw women so you can have a seat.

Usher last album imo was better than Chris Brown's..however much of his album Usher was trying to be Chris Brown. Following trends instead of chasing them. Who's fault is that now? Usher has ALL THE MEANS to make 24K Magic but he doesnt. He too busy not trying to be differnet chasing dollars and charts instead of bringing something fresh.

Ms. Mills in the same sentence said Kenny Latimore no one is paying attention THESE KIDS DONT WANT NO DAMN KENNY LATIMORE. If that's the case who's fault is that? kenny could never in his life make "That's What I Like", "Perm" or "Finesse". The R&B audicnce and his supporters are not supporting him. Im sure if they took their asses to the weka stow to buy his album in the millions and stream it we would not be having this conversation.

Get the fuck out of here with that mess.

lrn36 said:

Ok, you disagree about the Whispers or Leon Slyvers influence, but you no one seems to be arguing that Bruno Mars bring nothing new to the table. Who is he? What drives him or inspires him other than copying old music? Is that too much to expect from an artist who people claim is the greatest of this era? In any other time, he would be considered a novelty act like Buster Poindexter from the 80s. But back then no one was proclaiming him the greatest artist of his generation. David Jo Hansen knew he was a novelty act and the audience knew it as well.

In the current pop landscape, Bruno is the most talented artist out there. He is 32 years old and has been in the game for almost a decade and he still has no central core to his artistic identity. He is content to merely copy than to push artistic boundaries or mix different styles of music to create something different. I'm not asking him to reinvent the wheel, just improve it a bit.

Look at it this way, the bar has been lowered all across the board i nterms of quality and star power. The biggest names of this era would be one hit wonders at best in the 1980s so it's not in doubt that Bruno would be considered a novelty act in the 1980s when you have blockbuster names radiating pure star power all over the place versus the consolation prizes for "artists" dominating the charts today.

However, Bruno is easily the most well-rounded artist in mainstream music today and probably the only one people will not hesitate to call a musician. In terms of talent, he is easily the greatest in this era (of mainstream music). He is the only name today with a skill set comparable to Prince in that they are one-man bands who can sing, dance, produce, play instruments and write their own songs. The fact that such a talent hasn't existed in the mainstream for so long and we finally have one, people flock to that. On top of that, deep down I think many aren't that into what's being fed to them today in popular music, including many that this music is targeted for. They miss the old school sounds and sensibilities of music and Bruno replicates them perfectly. He isn't the creative behemoth that Prince was but he's the closest thing to Prince today.

I agree he does need to define himself as more than just "happy old school guy" and carve a niche of his own within the music he clearly adores and he has from time to time (see "Locked Out of Heaven", "Treasure" and even "That's What I Like") but he's not some swagger jacking fake trying to profit off of black music like a few others we've seen in the past few years (Iggy Azalea, Miley Cyrus, Post Malone). Even if you don't really care for Bruno and expect more from him, you can at least be happy about him bringing these classic sounds back to the mainstream in a big way and with his broad appeal, he is sharing it with as diverse an audience as one can possibly imagine. Some white kid in middle school could be listening to the Gap Band and about to discover P-Funk because of Bruno Mars. AJapanese kid in Okinawa could be bumping "Bounce to the Ounce" on YouTube right now because of Bruno. He may not be completely original but I beleive he's covertly having a positive effect on mainstream music.

Motown Subdivision says:

I agree he does need to define himself as more than just "happy old school guy" and carve a niche of his own within the music he clearly adores and he has from time to time (see "Locked Out of Heaven", "Treasure" and even "That's What I Like") but he's not some swagger jacking fake trying to profit off of black music like a few others we've seen in the past few years (Iggy Azalea, Miley Cyrus, Post Malone). Even if you don't really care for Bruno and expect more from him, you can at least be happy about him bringing these classic sounds back to the mainstream in a big way and with his broad appeal, he is sharing it with as diverse an audience as one can possibly imagine. Some white kid in middle school could be listening to the Gap Band and about to discover P-Funk because of Bruno Mars. AJapanese kid in Okinawa could be bumping "Bounce to the Ounce" on YouTube right now because of Bruno. He may not be completely original but I beleive he's covertly having a positive effect on mainstream music

---------------------------------------------------

not a fan of Bruno Mars at all, but i can dig what youre saying here

[Edited 2/5/18 13:30pm]

SoulAlive said:

I agree with this.I would rather just simply listen to stuff like The Whispers,Zapp,The Gap Band and all the other bands and artists that Bruno "borrows" from.

lrn36 said:

Bruno's latest output just reminds me of the Whispers. You could just impose Bruno's head of all them and you wouldn't know the difference. Not only is he copying the musical structures of the early 80s, he is also emulating the production. It's too on the nose. Prince's 1999 has a very similar feel in composition to Sly Stone, but the production is all Prince. That's what make it sound fresh and new. Even the band Stray Cats who heavily borrowed from 50s rockabilly made their sound more punk, harder, and grittier to make sound new. The early 80s Briitsh sound was Motown with synths and a European flair. I don't see a reinterpreting of old sounds in this music, but just mere facsimile.

Yeah sure, you and the other geriatric folks name these early 80's bands when only 2 or 3 of Bruno's songs "sound" like this. Not his whole discography. Ignorant.

Scorpion said:

Bruno's wins & success is just confirmation of what Stephanie Mills said last year.

"They want R&B music - just not from us."

Usher and Chris Brown could have never recorded that album and been met with the exact same success and awards. Just like Beyonce recording "25" album would have never went diamond and won AOTY like Adele. It's not about the music. It's about internalized racism whether it's blatant or subconscious. Bruno was the safest option between a Kendrick/Jay and a Lorde. Black music without the black person singing it...easy win. I bet the Grammy execs felt they've done their job and bridged the diversity gap with this one and rectified the situation. SMH.

Yeah... not because he's talented right? Nah.. it's cause he's non-black, because assuming white men could know a brown skinned man with an afro.. isn't black.

By the way, it was recently revealed Grammy winners are awarded by industry peers, meaning writers, producers, engineers, ect. So your comment just totally fall flat you race baiter.

MotownSubdivision said:

lrn36 said:

Ok, you disagree about the Whispers or Leon Slyvers influence, but you no one seems to be arguing that Bruno Mars bring nothing new to the table. Who is he? What drives him or inspires him other than copying old music? Is that too much to expect from an artist who people claim is the greatest of this era? In any other time, he would be considered a novelty act like Buster Poindexter from the 80s. But back then no one was proclaiming him the greatest artist of his generation. David Jo Hansen knew he was a novelty act and the audience knew it as well.

In the current pop landscape, Bruno is the most talented artist out there. He is 32 years old and has been in the game for almost a decade and he still has no central core to his artistic identity. He is content to merely copy than to push artistic boundaries or mix different styles of music to create something different. I'm not asking him to reinvent the wheel, just improve it a bit.

Look at it this way, the bar has been lowered all across the board i nterms of quality and star power. The biggest names of this era would be one hit wonders at best in the 1980s so it's not in doubt that Bruno would be considered a novelty act in the 1980s when you have blockbuster names radiating pure star power all over the place versus the consolation prizes for "artists" dominating the charts today.

However, Bruno is easily the most well-rounded artist in mainstream music today and probably the only one people will not hesitate to call a musician. In terms of talent, he is easily the greatest in this era (of mainstream music). He is the only name today with a skill set comparable to Prince in that they are one-man bands who can sing, dance, produce, play instruments and write their own songs. The fact that such a talent hasn't existed in the mainstream for so long and we finally have one, people flock to that. On top of that, deep down I think many aren't that into what's being fed to them today in popular music, including many that this music is targeted for. They miss the old school sounds and sensibilities of music and Bruno replicates them perfectly. He isn't the creative behemoth that Prince was but he's the closest thing to Prince today.

I agree he does need to define himself as more than just "happy old school guy" and carve a niche of his own within the music he clearly adores and he has from time to time (see "Locked Out of Heaven", "Treasure" and even "That's What I Like") but he's not some swagger jacking fake trying to profit off of black music like a few others we've seen in the past few years (Iggy Azalea, Miley Cyrus, Post Malone). Even if you don't really care for Bruno and expect more from him, you can at least be happy about him bringing these classic sounds back to the mainstream in a big way and with his broad appeal, he is sharing it with as diverse an audience as one can possibly imagine. Some white kid in middle school could be listening to the Gap Band and about to discover P-Funk because of Bruno Mars. AJapanese kid in Okinawa could be bumping "Bounce to the Ounce" on YouTube right now because of Bruno. He may not be completely original but I beleive he's covertly having a positive effect on mainstream music.

Let's not forget this songs he wrote for and produced for. He's not no one trick pony which is why I don't give a fuck if he wants to make something and execute it perfectly. He can do whatever he wants. I would do the same shit if I had this talent.

RJOrion said:

Motown Subdivision says:

I agree he does need to define himself as more than just "happy old school guy" and carve a niche of his own within the music he clearly adores and he has from time to time (see "Locked Out of Heaven", "Treasure" and even "That's What I Like") but he's not some swagger jacking fake trying to profit off of black music like a few others we've seen in the past few years (Iggy Azalea, Miley Cyrus, Post Malone). Even if you don't really care for Bruno and expect more from him, you can at least be happy about him bringing these classic sounds back to the mainstream in a big way and with his broad appeal, he is sharing it with as diverse an audience as one can possibly imagine. Some white kid in middle school could be listening to the Gap Band and about to discover P-Funk because of Bruno Mars. AJapanese kid in Okinawa could be bumping "Bounce to the Ounce" on YouTube right now because of Bruno. He may not be completely original but I beleive he's covertly having a positive effect on mainstream music

---------------------------------------------------

not a fan of Bruno Mars at all, but i can dig what youre saying here

[Edited 2/5/18 13:30pm]

I do too. Strong points, Mo-Sub!

bigblunda said:

lrn36 said:

Yeah. So what. Babyface and La wrote Rock Steady for the Whispers in 1987 which also sounds like a song Bruno Mars would rip. Babyface and Teddy Riley both borrowed heavily from that late 70s and early 80s r and b vibe pioneered by Leon Slyvers. A lot of artists did up until the early 90s when we saw Mary J Blige mix hiphop beats with r and b melodies. Hell, Leon worked with Teddy Riley on the Blackstreet's debut album. It's all the same sound and influences. At least, you do admit Bruno is only emulating old sounds rather than bring something new to the table.

So Babyface ripped off Babyface? Hilarious.

People are always naming several groups and several artists that supposedly Bruno sounds like, even though all of these groups and artists have different stylistic origins with the only similarity being that they belong to a certain era, which had a very distinguished and certain style of music.

He uses the song structures... in an eighties and nineties style. But so what? So you're telling me the 2000s and 2010s song structure style is superior? lol

There's actual musicians that Bruno has said, yes I'm influenced by, and you can hear it in his music but the Whispers ain't one of em.

No mainstream artist in the past fifteen years has brought anything new to the table, literally none of them. Bruno is the one that's far less subtle in this, though, and he definitely doesn't pretend about it. He doesn't act like he invented any genre like J.T, he almost does it in a self-aware ironic way, and he's talented and intelligent enough to pull it off in an tasteful and interesting manner. And let's not act like a lot of new mainstream artists havent' attempted to recapture that old style, but failing miserably. Seriously, Bruno is the only one who can do that. Maybe Pharrell.

Good luck wanting more "innovation" when the closest we get to is ear-bleeding trap.Unless recording technology SERIOUSLY advances like the leap from the 70s to the 90s, then serious musical innovation is not gonna happen for decaaaddes.

[Edited 2/5/18 1:07am]

GREAT POST.

bigblunda said:

SoulAlive said:

I agree with this.I would rather just simply listen to stuff like The Whispers,Zapp,The Gap Band and all the other bands and artists that Bruno "borrows" from.

Yeah sure, you and the other geriatric folks name these early 80's bands when only 2 or 3 of Bruno's songs "sound" like this. Not his whole discography. Ignorant.

Geriatric folks, that's funny. You call us old for criticizing a guy who is ripping off the music of our youth. When we want him think forward not backwards. How is that geriatric thinking? You get one shot in this game. Why not shoot for the moon? Is playing it safe the new cool or something?

lrn36 said:

bigblunda said:

Yeah sure, you and the other geriatric folks name these early 80's bands when only 2 or 3 of Bruno's songs "sound" like this. Not his whole discography. Ignorant.

Geriatric folks, that's funny. You call us old for criticizing a guy who is ripping off the music of our youth. When we want him think forward not backwards. How is that geriatric thinking? You get one shot in this game. Why not shoot for the moon? Is playing it safe the new cool or something?

That doesn't work. A good chunk of Bruno's fanbase is old people, a lot of them black or latino. You also dgaf about any actual meaningful discussion you just want people to agree with you. Why even post your opinion if you just want circle jerkers? Sad!

[Edited 2/5/18 15:59pm]

MotownSubdivision said:

lrn36 said:

Ok, you disagree about the Whispers or Leon Slyvers influence, but you no one seems to be arguing that Bruno Mars bring nothing new to the table. Who is he? What drives him or inspires him other than copying old music? Is that too much to expect from an artist who people claim is the greatest of this era? In any other time, he would be considered a novelty act like Buster Poindexter from the 80s. But back then no one was proclaiming him the greatest artist of his generation. David Jo Hansen knew he was a novelty act and the audience knew it as well.

In the current pop landscape, Bruno is the most talented artist out there. He is 32 years old and has been in the game for almost a decade and he still has no central core to his artistic identity. He is content to merely copy than to push artistic boundaries or mix different styles of music to create something different. I'm not asking him to reinvent the wheel, just improve it a bit.

Look at it this way, the bar has been lowered all across the board i nterms of quality and star power. The biggest names of this era would be one hit wonders at best in the 1980s so it's not in doubt that Bruno would be considered a novelty act in the 1980s when you have blockbuster names radiating pure star power all over the place versus the consolation prizes for "artists" dominating the charts today.

However, Bruno is easily the most well-rounded artist in mainstream music today and probably the only one people will not hesitate to call a musician. In terms of talent, he is easily the greatest in this era (of mainstream music). He is the only name today with a skill set comparable to Prince in that they are one-man bands who can sing, dance, produce, play instruments and write their own songs. The fact that such a talent hasn't existed in the mainstream for so long and we finally have one, people flock to that. On top of that, deep down I think many aren't that into what's being fed to them today in popular music, including many that this music is targeted for. They miss the old school sounds and sensibilities of music and Bruno replicates them perfectly. He isn't the creative behemoth that Prince was but he's the closest thing to Prince today.

I agree he does need to define himself as more than just "happy old school guy" and carve a niche of his own within the music he clearly adores and he has from time to time (see "Locked Out of Heaven", "Treasure" and even "That's What I Like") but he's not some swagger jacking fake trying to profit off of black music like a few others we've seen in the past few years (Iggy Azalea, Miley Cyrus, Post Malone). Even if you don't really care for Bruno and expect more from him, you can at least be happy about him bringing these classic sounds back to the mainstream in a big way and with his broad appeal, he is sharing it with as diverse an audience as one can possibly imagine. Some white kid in middle school could be listening to the Gap Band and about to discover P-Funk because of Bruno Mars. AJapanese kid in Okinawa could be bumping "Bounce to the Ounce" on YouTube right now because of Bruno. He may not be completely original but I beleive he's covertly having a positive effect on mainstream music.

I agree. The bar has been lowered a lot. Just replicating old sounds isn't enough for me. I want these old sound to be reinvented and taken in new directions. That's something we saw from most prominent artists of the past. It was pretty much expected.

Well in reality most of those kids will find old music through tv commercials, movies, and especially the video game Grand Theft Auto which has an oldies radio station option, not because some new artist borrows the sound. Most just don't make the connection.

lrn36 said:

MotownSubdivision said:

Look at it this way, the bar has been lowered all across the board i nterms of quality and star power. The biggest names of this era would be one hit wonders at best in the 1980s so it's not in doubt that Bruno would be considered a novelty act in the 1980s when you have blockbuster names radiating pure star power all over the place versus the consolation prizes for "artists" dominating the charts today.

However, Bruno is easily the most well-rounded artist in mainstream music today and probably the only one people will not hesitate to call a musician. In terms of talent, he is easily the greatest in this era (of mainstream music). He is the only name today with a skill set comparable to Prince in that they are one-man bands who can sing, dance, produce, play instruments and write their own songs. The fact that such a talent hasn't existed in the mainstream for so long and we finally have one, people flock to that. On top of that, deep down I think many aren't that into what's being fed to them today in popular music, including many that this music is targeted for. They miss the old school sounds and sensibilities of music and Bruno replicates them perfectly. He isn't the creative behemoth that Prince was but he's the closest thing to Prince today.

I agree he does need to define himself as more than just "happy old school guy" and carve a niche of his own within the music he clearly adores and he has from time to time (see "Locked Out of Heaven", "Treasure" and even "That's What I Like") but he's not some swagger jacking fake trying to profit off of black music like a few others we've seen in the past few years (Iggy Azalea, Miley Cyrus, Post Malone). Even if you don't really care for Bruno and expect more from him, you can at least be happy about him bringing these classic sounds back to the mainstream in a big way and with his broad appeal, he is sharing it with as diverse an audience as one can possibly imagine. Some white kid in middle school could be listening to the Gap Band and about to discover P-Funk because of Bruno Mars. AJapanese kid in Okinawa could be bumping "Bounce to the Ounce" on YouTube right now because of Bruno. He may not be completely original but I beleive he's covertly having a positive effect on mainstream music.

I agree. The bar has been lowered a lot. Just replicating old sounds isn't enough for me. I want these old sound to be reinvented and taken in new directions. That's something we saw from most prominent artists of the past. It was pretty much expected.

Well in reality most of those kids will find old music through tv commercials, movies, and especially the video game Grand Theft Auto which has an oldies radio station option, not because some new artist borrows the sound. Most just don't make the connection.

Post Malone and Migos are re-inventing the wheel but you'll call their music trash.

bigblunda said:

lrn36 said:

Geriatric folks, that's funny. You call us old for criticizing a guy who is ripping off the music of our youth. When we want him think forward not backwards. How is that geriatric thinking? You get one shot in this game. Why not shoot for the moon? Is playing it safe the new cool or something?

That doesn't work. A good chunk of Bruno's fanbase is old people, a lot of them black or latino. You also dgaf about any actual meaningful discussion you just want people to agree with you. Why even post your opinion if you just want circle jerkers? Sad!

[Edited 2/5/18 15:44pm]

What does that have to do with those of us who criticzing him? Those older folks who like him and you are content to listen warmed over left overs, I'm not. Sad!

lrn36 said:

bigblunda said:

That doesn't work. A good chunk of Bruno's fanbase is old people, a lot of them black or latino. You also dgaf about any actual meaningful discussion you just want people to agree with you. Why even post your opinion if you just want circle jerkers? Sad!

[Edited 2/5/18 15:44pm]

What does that have to do with those of us who criticzing him? Those older folks who like him and you are content to listen warmed over left overs, I'm not. Sad!

I'm talking specifically to YOU, lrn36. You are not important as you think you are. SAD!

[Edited 2/5/18 16:18pm]

bigblunda said:

lrn36 said:

What does that have to do with those of us who criticzing him? Those older folks who like him and you are content to listen warmed over left overs, I'm not. Sad!

I'm talking specifically to YOU, lrn36. You are not important as you think you are. SAD!

All right man. Enough. You're trying to escalate this to something else. Typical troll behavior. My fault for falling for it.

bigblunda said:

Scorpion said:

Bruno's wins & success is just confirmation of what Stephanie Mills said last year.

"They want R&B music - just not from us."

Usher and Chris Brown could have never recorded that album and been met with the exact same success and awards. Just like Beyonce recording "25" album would have never went diamond and won AOTY like Adele. It's not about the music. It's about internalized racism whether it's blatant or subconscious. Bruno was the safest option between a Kendrick/Jay and a Lorde. Black music without the black person singing it...easy win. I bet the Grammy execs felt they've done their job and bridged the diversity gap with this one and rectified the situation. SMH.

Yeah... not because he's talented right? Nah.. it's cause he's non-black, because assuming white men could know a brown skinned man with an afro.. isn't black.

By the way, it was recently revealed Grammy winners are awarded by industry peers, meaning writers, producers, engineers, ect. So your comment just totally fall flat you race baiter.

His father is Puerto Rican. Puerto Rican's have African blood. They are black, as equally as they are Spaniard and indigenous, all in different shades - as much as they've been colonialized to think that's not the case.

bigblunda said:

laurarichardson said:

Black people who do not like what he is doing are not being racist. They are just tired of non-whites appropriating our music and style.

I am black and I do not have a problem with Bruno because I want to see good RnB music come back strong as I believe it was killed by racist whites in the music industry. I wish a young black man and women would be allowed to do what Mars is doing but that is unlikely to happen. The music industry loves to promote ignorent and untlatented rappers over actual musicians and singers. We have watched this over the last 20 years time and time again. For goodness sake they ran Prince out so what does that tell you.

Wish there was more outrage about the lack of black bands even having record deals .

Yes. The industry IS wiping out black talent. It is partially our fault. We brand dudes who aren't singing about drugs, sex, and bullshit over shitty overplayed trap beats as "corny" and applaud ignorance in our community. For god's sake, black men have been putting non black women in their videos for decades, marrying them even, and bashing black women on platforms everyone can see, and effectively replacing black women with women like J-Lo and Kim K, NOW black men want to say something about it since they see non black dudes like Bruno with as much swagger as they got, the same swagger they abandoned for shitty trap and played out hip hop. Black men lead sooo many divisiveness in our community so I have to say, I don't give a damn.

All the recent popular black male musicians, yall ignore them too cause white people like them. Weeknd? Miguel? You know what a woman said to me who complains about black people not being in the industry anymore? She said they weren't "black" enough. SMH.

I do agree that black talent needs to make a comeback, but black people insult our people, mock and disrespect our legends, support ratchetness, while then complaining people are taking our spots.

PREACH!!!!

lrn36 said:

I personally did not see The Grammys this year because I was on holiday.

But I knew new artist SZA was up for FIVE nominations and also took home zero.

That is the kind of thing that makes you ask if Bruno Mars really needed to snag all the categories he was awarded in.

I think a major part of it is the people who vote for the winners. The Grammys are very Los Angeles and very... industry.

Cinny said:

MotownSubdivision said:

Cinny said:

I personally did not see The Grammys this year because I was on holiday.

But I knew new artist SZA was up for FIVE nominations and also took home zero.

That is the kind of thing that makes you ask if Bruno Mars really needed to snag all the categories he was awarded in.

I think a major part of it is the people who vote for the winners. The Grammys are very Los Angeles and very... industry.

The one category SZA shouldn't even have been nominated in was Best New Artist since she's been releasing music since 2012. However, between her and Alessia Cara who won (and who's first studio album was released in 2015 while SZA's was released last year), SZA should've picked that one up. The Grammys almost consistently eff up in the Best New Artist category.

The industry did build the buzz for SZA, a talented artist. But she's only one of several young female artists of color who made music as good (Kelela, etc.) or (IMHO) better music (Syd) in 2017.

THe Lenny Kravtiz of his generation. tongue in cheek sort of.

Bravo for creating dance music.... instead of the slow tempo drivel. Shrug... so many of these cats don't have time these days take all those influences and still create their sound. El Debarge had Marvin Gaye all up in his music but he and his siblings were abel to create a DeBarge sound. Maybe Mr. Mars will surpise us and make moves to expand his sound... time will telll.

As for the media, someone should tell them they aren't part of the Grammy Academy of Voters.

=========================

[Edited 2/8/18 5:16am]

laurarichardson said:

Shawy89 said:

Facts. Bruno is half Puerto-Rican and half Filipino, both his parents immigrated to Hawaii before he was born. He's a person of color, just like Kendrick or Jay Z or Gambino.

Remember the outrage when Taylor Swift and Adele won over Kendrick and Beyoncé? It was clear everyone wanted a POC to win, except when it's Bruno Mars, they're gonna use another argument to justify their dissatisfaction.

Why doesn't the media declare this as a win for an under-shadowed community in America like the Latin-Asians instead of putting the guy on the spot for being a "safe pop star". Smh, I barely understand this, all the R&B legends are congragulating the man while the hip-hop community is over him.

The Hip-Hop community cannot compete with real RnB. The old heads are congratualating him for bring our music back and showing that it can sell all over the world.

The Hip-Hop can people can eat a dick. As far as everyone else they just cannot stand to see a person of color and RnB music at the top. Look at what losers like Bon Iver and Fleet Foxes are saying.

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What the fuck is wrong with the GAP Band? It is that same old rock n roll snob bullshit.

http://www.nme.com/news/music/fleet-foxes-robin-pecknold-also-pretty-unhappy-bruno-mars-grammys-win-2231421

In capturing an article about the Grammys for an Instagram story, Pecknold wrote: ““Aside from Kendrick / SZA / Jay Z nothing that was nominated was very good in my opinion, but to give it all to Toys R Us Gap Band is pretty ridic.”

He later added: “Nothing was very good. To people asking me ‘what about x album,’ didn’t really listen to any mentioned tbh.”

Read more at http://www.nme.com/news/m...d36DOUS.99

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“Absolutely NO offence to Mr Mars, but you absolutely have to be shitting me,” wrote Bon Iver’s Justin...on Twitter following the awards. “While some awesome musicians do win, what is WINNING?”

He added:”To be factual, Mr Mars made a name in the INDUSTRY by making hits OUT of hits of yesteryear. SO… no real need to be mad, even, at the Grammies.
SZA? KENDRICK?

“I’d say move on from this shit show. Felt like a Democratic Party Party, not R’n’Roll.”

Read more at http://www.nme.com/news/m...d36DOUS.99

This is the issue, showing how black culture has become restricted into performing a singular genre of music exclusively, which dimishes the culture as a whole when it comes to the performing arts.......

Bruno Mars "bringing back real r&b music" in of itself is not the root of the problem, but a reflection of the problem....

There never would have been a situation to bring back anyting if real r&b during the time of its prominence wasn't destabilized and the black performers that Bruno Mars is emulating wasn't phased out of the landscape......

THAT'S the problem

because of the restriction that has been placed on black cultural artists, this is why exclusive supporters of hip-hop try and hold on so dearly to it because for all practical purposes, there is nothing else left, but what the exclusive supporters of hip-hop hasn't been given the framework to understand is that the reason they find themselves trying to hold onto hip-hop with such fervor is that they have been socially engineered to react that way because..............they wasn't provided the opportunity to be exposed to the full gamut of music

It was a trick of deception for the ages because those who sought to destabilzied real r&b knew that authentic black music had the power to not only unite, but to truly change the world for the better by those black artists and other artists during those years who truly contributed to the art form instead of appropriating/interpolating it

there's a spiritual component to all this and if anyone was the trace when this dynamic began and when the decline of music started, it can be traced back to the year 1987

and this is why the Quincy Joneses of the world said in his most recent interview that the music industry is no more......

it's not even running on fumes at this point....there is no music left

[Edited 2/7/18 18:24pm]