A few years back, one of my mentors/colleagues (clairvoyant as always) said to me, "In the coming years in music it will be cool to be black as long as you're not black". Upon hearing that I instantly became slightly defensive; though in my heart of hearts it felt true. As the conversation continued, this unwanted pearl of wisdom began to haunt me. The idea of once again African Americans sourcing this ungrateful nation with the fruits of our legacy/culture/history thanklessly; which has also been a great source of commerce (for centuries now), brought about an ill feeling at the pit of my stomach. I began to imagine it- vividly! Us- from the trendsetting to the celebration of- Us; and yet not one of Us truly visible in the midst of it all. Fast Forward 6 years and here it all is! R&B's top 2 hits from Male vocalist this year- "Suit & Tie Justin Timberlake/ "Blurred Lines" Robin Thicke. Though both of these records were produced by Us (Timbaland&Pharell), it leaves me asking this question. Couldn't these awesome songs have been performed by one of Us? Now let's take a close look at our female African American artists. Our R&B females are struggling for awareness of their projects whether good or bad, the soul singers are barely visible at all; and the girls on top are all singing POP! Then, when you take into account moments like the VMA's broadcasting Miley Cyrus pulling a "Sambo" while "Twerking" to an obviously Marvin Gaye inspired track for the world to feast on...Hmm...need I say more?! Why do We always let Them have Us without truly earning or recognizing the power of Us? We are the water of the entertainment industry- the undeniable Source! A free gift that can provide sustenance with just one sip; and if it disappeared, life (in entertainment) could not continue for long in the wake of its absence. Yet, somehow the thirsty are profiting greatly off our gift; and We (The Source) are left parched on the wayside, praying for rain.
Woke up this morning in need of amazing rainy day music; and preferably something new to my very seasoned and well educated ears. The winner was this awesome new Melbourne based soul collective cleverly named, "Hiatus Kaiyote". Produced by Salaam Remi and Graced by the presence of Q-Tip on their big single, "Nakamarra" its clear these Aussies are going to soar to incredible heights. With every minute I continued to listen it quickly became obvious why I loved what I was hearing. The sound is so reminiscent of my era in music! It's Neo Soul all day without question!! Then my big brain starting doing something very dangerous- I began thinking. If one of my peers or even myself tried to release a project like this today I can almost guarantee it would not receive the same warm welcome to the airwaves. Matter of fact my peer Glenn Lewis just released a beautiful album earlier this year; and regretfully most people who are currently falling in love with HK, don't even know that Glenn's album even exists. Pity. So, I'm sure I don't have to convey how disappointing it is when supporters ask where our music is; even when its right in their faces. It doesn't make me like HK any less. It just makes me miss Us even more than I already do. The past years, music has felt like a desert to me. A place where all I do is chase mirages; while praying for rain to justify the dance I've been doing, hoping to be able to say it wasn't all for naught. Imagine how frustrating it is to Not have direct access to the purpose you were born to fulfill. Meanwhile, from the sidelines your forced to watch this very purpose be sullied with mediocrity; vigilantly searching for a way to not become jaded, bitter, and cynical.
So, today I charge all my readers to take on a very worthy challenge. Listen to 3 albums in your spare time. One from your era, one from a previous era, and one from a current era. Listen to them all as if they have just been released; and then, share with a friend the experience of what you took away from this musical journey. The true challenge is to recommend only the album you know they haven't heard. If we are going to salvage our music community from the junk yard of Pop Culture, its going to require Us to get involved with our community again. We have to tap back into our Source again. It's the only way we'll preserve all we have fought to bring this far. Today I'm inviting everyone to comment on your feelings about this post. Share your perspective, frustrations, wants as well as hopes. This is a conversation worth having folks! So, let's have it! My recommendations for today are the New Glenn Lewis album featuring "Can't Say Love" and Hiatus Kaiyote "Tawk Tomahawk". Enjoy your journeys...can't wait to hear all about them.
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