It's just a sign of the times. And tbh a lot of these women are being stubborn.
I'm not going to speak on Latinas and other ethnicities, but throughout the history of music, black females (and artists in general) have always adapted to the times. Whether it was disco, rock N roll, pop, R&B or whatever... artists like Donna Summer, Tina Turner, Whitney, Janet, Diana Ross, etc etc etc have all kept up with the shifts in music and were influenced from various aspects and found success.
As others have mentioned, comparing the beginning of last decade to this decade is a bit of a stretch because R&B/urban/hip hop music was going STRONG last decade. But non-black artists adjusted to that - look at Jennifer Lopez: while she had her dance hits, she also had plenty of collaborations with urban artists, be it Ja Rule or LL Cool J or whoever. Britney collaborated with the Ying Yang Twins and Snoop and the Neptunes, Justin worked with urban producers and artists, hell Christina Aguilera was collaborating with Lil Kim, **** in 2002 NSYNC did a ****ing remix with Nelly (just mentioning this to show there was a period of time where lots of white artists were getting ignored for the urban takeover, but they did what they needed to do to stay relevant).
Now dance music has taken over, which the charts display, and tbh... Rihanna and Nicki are the only ones who kept up. Beyonce tried with Run The World, but I think the whole sample thing screwed that up, and so she just stuck with the classic sound for her (and Beyonce, unlike other black females, survived with 4, because she has a huge fan base and still found success and support from them & the general public). Call them sellouts, call them whatever, but to be a POP[ular] artist you must keep up with what is POP[ular] at the time.
If artists wanna keep making the same, tired ass music when it is clear that is not what the public is interested in at the moment, and they don't see the top of the charts, then that's their fault. The black R&B male artists (Ne Yo, Usher, Chris Brown, etc) have found success releasing mainstream-friendly singles while still keeping an R&B focus on their albums. It's not impossible.
Kelly Rowland had KILLER dance tracks and both When Love Takes Over & Commander reached #1 on Club here (WLTO also debuted on hot 100 and went top 30 on pop), showing potential, but she did not promote either anywhere and instead dedicated herself to Motivation Ciara could make things so easy for herself. She chooses not to. So could Brandy. So could a lot of artists. Brandy could pull off Where Have You Been (just imagine her voice on it and TELL ME it wouldn't work).
Maybe they can't even afford the producers? Who knows? Maybe there's stuff behind the scenes we don't understand.
Also, in the black community anyway, when an artist tries to cater to mainstream so that their career actually has some ****ing longevity, they get viciously attacked. So maybe they're just scared.
- I would argue that Rihanna (and now Nicki Minaj) are making the kind of disposable pop music that the article suggests black women are not permitted to make.
- That 2 vs. 25 statistic is at least somewhat a product of changing trends, as hip-hop/R&B has been replaced by dance-pop as the dominant radio genre.
THAT SAID.
There is definitely some validity to the points made here. Why should it be that black artists are relegated to genre stations now that a "primarily white" sound has emerged in pop music again?
I don't have a good answer. But I do think there is a relation to the increasing centralization of music programming. Suddenly, one playlist has to work for the entire country and that has caused executives to go for "safe" artists and music with "wide appeal." We all know what the means for media: A song/film/TV show/etc. about a minority experience cannot speak to and for white people, but a song/film/TV show/etc. about white people speaks to and for everyone.
The good ole sis used that to her advantage too
But it worked though. I prefer Florence Ballard's voice, but it wouldn't have sold a pop record then imo. Sad but true.
I just realized this. Not counting an appearance by a dead Whitney, or Bey or Janelle's guest spots on tracks, only TWO women of color have made the top ten this entire decade. (Four if you count Jennifer Lopez and ... Demi Lovato?)
How ... did this happen?
What can be done to turn back this tide? Can it be turned back?
This is an outrage, and really depressing.
Wait... are you serious? That's an absolute shame.
- I would argue that Rihanna (and now Nicki Minaj) are making the kind of disposable pop music that the article suggests black women are not permitted to make.
- That 2 vs. 25 statistic is at least somewhat a product of changing trends, as hip-hop/R&B has been replaced by dance-pop as the dominant radio genre.
THAT SAID.
There is definitely some validity to the points made here. Why should it be that black artists are relegated to genre stations now that a "primarily white" sound has emerged in pop music again?
I don't have a good answer. But I do think there is a relation to the increasing centralization of music programming. Suddenly, one playlist has to work for the entire country and that has caused executives to go for "safe" artists and music with "wide appeal." We all know what the means for media: A song/film/TV show/etc. about a minority experience cannot speak to and for white people, but a song/film/TV show/etc. about white people speaks to and for everyone.
It's just a sign of the times. And tbh a lot of these women are being stubborn.
Ciara could make things so easy for herself. She chooses not to. So could Brandy. So could a lot of artists. Brandy could pull off Where Have You Been (just imagine her voice on it and TELL ME it wouldn't work).
Ciara annoys me with this. On Basic Instinct she had Turn It Up with Usher which could've been a hit but instead songs like Ride and Speechless were released which clearly are not exactly what the GP is here for these days. I wish she would focus on more dance/pop tracks but she doesn't want to. She shouldn't wonder why she's flopping then, it's her fault.
It's just a sign of the times. And tbh a lot of these women are being stubborn.
I'm not going to speak on Latinas and other ethnicities, but throughout the history of music, black females (and artists in general) have always adapted to the times. Whether it was disco, rock N roll, pop, R&B or whatever... artists like Donna Summer, Tina Turner, Whitney, Janet, Diana Ross, etc etc etc have all kept up with the shifts in music and were influenced from various aspects and found success.
As others have mentioned, comparing the beginning of last decade to this decade is a bit of a stretch because R&B/urban/hip hop music was going STRONG last decade. But non-black artists adjusted to that - look at Jennifer Lopez: while she had her dance hits, she also had plenty of collaborations with urban artists, be it Ja Rule or LL Cool J or whoever. Britney collaborated with the Ying Yang Twins and Snoop and the Neptunes, Justin worked with urban producers and artists, hell Christina Aguilera was collaborating with Lil Kim, **** in 2002 NSYNC did a ****ing remix with Nelly (just mentioning this to show there was a period of time where lots of white artists were getting ignored for the urban takeover, but they did what they needed to do to stay relevant).
Now dance music has taken over, which the charts display, and tbh... Rihanna and Nicki are the only ones who kept up. Beyonce tried with Run The World, but I think the whole sample thing screwed that up, and so she just stuck with the classic sound for her (and Beyonce, unlike other black females, survived with 4, because she has a huge fan base and still found success and support from them & the general public). Call them sellouts, call them whatever, but to be a POP[ular] artist you must keep up with what is POP[ular] at the time.
If artists wanna keep making the same, tired ass music when it is clear that is not what the public is interested in at the moment, and they don't see the top of the charts, then that's their fault. The black R&B male artists (Ne Yo, Usher, Chris Brown, etc) have found success releasing mainstream-friendly singles while still keeping an R&B focus on their albums. It's not impossible.
Kelly Rowland had KILLER dance tracks and both When Love Takes Over & Commander reached #1 on Club here (WLTO also debuted on hot 100 and went top 30 on pop), showing potential, but she did not promote either anywhere and instead dedicated herself to Motivation Ciara could make things so easy for herself. She chooses not to. So could Brandy. So could a lot of artists. Brandy could pull off Where Have You Been (just imagine her voice on it and TELL ME it wouldn't work).
Maybe they can't even afford the producers? Who knows? Maybe there's stuff behind the scenes we don't understand.
Also, in the black community anyway, when an artist tries to cater to mainstream so that their career actually has some ****ing longevity, they get viciously attacked. So maybe they're just scared.
It's funny that even when black artists do try to fit in with today's climate, they are able to get a hit or two but their sales tend to suffer hard. Just look at Ne-Yo, Usher, Chris & Nicki Minaj. Even Usher's and Nicki's dance/pop singles have struggled in recent history, especially Usher's.
Black-dominated genres were huge in the 00s. Current trends in pop don't cater to black artists unless they conform. But to be fair, we're only 2 years into the decade so a lot can change.
- I would argue that Rihanna (and now Nicki Minaj) are making the kind of disposable pop music that the article suggests black women are not permitted to make.
- That 2 vs. 25 statistic is at least somewhat a product of changing trends, as hip-hop/R&B has been replaced by dance-pop as the dominant radio genre.
THAT SAID.
There is definitely some validity to the points made here. Why should it be that black artists are relegated to genre stations now that a "primarily white" sound has emerged in pop music again?
I don't have a good answer. But I do think there is a relation to the increasing centralization of music programming. Suddenly, one playlist has to work for the entire country and that has caused executives to go for "safe" artists and music with "wide appeal." We all know what the means for media: A song/film/TV show/etc. about a minority experience cannot speak to and for white people, but a song/film/TV show/etc. about white people speaks to and for everyone.
It's funny that even when black artists do try to fit in with today's climate, they are able to get a hit or two but their sales tend to suffer hard. Just look at Ne-Yo, Usher, Chris & Nicki Minaj. Even Usher's and Nicki's dance/pop singles have struggled in recent history, especially Usher's.
That is interesting. Get the hit, but album suffers. And then you get the 'they should go back to r&b/soul'. Like that's gonna sell.
This is about as close as we got in terms of an Asian female artist making a dent in the western market.
This sold pretty well in the US
Then Fefe Dobson, she was the black Avril but kinda fell off
FeFe Dobson would have had to make it to fall off, though. I remember in 2003, in the age of the nu-Avrils (Skye Sweetnam, Katy Rose, etc), FeFe was the only one who was added by Z100 and spun on MTV. Hell, she even sang the theme song for a movie that MTV produced! But she never made it.
Now, if FeFe were white - with the same voice, attitude, and singles of her debut (Take Me Away, Everything, Boys and Girls) - she would have been HUGE.
It's funny that even when black artists do try to fit in with today's climate, they are able to get a hit or two but their sales tend to suffer hard. Just look at Ne-Yo, Usher, Chris & Nicki Minaj. Even Usher's and Nicki's dance/pop singles have struggled in recent history, especially Usher's.
There are some that I do not think would take a hit if they released a dance/pop song or two. The ones with the disposable fan bases would most likely redirect album sales to single sales.
I was surprised with Usher tho, I would have assumed he could sell well either way.
It's funny that even when black artists do try to fit in with today's climate, they are able to get a hit or two but their sales tend to suffer hard. Just look at Ne-Yo, Usher, Chris & Nicki Minaj. Even Usher's and Nicki's dance/pop singles have struggled in recent history, especially Usher's.
It's all about the right balance
Beyonce's IASF and Rihanna's LOUD are perfect examples of that.
That is interesting. Get the hit, but album suffers. And then you get the 'they should go back to r&b/soul'. Like that's gonna sell.
!!! I mean, Usher started releasing more pop songs like OMG or DJ Got Us Falling In Love Again and did okay, but people complained, so he tried to go more R&B for his last album (climax) and that's not doing so well either. Scream was...decent I guess, but he's in a bind now like Nicki is. Stuck between pop and R&B/hip hop. Release a pop song, get a hit but low album sales. Release your original genre and get no hits.
Beyonce's IASF and Rihanna's LOUD are perfect examples of that.
So, you don't think Usher gave the right balance? "Climax" and "Scream" were hits, but after that, it was downhill. "Dive" and "Numb" (two songs I really like) flopped hard. His album sales have been atrocious, too.
Beyonce's IASF and Rihanna's LOUD are perfect examples of that.
I totally agree, I do think Beyonce would benefit commercially if she a released dance/pop song or two but as with '4' she doesn't need to to sell well.
FeFe Dobson would have had to make it to fall off, though. I remember in 2003, in the age of the nu-Avrils (Skye Sweetnam, Katy Rose, etc), FeFe was the only one who was added by Z100 and spun on MTV. Hell, she even sang the theme song for a movie that MTV produced! But she never made it.
Now, if FeFe were white - with the same voice, attitude, and singles of her debut (Take Me Away, Everything, Boys and Girls) - she would have been HUGE.
What's up with that?
You know why sis, even though Fefe was first she didn't make it cause it was unheard of for a black female artist to do this kind of music. Even though there was another black female before her who did rock/pop Res
Ciara could make things so easy for herself. She chooses not to. So could Brandy. So could a lot of artists. Brandy could pull off Where Have You Been (just imagine her voice on it and TELL ME it wouldn't work). 
