Some stories just cry out to be told. This one cries out in anguish, but still...
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Survey Shows Gen-Z Not Listening To Radio
- Thread starter Kelly A
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Of course, I'm not saying that only one or two people were responsible for the injustices to Black artists in the day. Sure, Pat was given his start by an individual who could easily fall into the category, but even after Pat hit the big time, he continued the pattern by ripping off material from Black writers and artists, giving them no residuals let alone credit.
If your insomnia continues, I invite you to watch the PBS documentary about Little Richard that I'd linked prior. You probably won't be surprised, but it brings to light some details that you may have missed.
Thanks, Kelly.
Not insomnia, but a byproduct of having anchored mornings (with the attendant 3:00 am alarm) twice this week. Takes a few days to get back to normal (I’m almost always up by 6:00).
Keep in mind that some fears about black music had some basis in fact. Tutti Frutti was about gay sex. Blueberry Hill was about having sex. The words rock & roll were about having sex. Great Balls of Fire (written by Otis Blackwell) was considered by some to be blasphemous. So these were not innocent songs. The songs weren't much nicer when sung by a nice looking white boy. But I guess people felt better about it.
Here's where prejudice came in---Mom and Dad could convince themselves that Tutti Fruitti was just nonsense if that nice young Pat Boone was singing it.
Little Richard? That was SEX.
I think Pat may have changed some lyrics too.
The whole anti-rock argument that it's evil because of the "African beat" had its roots in racism. Even now some anti-rock and anti-CCM preachers (Yes they still exist) try to use that argument against the beat, even though they may not use the "African" claim, but it's still based on racism.
Exactly my point. CHR's, at least from my teen years and up, never focused on teens and were willing to figure it out once they became salable. Not that some operators might not have been forward thinking, but it certainly wasn’t many of them.
What also happened between the early 80’s, when CHR's were still posting their hitlists in high schools and the end of the decade, when I started, was that the big box retailers came in and pushed the local businesses in similar areas out. The end happened quickly for the local mom and pop shops. The local five and dime, which was still around when I entered junior high, was gone by the time I started high school. Same with the electronic store about a half mile from my house that I occasionally walked to in order to check out the video game selection. The clothing store lasted a little longer and survived until after I graduated high school, but it was gone by the time I finished college. The local electronics store might want to advertise to teens. Same with the clothing store and the five and dime. The big box retailers, however, bought radio sparingly if they bought at all. Today, the shopping center where the clothing store was is a Walmart Neighborhood Market, a Whataburger, and a Panda Express. The strip mall a mile away that had the electronic store, a neighborhood pharmacy, a local automotive supply, a pizza joint, a similarly-themed Mexican restaurant, and a comic shop is blighted and mostly empty today. It might still have a massage parlor and a bar, but even Dollar General, which moved into the pizza parlor's spot after it closed, couldn’t make that location work. The Wendy's on the outlot, too, packed up and left years ago. I think a donut shop is there now. The outlot also had a Blockbuster video 30 years ago. It's now a liquor store. The only business in that area that was around in the early 80’s is the McDonald's on the corner. The five and dime is now a plant and garden center. Only the plant and garden center and the McDonald's are likely to use radio today, and McDonald's isn’t on the radio like it was before the Great Recession.
They tend to only buy urban radio. They were among the ad sponsors of iHeart's BIN.
But they usually don't buy local radio. They might do a national buy with Urban One or Steve Harvey's syndicated show.
McD is on streaming a lot now.
I wondered why on some awards show or variety show when Cheap Trick did a hard rock version, he said he liked it.
No one has mentioned his album of heavy metal.
I liked that song! Even the LeAnn Rimes version.
That was actually a response to one of your posts.
Perhaps he did like it.
Maybe because we were discussing his R&B covers of the mid-1950s. Anyway, now you have.
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Fossilization implies death/dead. Music of virtually all kinds is not dead but the size of the popularity largely depends upon age, culture and prior experience.
I watched that show part of the first season but, having once lived in NYC, could not stand several of the characters. I never watched the spin-off. I doubt my former opinion came from anywhere else as it's one I've had since rap came on scene.
And I sound nothing like Archie Bunker.
I know of nobody who would consider me a racist. I've had a decent number of multicultural friends over the years. My first wife's maiden name was Lopez. I don't think the thoughts and don't walk the walk. Unless someone, of any persuasion pokes me I live and let live. It is the same with music. I like what I like and vice versa. I don't listen to specific music because of the race or behavior of the writer/performer.
You nailed it. Very perceptive.
It was late at night and I couldn't think of the proper word. I meant 'downbeat' as "negative" and not in a musical sense.
I am not qualified to say that as I hit the pre-set milliseconds after recognizing rap. However, everything I hear, from others and through the car windows, is exactly that. I assume there might be some good stuff out there but I am not inclined to look for it as the last spoken word 'song' I thought worthwhile was from Walter Brennan.
I should have connected those two words with "or".
I honestly have never heard that definition before and have never used it that way. "Thugs" are just overall bad people who diss on everyone else or the world in general.
Are residuals paid by the label or the actual performer?
Aren't labels responsible for placing credits on their products?
I'm just guessing here but I suspect most performers, including the once-young Pat Boone, had very little or no control as to those two items.
Of course it was. As with Elvis, Little Richard and others look at their physical performances. Pat Boone showed up in church clothes.
The label. Which during the day, were white-run.
But artists like Janis Joplin, The Beatles, and to an extent; Elvis, went out of their way to give Black artists and writers credit, in spite of being discouraged by doing so from record labels. Pat Boone could have too, but instead he essentially white-washed the facts.
So in other words; you can't possibly be racist, because you know a lot of Black people and your first wife was Hispanic? As Michael said; calling music that is written and performed by African American artists 'Thugs', or thuggery is sending the opposite message.
Nobody is recommending you must listen to popular music today, nor is anyone forcing yourself to like it. I don't like country music personally, but would never come on here and make the claim nobody else should because it's trash. Nor would I claim that anyone who enjoys country is a hick, because saying so would be simply untrue and intolerant.
And you don't see how the term can be interpreted?
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