explain to me again how rap is popular?

[Neggy]

WEST SPRINGFIELD, Mass. --A planned performance by hip hop star Ludacris has been canceled by the Eastern States Exposition.

Officials with the Big E in West Springfield cite poor ticket sales for the decision to scratch the appearance that was scheduled for September 30.

Big E president Wayne McCary said fewer than 700 tickets had been sold for an arena that holds 6,100 people

 

[Smoke]

That's a long drive from Roxbury or Harlem to see such an act.

 

[Signpost]

Didn't Kelly Clarkson also cancel most of her tour because of tepid ticket sales?

Guess pop music isn't that popular either.

 

[Finn]

That's a long drive from Roxbury or Harlem to see such an act.

Is the Conventional Wisdom Correct In Measuring Hip-Hop Audience? by CARL BIALIK, The Numbers Guy (Wall Street Journal)
http://online.wsj.com/public/article_print/SB111521814339424546.html

"Conventional wisdom, for once, turns out to be mostly correct -- with the caveat that there's a lot we don't know about race and rap sales.... MRI sent me the results for 1995, 1999 and 2001, for both adults 18 to 34 and for all adults. For both groups, the percentage of recent rap buyers who are white was about 70% to 75% for all three years."

and I thought you might all enjoy this very funny post on "how different types of music correlate with ideology (polviews)"

Why don't redistributionists like big band music?
http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2006/10/gabriel_rossman.html

"Generally speaking, the stereotypes hold up. Country is correlated with the right whereas classical, rap, rock music, and heavy metal are all correlated with the left. Opinions about folk music aren't correlated with politics. Note though that even the strongest correlations are relatively weak (r<0.20) so there are plenty of liberals out there listening to country and no shortage of conservative rap fans.

Another way to look at it is to break politics into two dimensions. Let's treat whether the government should reduce income differences (eqwith) as a measure of economic attitudes. Folk, classical, and big band music are very unpopular with redistributionists. (I guess nobody dreamt about Joe Hill the night before the survey). Rap, metal, and blues are popular with redistributionists. Country, rock, and bluegrass aren't correlated with fiscal attitudes. For social attitudes, let's use opinion of sex before marriage (premarsx). Folk, country, classical, bluegrass, and big band fans tend to disapprove of fornication, whereas rap, rock, metal, and blues fans think it's fine. (If you substitute gay sex for premarital sex the pattern is the same, except for rap fans who tend to oppose it). I experimented with looking for distinctively "libertarian" taste patterns but couldn't find any."

"Of course I had to check out opera fans and fist fights. The results, indeed, were somewhat surprising. 32.0% of opera fans have been in fist fights, compared to 36.8% of non-fans. Less of a difference that I would have expected. Next, I looked at country music fans, who seem like the sort who might enjoy throwing a punch now and then. Indeed, 43.7% of the most devout country fans have been in punch-ups, which I guess supports the stereotype of the hard-drinkin', hard-brawlin' good old boy. Yet, to my surprise, among people who say they "like" country music, in other words moderate but not super-devout fans, only 30.1% have been in fist fights, making them even more peaceful than supposedly effete opera fans. Who would've guessed?

Incidentally, while rap music has a violent image only 40.0% of its most devout fans have been in fist fights, lower than the 43.7% for hardcore country fans."

 

[Signpost]

I thought you might all enjoy this very funny post on "how different types of music correlate with ideology (polviews)"

Why don't redistributionists like big band music?
http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2006/10/gabriel_rossman.html
Incidentally, while rap music has a violent image only 40.0% of its most devout fans have been in fist fights, lower than the 43.7% for hardcore country fans."

Fascinating sociology! I've always said you can tell a lot about someone's preferences (car/politics/what's on tv) according to what kind of music they like.. guess it's not always that simple.

 

[SonicOverload]

That's a long drive from Roxbury or Harlem to see such an act.

or from the 'burbs where the white kids' parents may not allow them to take a road trip. ;D

also... for all the talk about hip-hop artists and guns... well, one fairly well-known rock musician likes to pack heat on stage and make threats of violence.

The NUUUUUUGE!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3PriJ31M70

 

[raccoonradio]

I didn't mind some early rap, like "Rapper's Delight" (Sugarhill Gang), "New York New York" and
"The Message" (Grandmaster Flash/Melle Mel), "Basketball" (Kurtis Blow). Blondie took up a little
rap with "Rapture" (which namechecked Flash). Early Run DMC (and loved their take on Walk
This Way, with Aerosmith).
Beastie Boys mixed rap with rock...heard "Fight for your right" tonight on Mike 93.7. Aw, ma
you're just jealous it's the bea...stie...boyz!!

I used to play a novelty song by Russ Mason called "Prep Rap" (remember preppies?)
"Her father's very wealthy, he owns Vermont/ And a chunk of New Hampshire too/ Hear me
say I got a B.A., an M.A., a P.H. Deeeeeeeeeee..."

How 'bout these rap influenced songs?
"Hey babe...take a walk on the wild side..." (Lou Reed)
"So we crashed the gate doin' '98, I said let them truckers roll, 10-4" (C.W. McCall)

>>poor ticket sales

I can think of a good example of someone who was red-hot for awhile then cooled
off rapidly: Morton Downey Jr. He sold out the Club Casino in Hampton Beach one year.
The next year he wanted to return (after the "airport incident" in which he alleged he
was attacked by neo-Nazis) but the show got shelved...

...after only 16 advance tickets got sold. So there you have "poor ticket sales"

 

[raccoonradio]

>>Ludacris

Bill O'Reilly's favorite rapper.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,61546,00.html

 

[johnster]

I think you'll find the Monster Jam is selling very well.

 

[SonicOverload]

I didn't mind some early rap, like "Rapper's Delight" (Sugarhill Gang), "New York New York" and
"The Message" (Grandmaster Flash/Melle Mel), "Basketball" (Kurtis Blow). Blondie took up a little
rap with "Rapture" (which namechecked Flash). Early Run DMC (and loved their take on Walk
This Way, with Aerosmith).
Beastie Boys mixed rap with rock...heard "Fight for your right" tonight on Mike 93.7. Aw, ma
you're just jealous it's the bea...stie...boyz!!

GMF was a good example of socially-conscious rap music and I first heard it on a college station, WMBR. I'm grateful for college radio continuing to present a broad array of music and other content. As for hip-hop, I like earlier stuff, too--Public Enemy, Boogie Down Productions. It's not all guns 'n drugs, much like not all rock music is sex and drugs or country is about boozin' and carousin'... Also, Bob, on that same Run-DMC album that has "Walk This Way," there's also a cool jam called "Proud To Be Black" that quotes Dr. King.

 

[weee]

Didn't Kelly Clarkson also cancel most of her tour because of tepid ticket sales?

No, The Original American Idol Grammy Award Winning Multi-Platinim Selling artist Kelly Clarkson did not cancel her tour. Live Nation did after Clive Davis screwed Kelly over. Kelly wanted to do her own stuff on the album. And the 150 yr old Davis was vehemetly (sp???) against it, and fought her over it. Clarkson eventually was able to do stuff on the album and it has received alot of critical praise. However, with Davis not promoting the album and releasing singles to radio outlets-because he's old and bitter that he lost the fight-is keeping her out of the publics musical mind so the ticket sales for her concerts weren't as big as before.

And a side note her concert tour is back on, just at smaller venues, thanks to Clive Davis.

 

[raccoonradio]

Ah, thanks! I also liked to play Grandmaster Melle Mel's "White Lines", an anti-cocaine song.
"Ticket to ride, white line highway, tell all the girls they can go my way.."
(sung part) "but white lines, blow away"
"Freeze! Rock!" etc.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Lines

Trivia: Sugarhill Records was co-founded by Joe and Sylvia Robinson--better known as "Mickey
and Sylvia" for the 1957 hit (penned by Bo Diddley) "Love is Strange" ("How do you call your
lover boy?") She recorded the hit "Pillow Talk" in the 70s.

 

[Neggy]

I did not know that!

 

[rapking]

AVG station ( Jamn ) get very good ratings in Boston . National Worst Hip Hop is at Top, in The Denver Ratings ( KS 107.5 ) . I guess no Rock Concert never been cancel ( Yeah Right ) .The Harlem/Roxbury Post is just plain Racist or stupid . Most Rap Concert ( In New England Area ) are mostly a White Crowd . This up coming MonsterJam concert, you be lucky to find 30 Blacks in The Gardan ( TD BankNorth Garden is only few Orange line train stops North, From Roxbury ) .

 

[ciao99]

That's a long drive from Roxbury or Harlem to see such an act.

No but it's close to Hartford, a minority majority city, and Springfield, which also has lots of minorities.
Besides, most of the sales of Hip hop are to white kids. How else would Portland Maine support a hip hop station?

 

[MarcR]

How else would Portland Maine support a hip hop station?
[/quote]

Portland, Maine has a hip hop station?! R&B music is performing well in album sales this year, but hip hop sales are hemorrhaging (and most of all among white non-hispanic music consumers), so I don't anticipate a favorable long- term prognosis for that station.

 

[ciao99]

Rock is dead

How else would Portland Maine support a hip hop station?

Portland, Maine has a hip hop station?! R&B music is performing well in album sales this year, but hip hop sales are hemorrhaging (and most of all among white non-hispanic music consumers), so I don't anticipate a favorable long- term prognosis for that station.
[/quote]
The kids aren't listening to rock anymore. How else would Jammin get to # 1 in Boston. Why else would market after market see their alternative rock station ratings sink down the toilet? Look at the playlists of rock stations, its heavy on dinosaur rock. Even K-Rock, WBCN, and WFNX are heavy on the oldies. If WBCN's idea of cutting edge rock is to play the Red Hot Chilli Peppers once an hour, you know rock is dead.

 

[rapking]

How else would Portland Maine support a hip hop station?

Portland, Maine has a hip hop station?! R&B music is performing well in album sales this year, but hip hop sales are hemorrhaging (and most of all among white non-hispanic music consumers), so I don't anticipate a favorable long- term prognosis for that station.
[/quote]Portland Hip hop Station http://redhot959.com/

 

[GovtMule1979]

Hip Hop and Rap just doesn't make for a good live show. It sounds better in most of the kids cars, with their $10,000 sound systems they have. At a hip hop show you see some guys raping with a turn table behind them and some girls dancing like strippers on stage, for a $10 cover charge you can see and hear the same thing at the Foxy Lady, plus a few Motley Crue songs. When people see live shows they want to see people playing drums, guitars, bass...etc. That is why bands like Dave Matthews, the Allman Brothers, and a little band known as Gov't Mule, can do so well coming to town 2-3-4 times a year. However a 3 or 4 minute Kanye West song does better on the radio than a 18 minute jam of Whipping Post.

Mule

 

[SonicOverload]

Hip Hop and Rap just doesn't make for a good live show. It sounds better in most of the kids cars, with their $10,000 sound systems they have. At a hip hop show you see some guys raping with a turn table behind them and some girls dancing like strippers on stage, for a $10 cover charge you can see and hear the same thing at the Foxy Lady, plus a few Motley Crue songs. When people see live shows they want to see people playing drums, guitars, bass...etc. That is why bands like Dave Matthews, the Allman Brothers, and a little band known as Gov't Mule, can do so well coming to town 2-3-4 times a year. However a 3 or 4 minute Kanye West song does better on the radio than a 18 minute jam of Whipping Post.

Mule

When I saw Public Enemy, a couple times, they put on a pretty awesome show.