Just Young Adults
I mentioned a little while ago how the same producers who did Mary J. Blige's new (and overplayed) single "Be With You," did Toni Braxton's first recent single "Trippin." Not only were these two tracks selected to be singles, they were produced to be. They most likely cost a little more to produce, because of their potential to do well. I've realized something very clear, maybe it was obvious, but I always wanted to believe it wasn't true.
Toni Braxton's song Trippin' is as good if not better than Mary J. Blige's. It is clear to me that the record companies are paying radio stations to play singles more. "Financial scandals and shady dealings are not new to the music industry: in July 2005 Sony BMG shelled out $10 million over payola accusations (paying radio stations to feature Sony BMG artists); in November 2005, Warner Music paid $5 million to settle similar payola accusations." So its not about the people, nor was it ever about the people, we are truly being fed the music. So of course Toni's album doesn't do nearly as well, even though it is a good album. I can't vouch for every track, but there are some that are in heavy rotation (on my system).
So the problem here, even with a name like Toni Braxton, a name that is guaranteed to sell, you are still at the mercy of your company. A company can make an album do well by spending more, but if they don't want to spend the money on you, you're just screwed. I talk about the business a lot because I want to see it changed. Maybe I'll work on it as a hobby. I don't need to make a lot of money from it, nor do I need to mingle with celebrities, I just want to see things work differently because I love good music... and I can't imagine how much good music is out there that I just don't know about.
Its funny, I was watching MTV Jams the other day and they had a roundtable discussion about the "state of hip-hop" with artists including Remy Ma, and David Banner. How can you talk about problems with hip-hop when the people you are talking to ARE the problems? I feel like the genre was stolen and turned into something terrible just so it could sell more. I know the artists have an image to maintain, but sometimes I really hope they are smarter than they come off as being. They really come off as sounding stupid, and I wish I could say I was saying that from a non-educated perspective, but I can't. I guess sounding stupid is how you reach the most people. I was once told that the news is deliberately geared to the mind of a 13 year old (not all news), so that more people can watch and understand it. Makes you wonder how much in society is tailored for uneducated participation. Believe me, the music out there has generated a lot of 13 year old adults... many of whom are the rappers we know so well, or so it seems. Brings new meaning to the term "young adult."
~JL
I just saw Kimberly Elise on TV. I'm going to start putting up pictures of beautiful women who I don't think get enough mention.
Toni Braxton's song Trippin' is as good if not better than Mary J. Blige's. It is clear to me that the record companies are paying radio stations to play singles more. "Financial scandals and shady dealings are not new to the music industry: in July 2005 Sony BMG shelled out $10 million over payola accusations (paying radio stations to feature Sony BMG artists); in November 2005, Warner Music paid $5 million to settle similar payola accusations." So its not about the people, nor was it ever about the people, we are truly being fed the music. So of course Toni's album doesn't do nearly as well, even though it is a good album. I can't vouch for every track, but there are some that are in heavy rotation (on my system).
So the problem here, even with a name like Toni Braxton, a name that is guaranteed to sell, you are still at the mercy of your company. A company can make an album do well by spending more, but if they don't want to spend the money on you, you're just screwed. I talk about the business a lot because I want to see it changed. Maybe I'll work on it as a hobby. I don't need to make a lot of money from it, nor do I need to mingle with celebrities, I just want to see things work differently because I love good music... and I can't imagine how much good music is out there that I just don't know about.
Its funny, I was watching MTV Jams the other day and they had a roundtable discussion about the "state of hip-hop" with artists including Remy Ma, and David Banner. How can you talk about problems with hip-hop when the people you are talking to ARE the problems? I feel like the genre was stolen and turned into something terrible just so it could sell more. I know the artists have an image to maintain, but sometimes I really hope they are smarter than they come off as being. They really come off as sounding stupid, and I wish I could say I was saying that from a non-educated perspective, but I can't. I guess sounding stupid is how you reach the most people. I was once told that the news is deliberately geared to the mind of a 13 year old (not all news), so that more people can watch and understand it. Makes you wonder how much in society is tailored for uneducated participation. Believe me, the music out there has generated a lot of 13 year old adults... many of whom are the rappers we know so well, or so it seems. Brings new meaning to the term "young adult."
~JL
I just saw Kimberly Elise on TV. I'm going to start putting up pictures of beautiful women who I don't think get enough mention.
posted by JC at 9:40 AM
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