Straight Outta Compton – And Into The Dubious Mainstream
As moviegoers flock to the N.W.A. (Niggaz With Attitude) biopic Straight Outta Compton this weekend (it’s expected to earn close to $60M at the U.S. box office…the biggest R-rated opening…
Black Music Renaissance is Happening Now – But Without the Women
Earlier this year, in fact in my very first article, I lamented about how black musicians were experiencing a lull in popularity – particularly on the Billboard charts. That article…
Why “No Sleeep”…slept.
Janet Jackson is imploring us to “keep the conversation going” with the recently launched marketing campaign (hashtag: #ConversationsInACafe) for the upcoming album and its first new single, “No Sleeep.” The…
Black History: 100 Greatest Black Musicians – Part IV
We’ve just completed Black Music Month, 2015, and with that comes the last of my special four-part series of the 100 Greatest Black Musicians of All Time. To recap, we…
Black History: 20 Greatest Black Music Producers/Songwriters of the Past 55 Years
As Black Music Month 2015 – now formally known as African-American Music Appreciation Month – races through its home stretch, I’ve been completing the last installment of my four-part countdown…