It has been a while since I last blogged - but I swear I am going to try to do it more. I got a message from a friend, who lives on the other side of the world, and he was hating on me because I haven't written anything entertainment related in a while. I have been spending some time on Twitter <
click here to follow me> and decided to use it as inspiration for this post, by holding my own variation of a #musicmonday.
I have been doing a lot of reading online, and many music fans are not happy with the amount of effort many record labels are putting into promoting their artists' latest efforts at the moment. It seems like the recession is killing publicity and marketing departments. Often coming under fire in many of the articles and blogs I have read is the Island Def Jam group. Undoubtedly geared up to promote battered beauty Rihanna's latest album,
Rated R - out this week - could they be neglecting some of their more substantial talents?
It's no secret that I enjoy a large dose of RnB and Pop, among many many other things when it comes to my taste in music. Two albums that I am really enjoying have both been relatively commercially disappointing to their creators, despite being critically acclaimed. Incidentally both of them were released in the last few weeks by the Island Def Jam group, and seem to be slipping under the radar.
Amerie - In Love & War
One of the most beautiful and intelligent female performers in commercial music, Amerie first caught my attention in a bad way when she covered 'I'm Coming Out' for the soundtrack of the 2003 film Maid In Manhattan. I had never heard a voice like hers on the radio, and dismissed it as a shocking attempt at making music. Thereafter she did a couple of hip hop duets, and I slowly warmed up to her unconventional vocal abilities. In 2005 her smash hit single '1 Thing' caught everyone off guard, and even became my ring tone for a year. I then invested in her album, and have been a huge fan of her unique DC/go-go infused sexy sound ever since. It's RnB, it's Rock, it's Soul, it's Edgy, it's Amerie. Like a true groupie, I now own all the albums of the woman who has some of the hottest dance moves in the biz.
Her new album is her fourth collection, and it is great. She is an extremely underrated musician, despite the fact that she is very different from the other female artists in her genre. Her sound is distinct and the fact that she is heavily involved in the writing and production of her music is evident. What I like about Amerie is that she is a bit of a nerd. Beyond shaking her derriere, and flexing her incredibly long legs she has a business degree, and real opinions on serious world issues. She doesn't look desperate to conform to her entertainment industry peers. I am sold. Her new album is aptly called 'In Love & War'. It's a high-energy, diverse effort in my opinion. My favourite tracks include 'Heard 'Em All', 'Why R U', 'Swag Back', 'The Flowers' and 'Tell Me You Love Me'.Mariah Carey - Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel
Okay, so you either adore Mariah Carey or you absolutely hate her. I happen to enjoy her - and her antics. I think OTT behaviour is totally acceptable if you can back it up with talent - so a toast to the obsession with butterflies, the short dresses and the ability to sing notes that most people can't fathom. Unlike the rest of the world, I was kept in the loop about this record by my good friend and kinda colleague Karl Ryan (who writes the amazing motoring blog MotorMouth). He is Mariah's biggest fan and gave me daily updates from the moment news around the first single first surfaced.
I personally find this to be one of her most engaging albums. Lacklustre on a first listen, it takes a while to appreciate what this collection of songs really is. It feels like a concept album. Gone are the bells and whistles, and what Mariah has delivered this time is a collection of good old fashioned RnB tracks, with an urban edge. It feels like a very personal album, with sincere lyrics and a lot of soul. I enjoy it from start to finish. I do enjoy all her records, in particular 'Butterfly' and 'Charmbracelet' - which are in a similar vein. Some people are calling it her best album since 'Butterfly' 12 years ago - and I am inclined to agree. The critics generally agree with my verdict. There are few stand-out chart toppers, but it is so cohesive that I feel like it deserves to be called an album. We get so confused by the world' album', because it has simply come to mean a collection of songs without necessarily having any form of an artistic concept.
Anyway, you don't have to love it, but I do. Favourite tracks include Betcha Gon' Know, Candy Bling, Obsessed, H.A.T.E.U, More Than Just Friends, Angels Cry, Languishing and her cover of Foreigner's I Want To Know What Love Is.It may just be that music is changing, piracy is a problem and these artists are no longer meeting the expectations of the masses. Either way I respect that creative people need to experiment and explore, and sometimes we like it and sometimes we don't. Neither artist in this case needs the money, so whether it is a hit or a miss is more a concern for their labels and sales-obsessed fans. Def Jam will be releasing
Janet Jackson's latest Greatest Hits collection in 3 hours. She has yet to have a huge album since she joined their stable. Let's hope that they can promote this project properly and prove that they still have what it takes to take home platinum discs.
Happy Music Monday everyone - feel free to let me know which records I just have to give a spin this summer.
Hot off his gig as MC of this year's SA Style Awards, we recently attended the premiere of an AFDA Honours student film he starred in called Strife. It's a short film, with relatively high production values and an engaging narrative. It was written and directed by William Nicholson, and co-stars another one of my friends - Mandi Yengo. They both really studied their characters, and give great performances. Our friend Maqhawe and I laughed throughout the film at Lutho's ill-fitting trousers, but other than that it was 24 minutes well-spent. It is being showcased at select cinemas, and will probably be broadcast on MNET, so look out for it.
