Has R and B become a one trick Pony?
Now I was feeling nostalgiac and listening to probably the greatest and most pure voice in r and b ever, the one and only Luther Vandross. Now it wasn't just the voice that got me, it was his style and flair. We all know the rumors about Luther being gay but the moment he opened his mouth and started singing, you no longer cared anything about that, you just knew that something great was coming.
Woooooooooo!!! That gives me the chills. Now here is what I was thinking about while listening to Luth, I would have loved to see him perform. And Luther didn't do anything but sing. It's like seeing Jay-z, dude has a skill that is so great, he can stand absolutely still and sing and people would be riveted by the vocals. Now, I'm not going to knock the new generation of singers on vocal skills because some of these guys actually do have the talent to sing, however, the market dictates that they sing different types of songs and make different music where they don't bring out some of those skills. However, I could never ever go see most of the artists today actually perform.
See I'm a fan of Usher's music. I also think he is an incredible performer. But I cannot go to an Usher concert because this dude takes his shirt off too much and grinds across the stage too damn much. It's not homophobic either, I just don't feel comfortable with a dude chest naked focusing on an audience I am part of and rubbing his nipples. It's not going to work. Now Usher is the example of a seasoned veteran, but I thought about it and every r and b act does some ultra-sexy-for-the-ladies dancing around and I can't get with it.
See, you got C. Breezie grinding and air-humping his mental image of Rihanna while thousands of little girls scream wildly. Thats fine for him and them, but I cannot be a part of that. Pretty Rickey....well we all know how those dudes get down when you got "Sexy Spec" going so far as to challenge other singers to a grind off. Shit, Trey Songz ass doesn't even dance but all his songs are about sex and 90% of his pictures involve him with his shirt off(pause and no-homo) so Im pretty sure that after he finishes singing "I Gotta Make It" his shirt comes off without ever seeing him perform.
Now this isn't new, but the difference is all the while Jodeci, the Bad Boys of R and B were running around and grabbing their crotches through their leather pants and pouring baby oil and water on their chests, Boyz II Men was wearing slacks and slippery earls and straight up singing their lungs out. Even though Jodeci was a group of fake ass Bobby "Indecent Exposure" Browns with more vocals, you had Johnny Gill, and the rest of New Edition who stayed clothed. Keith Sweat was a shirt open type of guy and Brian Mcknight always wore a shirt, although many of them happened to be made of mesh, there was a variety. There were singers whom you could take your girl to see and know you wouldn't be the only straight man there. You could sit back, drink your soda and enjoy the performance.
Today, I have reservations about going to see a rapper like Plies because he's only gonna be talking to the ladies about everything sexual he could imagine doing to them from the filthiest pornos ever made. I guess I could go and see The Dream but that fool can't sing so why would I actually give him my money? What happened to the singers that anyone could enjoy without having a weird feeling and getting odd looks when you walk to your seat?
Woooooooooo!!! That gives me the chills. Now here is what I was thinking about while listening to Luth, I would have loved to see him perform. And Luther didn't do anything but sing. It's like seeing Jay-z, dude has a skill that is so great, he can stand absolutely still and sing and people would be riveted by the vocals. Now, I'm not going to knock the new generation of singers on vocal skills because some of these guys actually do have the talent to sing, however, the market dictates that they sing different types of songs and make different music where they don't bring out some of those skills. However, I could never ever go see most of the artists today actually perform.
See I'm a fan of Usher's music. I also think he is an incredible performer. But I cannot go to an Usher concert because this dude takes his shirt off too much and grinds across the stage too damn much. It's not homophobic either, I just don't feel comfortable with a dude chest naked focusing on an audience I am part of and rubbing his nipples. It's not going to work. Now Usher is the example of a seasoned veteran, but I thought about it and every r and b act does some ultra-sexy-for-the-ladies dancing around and I can't get with it.
See, you got C. Breezie grinding and air-humping his mental image of Rihanna while thousands of little girls scream wildly. Thats fine for him and them, but I cannot be a part of that. Pretty Rickey....well we all know how those dudes get down when you got "Sexy Spec" going so far as to challenge other singers to a grind off. Shit, Trey Songz ass doesn't even dance but all his songs are about sex and 90% of his pictures involve him with his shirt off(pause and no-homo) so Im pretty sure that after he finishes singing "I Gotta Make It" his shirt comes off without ever seeing him perform.
Now this isn't new, but the difference is all the while Jodeci, the Bad Boys of R and B were running around and grabbing their crotches through their leather pants and pouring baby oil and water on their chests, Boyz II Men was wearing slacks and slippery earls and straight up singing their lungs out. Even though Jodeci was a group of fake ass Bobby "Indecent Exposure" Browns with more vocals, you had Johnny Gill, and the rest of New Edition who stayed clothed. Keith Sweat was a shirt open type of guy and Brian Mcknight always wore a shirt, although many of them happened to be made of mesh, there was a variety. There were singers whom you could take your girl to see and know you wouldn't be the only straight man there. You could sit back, drink your soda and enjoy the performance.
Today, I have reservations about going to see a rapper like Plies because he's only gonna be talking to the ladies about everything sexual he could imagine doing to them from the filthiest pornos ever made. I guess I could go and see The Dream but that fool can't sing so why would I actually give him my money? What happened to the singers that anyone could enjoy without having a weird feeling and getting odd looks when you walk to your seat?
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