black music
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Apparently, White People Had No Idea Who Frankie Beverly Was Until Black Twitter Taught Them
If you woke up this morning and were shocked to discover that one of Black America’s favorite musical legends had gone home to glory, calm down. You don’t have to pull out your white painter’s cap, put on “Joy & Pain” and contemplate what steps you should take before you let go. Nothing happened to…
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Keyshia Cole’s ‘Love’ Versus O.T. Genasis’ ‘Never Knew’: Who Did It Better? An Analysis
If you have spent more than five minutes online in the past week, know some gang members, or (oddly) have a Google alert set for “Keyshia Cole” then you have been made privy to the song and video, “Never Knew,” by Long Beach, Calif., rapper and Crip-extraordinaire, O.T. Genasis. You may remember him from such…
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Skye’s the Limit: Justine Skye Talks Authencity, Artistry and Her Hometown-Inspired H&M Collab
Justine Skye knows she’s a bit of a mystery. In fact, the 24-year-old singer has at times been better known for her influencer status and famous friends like Kendall and Kylie Jenner than her music, despite inking her first record deal at 19. Then came her late-2018 single, “Build,” the video to which both continued…
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Dammit Jacquees, You Had One Job! King of R&B Is Cool, but It Ain't a Kingmaker
When we last spoke (about Jacquees), it was in the midst of Mr. Rodriguez Jacquees Broadnax’s ill-advised decision to proclaim that he was the “King of R&B,” a title that none of the contenders were really laying claim to, but that nearly all agreed was not Jacquees. And because of his claim, he became a…
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100 Percent That Thief? Lizzo’s ‘Truth Hurts’ Slapped With Second Plagiarism Claim
If the latest round of accusations is true, Lizzo’s “Truth Hurts” is more than merely a chart-topping smash—it’s the byproduct of some carefully calculated theft. Pitchfork reports that producer Justin Raisen took to Instagram to air out his grievances with the Cuz I Love You singer and was kind enough to include receipts. “On April…
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10 Thoughts About the Upcoming 'A Night with Whitney: The Whitney Houston Hologram Tour'
1. I could understand a Las Vegas residency for “A Night with Whitney.” What happens there, rightly stays there, so it makes sense. Yes, that’s a non-sequitur. But so is ‘Whitney was popular let’s make her a ghost and tour her.’ I’ve been to Vegas and seen things that I have not seen anywhere else,…
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The Music Industry Reacts to the Passing of Grammy Award-Winning Songwriter LaShawn Daniels: ‘We Needed Him’
You might not immediately recognize his name, but LaShawn Daniels, the Grammy Award-winning songwriter who penned the soundtrack to many of our lives, has reportedly passed away at the age of 41. The Independent reports that the cause of death has yet to be determined, but friends and collaborators have taken to social media to…
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Jidenna's 85 to Africa Is a Musical Road Trip Worth Taking
While August 23, 2019, probably won’t be revered in modern black music release history the same way that September 29, 1998, is—the day that Outkast’s Aquemini, Jay-Z’s Vol. 2, Hard Knock Life, A Tribe Called Quest’s The Love Movement, Black Star’s Mos Def and Talib Kweli Are Black Star and Brand Nubian’s Foundation were released—it…
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The 15 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs of All Time
Hip-hop celebrated its 46th birthday on August 11. The anniversary of the genre’s unofficial yet widely accepted formation in the Bronx just happened to coincide with the tail end of a conversation regarding everyone’s top 50 rappers list. The thought of putting together my own top 50 list always put me off; once you get…
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VSB’s Absolute, Yet Debatable List of the 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time…Definitely, Maybe
You’ve probably seen a ton of lists circulating on social media lately ranking the 50 greatest rappers of all time. I don’t know who did the first one, but somehow Joe Budden—an extremely talented and gifted wordsmith—ended up in the No. 3 slot ahead of arguably, at minimum, 10 rappers easily better than him. Because…