Posted by I tend to take music pretty seriously. I suppose that’s natural considering that my early music influences were grunge, metal and gangsta rap – Nirvana, Pearl Jam, REM, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Guns ‘n Roses, Snoop, Dre and Public Enemy, to name a few. Here was music that spoke to me, that either showed me a world I didn’t know (Dre/Snoop) or spoke of a world I thought I knew even if I didn’t always understand the lyrics (Nirvana).
Gangsta rap talked about some really fraked up situations in the ghetto; the struggle, the hustle and no it wasn’t that funny. Grunge gave voice to a generation (X) discontented and disillusioned with the choices that lay before them. Even as I’ve grown older, I’m drawn to the serious music of the motherland; some of the classics, some of the new stuff.
There’s a lot of partying in pop, rock, hip hop or modern r&b and I dig a good beat as much as the next cat. Amidst all tough situations, we still need to take time to party, to get down, to get low. Sometimes we need to strut. That’s all good in the ‘hood. But there are an element of the music world that I just can’t countenance – funny music.
Some modern R&B embraces a certain over-the-top yet serious sounding humor. “lemme give you that toot toot, lemme give you that beep-beep.” Aw hell naw. I can’t get past such detritus material. Perhaps I’ve got a stick up me bum but I tend to think of that music in the same light as Weird Al Yankovic. I hate Weird Al Yankovic. And while I’m at it, if you want proper rhythm and blues – take a swing at some Charlie Christian.
You don’t have to tell me that some things need to be lampooned but give me a damn break. In my experience, comic relief of this outsized proportion is merely a cop-out for discussing matters of import. To me, if you don’t have the mental and musical acumen to say something proper, then don’t say it at all.
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