I certainly overlooked Usher's latest album although I did have select songs from it, I neglected to listen to it all the way through. Part of that may have been it doesn't seem as much hype followed the release of Here I Stand. I loved loved his 2004 release of Confessions. Every song off of it was fresh, talked about real life issues in love, deception, and lust. I was impressed that he had grown up from the days of 8701 and before that when he was only touching the iceberg of relationships.
However, as far as grown man status goes Confessions has nothing on Here I Stand. I still like Confessions probably better, but there's a new sense of maturity in his latest release. Usher's grown as a man in general, he put away his player card and got married and had a son. That definitely shows in his music ; not that he doesn't have a few songs that are made for a dance floor. "Love in this Club"is certainly no ballad or anything deep. However, "Trading Places", "Here I Stand", "Moving Mountains", and the like have shown he's here to make some grown man music carrying on a position that Babyface once had when he expressed vulnerability, passion, and understanding of relationships in music.
I hate when I've slept on an album for a month or almost a year only to discover it's really on point, but better late than never.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Jazmine Sullivan Busting Out your Speakers
Jazmine Sullivan is a vocal beast. I saw her perform last night, along with Maxwell. There's always a chance seeing a singer live you find their vocals are doctored up by production, and they don't sound as powerful. Maxwell, the headliner of course won with his performance, but in voice power Jazmine genuinely impressed me, but shoot, I was already a fan.
Although, it's hard for a new artist to really capture my attention these days, I definitely feel her style, voice, and the subject matter in her songs. It's mature, real, vulnerable, and has a touch of old-fashioned soul, (let's hope she stays that way). Of course I could try to compare her to some other singers (past and present) like we have a tendency to do with new artists new artists, but I won't.
While we were just shooting the breeze about music, a male friend of mine pointed out the obvious regarding Jazmine's single "Bust Your Windows". The obvious? Well, that as emotional and as good of a song as it may be, it's kinda crazy. He said women need to stop being delusional and blasting the song like it's cool (to be busting people's windows out).
Forget the alluring soulful voice, the catchy hook, and the angst in the song many of us chicas can probably relate to - let's delve deeper. Sure, we may have felt the urge to get revenge before. And wrecking something as adored by men as their whip may seem to be the perfect punishment for being betrayed or mistreated. However, let's be real. It's an object and while we can fantasize or actually think of busting windows, slashing tires, or whatever the trendy thing for a psycho girl to do is; that car can get repaired, while you're feelings or heart won't heal or be fixed as easily. Jazmine even admits that in her song, but still revels in that busting those windows felt so good.
My friend mentioned above said one of his female friends actually wanted him to take her to her boyfriend or ex-boyfrend's car to do some damage. I doubt she was soley inspired by Jazmine, but just inspired by crazy. Now, I've seen enough Judge Mathis episodes with jilted girlfriends and scumbag boyfriends to know things like this do happen everyday. Emotions are a mother....But again, while temporarily you feel satisfied at the shattered pieces of glass, it won't put back together your heart. However, when you can't hurt someone back the way they hurt you, you feel powerless, so you do something negative to something of their's you have access to.
It is a double standard because women can sing songs about getting revenge on a man and get away with it. What would it look like if a man was singing about cruising by his ex-lady's house and slashing her tires or carving the word bitch into her driver's side door. Pretty lame. Obviously, although Jazmine admitted to (really) busting a dude's windows out once, we know this has been sung before whether in a hook a verse or just implied.
But I guess we have to pay homage to the original scorned woman's club, such as Terry McMillan's book to movie, Waiting to Exhale where Angela Bassett's character torches Michael Beach's clothes in Waiting to Exhale (that movie made man hating cool again), or the real life story of Mary Woodson throwing hot grits on Al Green (although the ending of that story is terribly tragic). There's a million more examples I don't care to drudge up.
All in all, whethere she's busting windows or bust speakers Jazmine is the future of R&B. I love the Beyonces and Ciaras, but right now she's definitely one of my favorites in the game.
Although, it's hard for a new artist to really capture my attention these days, I definitely feel her style, voice, and the subject matter in her songs. It's mature, real, vulnerable, and has a touch of old-fashioned soul, (let's hope she stays that way). Of course I could try to compare her to some other singers (past and present) like we have a tendency to do with new artists new artists, but I won't.
While we were just shooting the breeze about music, a male friend of mine pointed out the obvious regarding Jazmine's single "Bust Your Windows". The obvious? Well, that as emotional and as good of a song as it may be, it's kinda crazy. He said women need to stop being delusional and blasting the song like it's cool (to be busting people's windows out).
Forget the alluring soulful voice, the catchy hook, and the angst in the song many of us chicas can probably relate to - let's delve deeper. Sure, we may have felt the urge to get revenge before. And wrecking something as adored by men as their whip may seem to be the perfect punishment for being betrayed or mistreated. However, let's be real. It's an object and while we can fantasize or actually think of busting windows, slashing tires, or whatever the trendy thing for a psycho girl to do is; that car can get repaired, while you're feelings or heart won't heal or be fixed as easily. Jazmine even admits that in her song, but still revels in that busting those windows felt so good.
My friend mentioned above said one of his female friends actually wanted him to take her to her boyfriend or ex-boyfrend's car to do some damage. I doubt she was soley inspired by Jazmine, but just inspired by crazy. Now, I've seen enough Judge Mathis episodes with jilted girlfriends and scumbag boyfriends to know things like this do happen everyday. Emotions are a mother....But again, while temporarily you feel satisfied at the shattered pieces of glass, it won't put back together your heart. However, when you can't hurt someone back the way they hurt you, you feel powerless, so you do something negative to something of their's you have access to.
It is a double standard because women can sing songs about getting revenge on a man and get away with it. What would it look like if a man was singing about cruising by his ex-lady's house and slashing her tires or carving the word bitch into her driver's side door. Pretty lame. Obviously, although Jazmine admitted to (really) busting a dude's windows out once, we know this has been sung before whether in a hook a verse or just implied.
But I guess we have to pay homage to the original scorned woman's club, such as Terry McMillan's book to movie, Waiting to Exhale where Angela Bassett's character torches Michael Beach's clothes in Waiting to Exhale (that movie made man hating cool again), or the real life story of Mary Woodson throwing hot grits on Al Green (although the ending of that story is terribly tragic). There's a million more examples I don't care to drudge up.
All in all, whethere she's busting windows or bust speakers Jazmine is the future of R&B. I love the Beyonces and Ciaras, but right now she's definitely one of my favorites in the game.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)