RnB meant something different - why does it now mean "awful"?

Question

At what point did RnB switch from brilliant to awful? I am guessing at the point RnB ceased to mean "Rhythmn and Blues" and now (apparently) it means "Rhythmn and bass"?

Look at the historical artists from RnBlues and compare them to RnBass, the songs were a million times better, the voices incredible, and the artists had charisma - and still do.

What do we have nowadays? repetitive electric machine made music with industry puppets singing the weakest lyrics over the top. I mean - Beyonce? Pleeeease no!

Somewhere in time it went from great to rubbish - at what point do you feel this happened?

(I'll add a caveat to this - theres some great UK RnB out there, Beverley knight for instance)

Answer 1

In general I feel you- but there are still some good artists that carry on the R&B flame like Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Angie Stone, Phil Perry, and others. Sadly, these are not household names like the "flavas of the month" that are mass marketed.

I believe this is a case of "don't hate the playa- hate the game". Why does sex sell? Because it is used as a marketing tool; when our culture believed that such broad usage of these techniques was taboo, those in the music business actually had to have more talent than the modern "how does my sound look?" bunch. I for one don't find Beyonce one ounce sexy when the sound is on- she is very challenged in the departments of phrasing and intonation.

This "all fluff, no stuff" approach isn't just used in R&B- the same taurine excrement is used in the country, rock, and jazz fields, too (rock is probably the least offensive in this sense, but the image of country and jazz has morphed to the point that those who like the classic art form are flabbergasted by the mass-marketed version's co-opting of their symbols not unlike R&B).

I do believe you touch on one of the critical factors: mechanization. It's easier to control the output when there are fewer personalities in the loop. The art of music used to benefit from the synergy of all the personalities in the loop, but that interactive spark is gone in the environment where one programmer with a large sample library puts out the music. If I would have to assign a line in the sand culturally, that would be around 1980 with the development of the first Linn drum machines; it's all been a gradual slide downward since.

Please support live music- it cannot make a comeback if it ceases to exist because the musicians cannot evolve their skills without gig experience.

Answer 2

I'm not into R&B music personally, but I think the "great to garbage" trend is happening all throughout the music industry. I'm a self-avowed 80s fanatic, and I just can't listen to the crap they call music nowadays. Everything sounds the same, it's all computer-generated noise as far as I'm concerned. It's like the artists/record companies can't come up with anything decent on theri own; a lot of them use sampling from older songs (a lot of 80s stuff--imagine that) for backgrounds. I mean, I used to be able to turn on the radio and be able to tell who the artist was just by hearing their voices; now I can't tell them apart. They all sound the same.

But I agree wholeheartedly with you! Good question!

Answer 3

Amen! Testify! Speak the truth!



the truth is nowadays SEX SELLS ... so theres no need for real talent just as long as you show some flesh and have a good beat to your song!-- some people dont even listen to the words jsut the beat!



I mean Beyonce.. she has an amazing talent but she wastes it-- i remeber watching her perfom on tv and she didnt even have a microphone she was just hanging from the ceiling in some skimpy outfit... and i thought 'wot is wrong with you! YOU ARE A SINGER!'





Bring back the instruments, the lyrics, and the real dedicate singers who are not all caught up in showing there bodies!!



And i do agree, UK rnb is great over here,, i spend more time listening to music on myspace now becuase theres more ,you know, undiscovered real talent and people with real lyrics!







UPDATE:

no offencE mz.LUVLEE' but theres no need to be rude.. i have listened to all of beyonces songs and she is a great artist but like i said earlier its more about how sex sells than how talent sells

and well yea she was great with destinys child but that was also in the past.

not all rnb is like this but a large majority...

try to be mature and understand what the persons saying before you starting 'runnin your mouth' .. go ahead lower my rating... everyones entitled to there opinion...

theres absolutley no need for swearing

Answer 4

I agree with you. While beyonce has some talent she in no way compares to the GREAT R&B Singers that came before her. Her voice is simply not that strong. I'm not sure when R&B went from great to rubbish (your word). Perhaps in the 90's A lot of terrible R&B music came out in the 90's But to get that great old school music I just listen to old school Radio and thang god now for being able to download and keep the old school music close by all the time.

Answer 5

Bottom line is - sex sells. As a woman, I'm sick of it, doesnt do anything for me. There is some talent out there, but its more about who you know. Talent is almost a thing of the past. I personally prefer the oldies anyday. The music still sounds good. However this new stuff plays out within weeks, why? Because it's no good.

Answer 6

to sum it up music today is commercialized. corperate america tells the artist what they are going to write about to promote actions and sell products and time.

Answer 7

preach girl!!! i agree 200%