Whiter Shade Of Pop: Pharrell Williams’ “Happy” Becomes First #1 By Black Artist In 14 Months
Last week Pharrell Williams' hit "Happy" became the first song by a black artist since December of 2012 to reach #1 Billboard's Hot 100. Then, it was Rihanna's "Diamonds" that went #1. Since, even African-American powerhouses like Beyonce and Johnny Legend reached the top 5 without ever hitting #1.
Is The Music Industry Racist?
On the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, white artists were also on top 44 out of 52 weeks in 2013.
A similar white streak extends to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, where in 2014 the only black inductee was the late Clarence Clemmons, listed as Springsteen's sideman.
"…There’s no willful racism or systematic exclusion happening, neither in the Rock Hall nor on the charts," argues Slate's Chris Molanphy, "the populace is naturally drifting away from African-Americans after decades of regarding them as the avatars of cutting-edge popular music.
But some, like Kayne West, see racism throughout the industry. "I’m 36 years old and I have 21 Grammys – that’s the most Grammys of any 36-year-old," said West after last year's awards ceremony. "Out of all of those 21 Grammys, I’ve never won a Grammy against a white artist."
Re: Kanye: Some people will see racism through anything
“Happy” deserves to be number 1. The song is infecteous and catchy as hell and the production/arrangment: Instead of burying the song helps to acentuate it and make it even more catchy and infectous.
I describe the production on Happy as “What George Martin would do if he where working today”.
Is the Music Industry Racist?
In the context of black artists being #1? Hell no. Pop music’s trends change all the time. The current trend with pop is EDM production. Hip-Hop/R&B is out of favor on the pop charts.
The current trend in R&B/Hip-Hop is to go pop/dance. Black and White artists are trying to do it. Robin Thicke happened to remake a Marvin Gaye, er, have a really catchy single. Macklamore filled the suburban rap void vacated by Emimem (who went totally pop) and there hasn’t been a larger than life black MC with catchy radio tracks in the last few years to take the mantle back–Flo Rida is a pop artist, not a rap artist.
There is certainly prejudice in the music industry. But the prejudice is more about money than race. What labels think will sell is what they push. They don’t think a black rock artist will sell, so they don’t sign many. They aren’t sure a black Bieber would sell to little white girls, so they don’t look for one.
In the history of rock and pop music, white artists have on a whole sold more units than black artists and had bigger audiences. That’s a society problem, not a music industry problem.
Johnny Legend? That might be racist: http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=johnny+legend&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
Just kidding, but I’ve never heard him called that. Are there racists in the music industry and music buying public? Sure, probably. Not to sound jaded, but I’d be
surprised at any Black artist being shocked by that. The Elvis syndrome is real and nothing to be particularly upset about. There are simply more White people, with
more disposable income, buying recordings. This will effect chart placment to a degree. When hasn’t it?
“Happy” as a single is highly relatable. It’s an actual song, as well. Black artist’s at the pop level right now are kinda niche – look at the public reaction to Beyonce’s Grammy performance – people treated her acting sexy as if it were a new thing. Dance routines in a leotard are relatable for singing “Single Ladies” but shocking
with your husband for “Drunk in Love”
And Seth Keller above brings up a good point about EDM production styles – there is a deep shift in music right now, where something essentially underground like electronic dance, is seeping into mainstream listening space. This is causing turbulence on many levels – look at the Artic Monkeys, a great white rock band from England – beloved by other artists but ignored at the Grammy’s this year. I hear lots of rock guys complaining that electronic and dance is pushing them out of the limelight…