Okay. So as you know, many artists have tried to switch things up. John (of course), Musiq, Erykah Badu, Alicia Keys, Raphael Saadiq and Solange to name a few. But I don't think a lot of artists can succeed when they do.
Alicia Keys switched her style up dramatically for As I Am, yet it worked for her. This album was her best-selling one, and I hope you can see why. If you're going to change things, THAT'S how you should do it. (However, I prefer The Diary sound. I don't think she can ever top that).
Erykah Badu threw us all for a loop and released New Amerykah Part I: 4th World War. This album was COMPLETELY different than her previous albums, but yet, Erykah is the master of change. None of her albums sound the same and it works for her well. That's one of the reasons why I like Erykah, she always brings something new and fresh but it's not because she wants her music to be accepted by the mainstream listeners. If you don't like it, you can call Tyrone. Next.
Solange also threw us all for a loop. Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams sounds nothing like her past material. I actually enjoyed Sol-Angel...kind of harsh? lol.
Raphael Saadiq really changed things with The Way I See It. It was something totally unexpected but he nailed it. The album is in my top 10 albums of the year, for sure.
Now let's switch. Artists who attempt to change things but fail. The only artist I can think of at the moment is....
MUSIQ SOULCHILD. Oh lord have mercy, what was that "Radio" foolishness again? Don't do it again, thanks. I pray on everything that OnMyRadio is full of IfULeave's and SoBeautiful's. If not, he might as well name it Evolver. (I'm harsh today, right?)
Let's switch again. Artists who I would cry over if they EVER decided to change things.
Jill Scott, India.Arie, Goapele, Dwele, Corinne Bailey Rae, Chrisette Michele, Janelle Monae(Bad Boy better NOT try to change her!!!!), or Amel Larrieux. They are SO good at what they do that I wouldn't want to hear anything different from them. If I ever caught Jill Scott singing some mainstream type stuff, I swear...
5 comments:
That's a nice post and I can ALMOST agree with you;)
Alicia - ... I miss the old one, but still the album has its great songs, but can we compare this greatness to 'Fallin''? Neverthless, she is still the best even though she changed her style a little bit, but I'm just saying... missing some old flavor in it;)
Erykah - maybe it is just me (for sure;p) but I don't like so much new Erykah :( This is probably the same feeling as you have with John L. Honestly, I love her voice and everything. 'Mama's Gun' is and will always be my favorite album of ALL TIME, but still the recent album hasn't grown on me yet... maybe in the future. This is sad, because I even nicknamed myself after her song, lol (so creative, I know;p) She is a huge part of my music world.
Musiq - ... no.
And I think that Jill changed since 'Who's Jill Scott'. She changed her style quite a lot and it became more mainstream. Her first album is classic and I love it so much. The rest of her music is still fine, but the spirit of the first one I can recognize on her next albums only when I listen to her live recordings (Live in Paris). Some songs I've started to appreciate only when I heard them live, strange.
That's just me:> Talking about change what about Kanye;p! Heh;) That's a change!
I don't think Alicia will ever be able to top "Fallin'" and that is not even the stan side of me speaking lol.
And yeah, Kanye is DEFINITELY changing. I'm not sure if I'm going to like all the songs on 808's, but there is ONE song that I'm completely in love with and you know which one that is! (how could you be so Heartless?)
&& I don't think Jill went more mainstream. I still felt "Jill" when I listened to The Real Thing, but I agree with you when you say her first is classic. I think a lot of artists have such superb debut albums that you'll always like that one more than the rest of them. But I'll save that for another randomness post lol.
You're probably right. As I said I agree with you almost, but there is always part of me which misses something from the past recordings of some artists. Regarding Jill, I miss the jazzy flavor and I can hear it when she performs live - that's pure perfection. Alicia is doing her thang and I know that you are a HUGE fan so I am not going to argue;p Heh, but she is on the same level as Jill - great artist and I think great person as well. That's RARE.
Kanye - I feel the same;) I love 'Coldest Winter'...
Solange - I love the music... but damn - I don't like her voice so much:( This is weird because I really enjoyed her album, but something was missing and this is the recognizable voice. Maybe it will grow on me, everyone deserves a second chance;p
Waiting for another randomness then:>
Alicia Keys latest album was amazing, she's one of those artists that can flip her style really well. All of her material is great.
Erykah Badu is awesome, she really did flip things around with her latest album, but she does it really well. She's an innovator.
Musiq Soulchild is amazing too, but he kinda let his talent slip with that 'Radio' tune. What was that? lol That wasn't Musiq, that seemed like the label telling him to put out a commercial tune. It just didn't work.
Jill Scott flips her style on each album, but she does it with so much style that you hardly notice. She rocks. I adore this artist!
Dwele, Corinne Bailey Rae, Nate James, Jill Scott, India.Arie, Janelle Monae, etc better not change for anyone, they have so much to bring music with their individuality.
Oh and Chrisette Michele rocks, her debut album was hot. It makes you wonder why it was so underrated. She has so much to offer music.
Post a Comment