We understand the code, you know? Little things like, 'What does he know about rock and roll?' And I’d always say, 'A whole lot more than you know about R&B!' | | | | Wiley in Birmingham, England, Aug. 31, 2013. "Godfather III" is out today on CTA Records.
(Ollie Millington/Redferns/Getty Images) | | | | | | “We understand the code, you know? Little things like, 'What does he know about rock and roll?' And I’d always say, 'A whole lot more than you know about R&B!'”
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| | rantnrave:// It's FRIDAY and for the third time since March BANDCAMP is waiving its revenue share on all sales today. Here, with a hat tip to DJ TECHTOOLS, is a spreadsheet of 1,000-plus black artists and producers whose work you might consider buying in honor of AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSIC APPRECIATION MONTH, in acknowledgment that BLACK LIVES MATTER, in memory of GEORGE FLOYD, and in the service of simply acquiring good music and supporting worthy artists. The Bandcamp promotion has been one of the great grassroots music successes since the world started collapsing this winter, with the site doing a record $4.3 million in business on March 20 and topping that with a phenomenal $7.1 million on May 1. Those millions go entirely to artists and labels. The experimental New York duo 75 DOLLAR BILL, for example, released a live album on Bandcamp on May 1 and made $4,200 in two days. "We *might* make $100 a year from streaming," guitarist CHE CHEN tells PITCHFORK. The FUTURE OF MUSIC COALITION has a good TWITTER thread explaining how Bandcamp is making this work both for itself and its community of artists. Key points: A "niche-oriented" business model, a decision to do only one round of VC funding and "a commitment to iteratively asking artists what they need," in contrast to competitors who try to sitesplain to artists what they need. But take 5 minutes and read the whole thread. Educational and inspirational. And then start spending money, if you can... Giving back: As part of a $2 million charitable spending spree, KANYE WEST has set up a college fund for George Floyd's 6-year-old daughter, GIANNA, and pledged to cover legal costs for AHMAUD ARBERY's and BREONNA TAYLOR's families... JAY-Z sent his private jet to bring Arbery's lawyers to a hearing in Brunswick, Ga., on Thursday... Teaming with the fashion collective BRAIN DEAD, BLOOD ORANGE's DEV HYNES helped raise $500,000 for the MOVEMENT FOR BLACK LIVES and the LGBTQ FREEDOM FUND with a limited edition t-shirt... UNIVERSAL MUSIC has set up a $25 million fund to be invested both externally (the company named several black social justice groups) and internally... SPOTIFY has pledged to match $10 million in donations and give $1 million worth of advertising to social justice groups... In sympathy with the music business pause for reflection and action that started on BLACKOUT TUESDAY, a number of albums originally scheduled for today have been pushed back. But not all albums. RUN THE JEWELS, whose KILLER MIKE has been a powerful voice during the past week of protests, went in the other direction and rushed out RTJ4 on Wednesday, with the options to download it for free or donate to organizations affiliated with the protests. And today there's new music from WILEY (his last, he says, though he's said that before), HINDS (a message from the band), FLATBUSH ZOMBIES, SLEEPY HALLOW, DRAKEO THE RULER, WESTERMAN, RMR, ROLLING BLACKOUTS COASTAL FEVER, SONIC BOOM (first album under that name by the SPACEMEN 3 co-founder in 30 years), BAB L'BLUZ, SPORTS TEAM, KATIE MALCO, DION, SARAH JAROSZ, MT. JOY (a message from the band), NO AGE, LA PRIEST, JOE LOUIS WALKER, ARMAND HAMMER, PAUL WALL & LIL KEKE, TRICKFINGER (aka JOHN FRUSCIANTE), NICK LOWE, TRASH TALK, MUZZ, JOHN SCOFIELD, END, COVET, OHMME, SONDRE LERCHE, MOMMA and MICHAEL MCDERMOTT... RIP STEVE PRIEST and JIM GREEN. | | | - Matty Karas (@troubledoll), curator |
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| Europe owes its electronic music and club culture entirely to Black and Brown communities in the United States. It’s time to give respect to its roots. | | |
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| In 1957, Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus decided that integration—mandated three years earlier by Brown v. Board of Ed.—constituted such a state of emergency that he mobilized the National Guard to prevent nine black students from going to school. | | |
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| The first black person appointed president of a major U.S. record label talks about race in the industry, and what has and hasn’t changed. | | |
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| Drakeo the Ruler's "Thank You for Using GTL" is miraculous, hard to listen to, perhaps indefinitely challenging as fighting the Los Angeles Police State becomes trendy enough for Santa Monica. | | |
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| Although the African American presence has been part of country music from the very beginning, many black artists, songwriters, musicians and producers have established themselves solidly in the modern country music community, too - ranging from radio stars like Kane Brown, Jimmie Allen, and Darius Rucker, to collaborators such as Rhiannon Giddens, Lil Nas X and Lionel Richie. | | |
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| British artist manager Allan Siema discusses empirical data that shows non-white individuals still dominate the UK music industry workforce. | | |
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| Independent musicians detail how Bandcamp is putting money in their pocket in a more meaningful way than Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube. | | |
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| Spotify Technology SA has committed $11 million to combat racism, injustice and inequity, following calls from its employees to support the black community that has helped fuel its success. | | |
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| What is black music? To Janelle Monáe, there is no definition. You can tell in the way she moves as an artist. To New Orleans teacher-turned-rapper Dee-1, it’s steeped in his Southern roots. For Leon Thomas, black music is limitless. | | |
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| I am a relatively privileged black man working in the music industry and I have remained, on the whole, too quiet, too polite and too accepting of what I have encountered first hand. | | |
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| Killer Mike and El-P dropped their new album early--along with the option to give to antiracist causes with your purchase. | | |
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| After a tumultuous year, the godfather of grime explains his beef with Drake, Stormzy and ‘England’s golden boy’ Ed Sheeran - then announces his retirement. | | |
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| Organizers called for “a pause from business as usual.” What did that actually mean for major labels and streaming services? | | |
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| As hip-hop grew in power, it influenced those that profit off black culture to join the fight for justice. | | |
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| When Covid-19 put an end to cruises, customers went home. Crews weren’t so lucky. | | |
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| Electronic musician Marc Rebillet was scheduled to be on tour this summer. His revised the plan to tour during the pandemic: hold concerts at drive-in cinemas. His tour kicks off next week. | | |
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| The young British cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason is bursting to the forefront of a field that lacks headliners of color. | | |
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| From LL Cool J to YG, here’s how artists have responded to the latest killing of an unarmed black man at the hands of the police, continuing a decades-long struggle. | | |
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| What constitutes as true accomplice work versus feckless, performative allyship in an online-only setting? | | |
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| Tracing the fight for racial equality through black music’s rich legacy. | | |
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| | | | | Tee Grizzley ft. Queen Naija & Members of the Detroit Youth Choir |
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