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R&B (Rhythm & Business): The Political Economy of Black Music by Norman Kelley African-American Studies/Music | Trade Paperback
Click here to see a breakdown of the Big Four record company conglomerates. Click here to see the original hardcover edition. Norman Kelley joins hip-hop luminary Chuck D and others to dissect the historical plight of black artists in the recording industry--from blues to hip hop and all points between. Praise for R&B: "Hot stuff for politically and economically astute pop-music collections." --Booklist "A great primer on how poorly the music industry tends to treat its artists." --New York Press Contributors include: Chuck D, Danny Goldberg, Courtney Love, Brian Ward, Frank Kofsky, David Sanjek, Yvonne Bynoe, Charles Mann, Michael Roberts, Reebee Garofalo, Mark Anthony Neal, Richard B. Woodward, Karl Hagstrom Miller, William Phillips, Future of Music Coalition, and more. Who profits most from the spectacular success of black music? For generations, African-Americans have created and driven varied musical genres: gospel, blues, jazz, r&b, rock & roll, funk, hip hop, and others. Black musical creativity has, in fact, fueled the modern music industry. Yet, of the country's ten largest black businesses, not one is a record company. Given that hip hop music alone has generated more than a billion dollars in sales, the absence of a major black record company is disturbing. (Even Motown is now a subsidiary of the Universal Music Group.) Nonetheless, little has been written about the economic relationship between African-Americans and the music industry. Here, for the first time, is a collection of voices and perspectives that provides a nuanced investigation into this structure of stealing. In R&B, Public Enemy's Chuck D, author Norman Kelley, and other journalists and musicians combine forces to examine how black music has been developed, marketed, and distributed within the structure of American capitalism. The anthology dissects contemporary trends in the music industry, and explores how blacks have historically interacted with the business as artists, business-people, and consumers. R&B also considers how the changes and developments within the music business--from the frontier of digital technology to the consolidation of the giant music conglomerates--might affect the future roles of African-Americans in the industry. Norman Kelley is the author of The Head Negro in Charge Syndrome: The Dead End of Black Politics (Nation Books, 2004), and the Nina Halligan mystery series: Black Heat (Amistad/HarperCollins), The Big Mango (Akashic), and A Phat Death (Akashic). He lives in Brooklyn. |
