Shot Of Rhythm

[ Monday, February 09, 2004 ]

 

Rock the vote

Thoughts on the Grammys:

-Coldplay winning Record Of The Year indicates that, since the other four nominees were hip-hop/R&B, the rock vote (perhaps in cahoots with the more generally establishment wings of the RIAA) went solid for the rock choise. As nice a song as "Clocks" is, and as much as I respect what Coldplay does, it's a sad commentary - in the year when "Hey Ya," "Lose Yourself" and "Work It" were all nominated - that hip-hop still represents such anathema to a large sector of the Grammy voting public. Even OutKast winning album of the year doesn't quite make up for the realities of how segmented (both racially and generationally) the Grammys are, even as they do their best to convince us otherwise.
-Justin Timberlake agreed to apologize for the Super Bowl nipple incident, whereas Janet Jackson did not, therefore JT got to go to the Grammys while Janet (Ms. Jackson if you're nasty) was not invited. At least that's the story. The whole thing - not just this specific consequence, but the larger media uproar in general - smacks so much to me of America's continuing racial/sexual double standard that it can't help but make me uncomfortable. To recap: a white man, whose position in the actual number was that of the sexual aggressor, has been spared most of the fall-out from the incident, while the black woman (whose strong expressions of sexuality have defined her for years) is immediately excoriated, accused of bringing down morals and reaching new lows in bad taste. Methinks I smell a rat...For those who may doubt this suggestion, think of it in these terms: If it had been reversed, and a black man had torn the clothes off a white woman, would the woman still be the target of all the heat? Would the man have been allowed on national television just a week later, apology or no apology? I doubt it.
-Prince/Beyonce, The Beatles tribute, the funk medley and OutKast (both performances) made the evening. His Royal Badness was particularly outstanding, making me hope that we'll see more from him in the future.

On the box right now: Twista, KAMIKAZE.

Peace...

Dove With Claws [6:58 PM]