So I try to listen to the radio now. Not just turning to stations, but actually listening to music that the youth is into. Of course, every time I turn it on, I hear one of those Young Money people. I’d say more, but I find them very difficult to differentiate (which is a damning indictment of the fascination folks have with Drake).
Yesterday, I heard something that wasn’t actually one of their songs, but they were there. Twas that Usher joint “Little Freak” or whatever, with Nicki Minaj on it. Oh, where to begin…
1. Polow had BEATS. Ten years ago, when I didn’t actually know who he was, he told me that he thought only OutKast rivaled his group at the time, Jim Crow, in terms of creativity. Not sure about that, but I know that Polow can freak a sample. We’ll talk about the sample freaking in question just a little bit later.
2. Usher’s too old to be singing songs like this. But, as Aden said, he’s basically at the point where he’s singing songs about how good it is to be famous, when you know she wants you and you don’t even have to say anything that isn’t instructive. But still, he’s too old for this.
3. The people that say Nicki Minaj can’t rap are trippin.
4. That Nicki Minaj could do a verse entirely about how her affection for women, and get it played on the radio, is an interesting glimpse at society’s tolerance of homosexuality. The answer — two dudes together is gross. That’s pretty much how it goes.
Now, I list all those things before I get to the big point — there is no way in Hades that song should EVER be played on the radio.
Censorship is where this country is at its dumbest. The stupidity is that the only thing anyone seems to care about is words. Fuck, shit, ass, bitch, cunt, shooby-doo-wop. Say one, and it’s all bad. As someone that worked on live, terrestrial radio, I can tell you — hearing anything close to those words on air is like hearing a tray of dishes break. It’s that bad.
Why? Because The Man will come and shut you down for ’em, that’s why. Trust me — especially after Janet/Justin, the FCC is playing no games.
Oh, but playing a song at 2 pm imploring a woman to put her hands in your pants? Nah, that’s OK.
Huh?
You know me. I’m not outraged by much. But I heard that and instantly tried to figure out how I would be able to keep my unborn kids hip, because they sure as hell won’t be listening to the radio.
Nope. They’ll learn about the strip club the old-fashioned way — with a fake ID, their first paycheck, and with no idea of what they’re getting into. Sorry, kids, but it’s best for you.
I got to middle and high school right around the time the radio started getting extra-liberal. I feel like I’ve written this before, but my theory — NWA sold a boatload without the radio, so folks started to wonder what such music would sell with the help of music’s biggest promotional vehicle. But to do that, they had to let a lot of stuff go on the censorship. And by “a lot,” I mean “damn near everything.”
Nearly 20 years later, I wonder if they even make radio edits anymore.
Consider this –I host a show on satellite radio. I curse on occasion, but just for emphasis. I don’t shy away from adult themes, and I discuss them in an adult way. What’s the point of learning the game if I’m not going to take the world as it truly is? If drug use comes up, we talk about it. If it’s about sex, then it would be silly to act as if sex is some abstract concept, rather than something I actually know about. It is probably not the best show to listen to with your children, given that you might not want to be as frank with them as I am with you.
And there’s no way you’re going to convince me your kids have more business listening to “Little Freak” than listen to me. None.
Now how much sense does that make? People are scared to death to talk to their teenagers about the sex they’re having while everyone’s at work, but they’re getting instruction manuals from the radio.
But hey, as long as we stay away from some magic words, who cares? As long as Usher doesn’t say “dick,” who cares that your 14 year-old thinks that telling a girl to touch his tallywacker is an appropriate pickup line? And really, aren’t they better off knowing the going wholesale price for a kilogram of cocaine?
I don’t mind sexually explicit music. I’m a Prince junkie, after all. I don’t mind talking about sex. It’s the one thing we’ve all got some frame of reference on.
But what gets played now in the daytime blows me away. Remember what a big deal it was when Doggystyle came out? In 2010, “Ain’t No Fun” would be the first single.
But hey, nobody’s cussin! It’s all to the good. I’m fascinated by where people draw lines of demarcation. On this, I’m not even sure one exists. Or maybe I just can’t see it because I’m looking for something that matters.
(Oh, and riding “Living for the City” out at the end? The biggest flaw of “Little Freak.” Forget how it sounds. When the sample is so readily associated with a song and its theme, throwing it into something with no relation to it creates cognitive dissonance. If I’m talking about the sample you chose and what the hell would possess you to do so, you used the wrong sample.)