Today I'd like to speak on the difference between doing what you want to as an artist and doing what you must as a businessman. Desire and necessity are two things that everyone, no matter their profession must struggle with. However, for a musician, it often seems much harder to bring these two factors to an equilibrium. Many times, for true artists, this effort to balance out one's money and one's morals leads only to frustration. That frustration came to a head this week as Phonte, of the N.C. trio Little Brother, vented about his experience on their new tour.
If your an LB fan you may be asking yourself a few questions right about now.....LB is on Tour? Where? How can I get tickets?
Allow me to rest your troubled mind. YOU'RE NOT MISSING OUT ON ANYTHING. This tour that I speak of is not an LB show, it's barely a show at all if you ask me. EXCUSE ME, THATS JUST THE BACKPACKER TALKING. But since you're so intersted let me give you the line up, COMING TO THE STAGE WE HAVE!!!!! Rick Ross, Young Jeezy, Three Six Mafia(I actually like them, been a fan since forever),Dem Franchise Boys, and.....who am I forgetting? Oh! The star of the show Yung Joc!
Now if your an LB fan you could only be asking yourself one question right about now.....Why in the hell is LB on the PimpTrickGangstaClik Tour? The answer....Desire and Necessity. Needless to say, LB was doomed from the start. Eventhough their dates are in N.C., LB performs last and the fans there who came to get their "trap on" can only muster up enough repspect not to boo them off stage. In his own industry scathing blog entry, even Phonte himself admitted the performances so far have been laughable. And after laughing about it onstage Phonte goes to his blog to vent. He covers; the fans, the industry, BET, and a myriad of other topics. Unfortunately the only substance readers pick up from it is that "Phonte thinks fans are stupid". Now, because of masses of people misinterpereting one sentence, he serves as fodder for conversation such as; "phonte should quit whining", "the minstrel show sucked anyway", Phonte is a hater" etc...
But I urge those who don't understand Phonte's anger and his unwillingness to blame himself or his music for his inability to go platinum to put yourself in his shoes. Imagine, being the best rapper in the state of North Carolina (and probably alotta other states too) hands down. Coming to your homestate to perform and getting NO LOVE, ZERO, NADA, NOTHING, CRICKETS. How would you feel? You know you make good music, you know you have alot of fans, you have people you've looked up to your whole life cosigning your abilities and a group of misguided teenagers who wish they could be drug dealers but can't stay out past 10:00 without their mothers permission refuse to even give your music a chance. I personally cannot blame him for coming to the conclusion that these kids might be a few stuffed burritos short of a fourth meal.
So...To break it down let me take it back to desire and necessity. Phonte, as an artist, desires many things; to inform, to educate, to entertain, to creatively express himself and have others respect and validate his views. However, as a businessman and provider for his family he desires many things; to live comfortably, to send his son to college, to see his friends and family live comfortably, basically to have enough money not to have to worry about anything. In a profession in which your paycheck is totally dependent on who you are and how your art reflects who you are, why must an artist do things out of character in order to get the necessities in life. Why must there be this vast inequality between what Phonte desires and what Phonte needs? Easy answer the fans are stupid and he has to be someone he's not to impress them. More complicated answer the fans have been brainwashed by people who have more money. Solution, I'll get onstage with the people who the fans have been brainwashed to like and I'll sneak my art in there and maybe they will like it and by my album in addition to Yung Joc's. NICE IDEA ON PAPER BUT, NO DICE. Not only do you compromize your beliefs for nothing, you force feed your music to trapkids and they hate you for it, backpackers who don't understand industry politics hate you for being a "sell out", and to support your family you have to be humiliated in the place you call home.
And thats the dillemma. Now more than ever rappers are becoming a disposable commodity. So just be your unique self and do the unique things you do because the fans you really want are the fans you already have. And more importantly YOU CAN'T BRAINWASH PEOPLE WITH THE TRUTH. Since your not lying in your rhymes, paying for a million spins and paying for the #1 spot on trl isn't gonna get you more album sales. Believe it or not real music is still popularized by word of mouth. I have lost count of how many people I've turned on to LB's music and Im sure the rest of your fans have too. So if you fufill your desire of being true to yourself, you may have to settle for the 5 bedroom instead of the 7 and you'll have to work with the used S 500 instead of the new one off the lot but you'll be alot happier. AND YOU WON'T HAVE TO JUSTIFY WHAT YOU SAY ON YOUR BLOG EITHER.
***The Backpacker Steps Off the Soapbox****
AND JUST FOR READING HERE'S A NEW TRACK FROM LB
Little Brother ft. Carlitta- Life of the Party
http://www.sendspace.com/file/hvzkjd
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