Being an artist nowadays is being this false version of perfection that we promote through Instagram, through our socials. It’s like 'Wizard of Oz.' They’re behind the f***ing screen falling apart, trying to keep up this image. And people need to take down the sheet because it’s unsustainable. Open in browser Thursday October 20, 2022 PnB Rock in Los Angeles, May 22, 2019. (Scott Dudelson/Getty Images) quote of the day “Being an artist nowadays is being this false version of perfection that we promote through Instagram, through our socials. It’s like 'Wizard of Oz.' They’re behind the f***ing screen falling apart, trying to keep up this image. And people need to take down the sheet because it’s unsustainable.” - Santigold rantnrave:// Bad News The murders of three rappers in Los Angeles County in the past month, including the shocking killing of PNB ROCK while he was eating lunch with his girlfriend at Roscoe’s House of Chicken & Waffles, has put a national spotlight on a tragic, ongoing story that’s normally limited to the news feeds of hip-hop blogs and the inside pages of local newspapers. These are thoughtful, important stories from AUGUST BROWN and KENAN DRAUGHORNE in the LA Times, CHAR ADAMS at NBC News and TOURÉ writing for TheGrio. They each, in different ways, chart a story that has shook the hip-hop community but isn’t strictly about hip-hop, and that shouldn’t be blamed on the music. They’re also incomplete stories. The shooting of PnB Rock was seen by the media, and by the wider music community, in a way that the murders of BFG STRAAP and LOTTA CASH DESTO, both in Texas, and YOUNG SLO-BE, in Northern California, all around the same time, were not. In all, by my count, at least 23 rappers have been murdered in the US so far in 2022 (it isn’t an anomaly; I’m aware of 29 in 2021). These are their names: 23 RACKZ (from Maryland) 414 LIL MOE (Milwaukee) BABY CINO (Miami) ROLLIE BANDS (Tampa) BFG STRAAP (Dallas) JOHNNY MAY CASH (Chicago) C-HII WVTTZ (the Bronx) ARCHIE EVERSOLE (Atlanta) FBG CASH (Chicago) GOONEW (Maryland) HALF OUNCE (Inglewood, Calif.) JAYDAYOUNGAN (Louisiana) KEE RICHES (Los Angeles) LOTTA CASH DESTO (Memphis) MONEYGANGVONTAE (Los Angeles) PNB ROCK (Philadelphia originally) SNOOTIE WILD (Memphis) EARL SWAVEY (Los Angeles) TDOTT WOO (Brooklyn) TROUBLE (Atlanta) TRUEBLEEDA (Baton Rouge) WAVY NAVY POOH (Miami) YOUNG SLO-BE (Stockton, Calif.) It would be doubly tragic if these men—they’re all men—were to remain invisible. They should be remembered and their stories should be told. The stories may connect and overlap, and they may not. They were West Coasters, Southerners, Midwesterners, Northerners. Some were young, up-and-coming artists; some were older, maybe having found some tangible success, maybe not. There are questions that don’t yet have answers and communities that don’t yet have resolution. There are questions that haven’t even been asked. There’s gun culture and gang culture, sometimes reflected in the victims’ music and sometimes not. There’s poverty and hopelessness and ambition and hopefulness, which you can definitely find in the music. There are people who were in the wrong place at the wrong time, both literally and figuratively. “The death rate in hip-hop,” writes Touré, who connects the murders to other hip-hop deaths from natural causes, “doesn’t mean something is wrong with hip-hop. It’s an extension of the problems all Black people go through.” Much of which, of course, can be heard in hip-hop itself. As University of Virginia hip-hop professor A.D. CARSON wrote earlier this year, “the music emerging from these places is a reflection of crisis, not the source of it.” And these are 23 particular victims of a crisis, each of whom deserves to be counted. Rest in Peace Canadian violinist GEOFF NUTTALL, who co-founded the acclaimed St. Lawrence String Quartet, taught at Stanford and directed the chamber music series at the Spoleto Festival, where he earned the sobriquet “The Jon Stewart of Chamber Music.” - Matty Karas (@troubledoll), curator ready to die Pitchfork The Global Music Vault Wants to Safeguard the World’s Songs--But Who Decides What’s Preserved? By Madison Bloom The project aims to store music on pieces of glass that are housed inside a mountain deep into the Arctic Circle, protecting it for future generations. Rolling Stone He Gave Hip-Hop a Voice at the Grammys Before Being Fired. Ten Years Later, He’s Ready to Talk By Jonathan Bernstein Alan Foster helped a criticized Recording Academy recognize hip-hop and R&B. But his refusal to let Grammy management interfere with the nomination process, he says, led to his dismissal. The New York Times A New Taylor Swift LP? Metacritic Crunches the Reviews, as Fans Watch By Emma Madden As pop fandoms go to battle on social media wielding data about their favorite stars, Metascores averaging critical opinions have become ammunition, much to the site’s chagrin. The Conversation When all else fails to explain American violence, blame a rapper and hip-hop music By A.D. Carson The day after the May 24, 2022, mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson promptly blamed the violence on rap music and video games. "Kids are exposed to all kinds of horrible stuff nowadays," the Texas Republican told Fox News on May 25, 2022. Variety Primary Wave Music Founder Larry Mestel on the Booming Song-Catalog Market, and How He Plans to Spend $2 Billion By Jem Aswad Primary Wave has acquired catalogs from Bob Marley, Whitney Houston, James Brown, Stevie Nicks, Ray Charles, Hall & Oates, Bing Crosby, the Ramones, and dozens more. And they're as much a marketing company as a music publishing company — buying older catalogs with a proven track record and putting them to work in every way they can think of. Entrepreneur Inside Fender's Plan to Rock the Guitar Industry With New Hits and Classics By Mike Errico CEO of Fender Musical Instruments Andy Mooney is placing bets on new avenues and repeat performances for an iconic American brand. I Care If You Listen After 40 Years of New Sounds, John Schaefer is Still Actively Listening By Vanessa Ague Schaefer says his WNYC show, New Sounds, "is for people who suspect there’s more out there than what they know, and that bothers them. They don’t need to like it, but they at least want to know what it is.” NPR Fat Joe on witnessing the birth of hip hop, and how he stays in the game By Jay Williams and Fat Joe Growing up in the Bronx, Fat Joe witnessed the birth of hip hop, then made hip hop history himself. Over three decades in the game, he's put out 13 albums, started his own record label, and mentored other great MCs like the late Big Pun. God Is In The TV A Raft Of Cancellations Show A Broken Touring Industry That's Linked To Deeper #BrokenRecord Crisis And Why It Needs To Change! By Bill Cummings As artists rushed back on the road post lockdown, they found a confluence of factors that have pushed the touring industry to breaking point. The New York Times A Cutting-Edge Music Festival in Uganda Keeps the Beat By Tom Faber Despite being called “immoral” by some politicians, this year’s Nyege Nyege festival celebrated diversity and innovation in contemporary African music. life after death Penny Fractions How Digital Piracy Shaped Modern Music (Part 2) By David Turner Before picking up the story of piracy where we left Myspace and YouTube, we need to go back to a law passed during Bill Clinton's administration.   Music Tech Solutions Streaming Remuneration: An answer to global cultural dominance by European/US Streaming Services By Chris Castle Because streaming playlists are an equivalent to broadcast radio, there is a question as to whether governments should regulate streaming services operating in their countries to require local content rules. Implementing such rules could benefit local performers and songwriters in an otherwise unsustainable environment. The Cut Carly Rae Jepsen Has a Cynical Side By Danielle Cohen But she’s still optimistic about love. Billboard How Dembow Evolved into the Hottest Thing in Latin Urban Music By Neena Rouhani Billboard explores the evolution of dembow by way of some of its most iconic musical moments from artists like Pablo Piddy, El Alfa, Chimbala and Tokischa. NPR Enrollment in Korean classes has shot up. Thank K-pop By Ashley Ahn College student enrollment in language classes has plateaued in recent years, but enrollment in Korean language classes rose 78% from 2009 to 2016. Pollstar Q's With EqualizeHer Co-Founders Linda Perry & Alisha Ballard On Empowering Women Throughout The Music Biz By Sarah Pittman "I’m an engineer, I’m a producer, I know what I’m doing. I know what all those gadgets do in the studio. I had to teach myself because the guys that I would work with didn’t want to give me the information." The Conversation We studied the 'bibles' of jazz standards -- and found sexism lurking in the strangest place By Wendy Hargreaves and Melissa Forbes When the Real Book and the New Real Book were being developed, the editors chose keys that suited male voices. And The Writer Is... And The Writer Is...Take A Daytrip By Ross Golan and Take a Daytrip Denzel Baptiste and David Biral became friends during the first week of freshman year at NYU in 2011, bonding over music and genre collisions. As Take A Daytrip, they’re musical omnivores who do their best to inhabit the world of the sound they’re working on, from afrobeats to grime, latin trap to garage, country to pop. Hollywood Reporter Activist Group Asks Justice Dept. to Unwind Live Nation and Ticketmaster Merger By Winston Cho The 2010 merger has been subject to scrutiny for allegedly leading to higher ticket prices and claims that Live Nation Entertainment is abusing its market power over venues and artists. The Walrus Groupies Deserve More Credit By Lisa Levy Superfans contribute just as much to culture as the male musicians they love. Why haven’t they had the shine they deserve? what we're into Music of the day “Cerulean” Dawn Richard and Spencer Zahn From "Pigments," out Friday on Merge. Yet another astonishing left turn from New Orleans singer/songwriter Dawn Richard, late (very) of Danity Kane and Diddy Dirty Money, in collaboration with New York bassist Spencer Zahn. Music | Media SUBSCRIBE Suggest a link “REDEF is dedicated to my mother, who nurtured and encouraged my interest in everything and slightly regrets the day she taught me to always ask ‘why?’” Jason Hirschhorn CEO & Chief Curator HOME | ABOUT | SETS | PRESS Redef Group Inc. LA - NY - Everywhere Copyright ©2021 UNSUBSCRIBE or MANAGE MY SUBSCRIPTION