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A throwback to MC Hammer’s 1994 album ‘The Funky Headhunter’ 30 years later

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MC Hammer was something that actually needed to be experienced in real time. It’s hard to explain to young individuals who have not heard of him, but MC Hammer (born Stanley Burrell) in Oakland, California was truly crucial thing in hip-hop within the late Nineteen Eighties. He wasn’t as big as Michael Jackson – who was? — but tell me, Bobby Brown? Bright. Bobby Brown was HUGE within the late 80’s, but you realize who had a Saturday morning cartoon on a significant network? MC hammer. “Blacksmith” it might not have been successful, however it existed.

You know what else was huge back then? Especially The Simpsons and Bart Simpson. It was common to see people wearing Bart Simpson T-shirts and doing all the things from skateboarding to dressing like Michael Jackson. Remember that Bart Simpson T-shirt I had? I had the one where Bart Simpson was saying “U Can’t Touch This,” the hook from MC Hammer’s most ubiquitous song, “U Can’t Touch This.” Everyone from 1990 to the fucking mid-90s said, “You can’t touch that” as a joke and a nod to MC Hammer. How big of a deal was MC Hammer back then? His Nineteen Nineties album Please Hammer Don’t Hurt ‘Em is continues to be considered one of the best-selling albums within the history of hip-hop.

I mean, MC Hammer was a thing. In 1990, when Please Hammer Don’t Hurt ‘Em was released, I used to be 11 years old, and well, anything exciting was completely fascinating to an 11-year-old. Plus he rapped, danced and looked great. I had Hammer pants because all of us wore them. When he released his 1991 album “2 Legit 2 Quit” (he also dropped the “MC” from his nickname), he was still the good guy on the planet. Although it wasn’t as popular because the previous album, “2 Legit…” spawned the only “2 Legit 2 Quit” and made everyone try this funny hand motion. Although Hammer was an excellent street dude whose street cred ran very deep in every circle, his musical management aimed to each raise popularity and sell records at the identical time, and he was very, very successful in doing so.

And then all the things modified. In December 1992, Dr. Dre released the album “The Chronic” which modified, well, all the things in hip-hop. Dre. Dre and Death Row Records moved the middle of the hip-hop universe from New York to Los Angeles, and the sound modified music and the music business for the following 4 years. Although Hammer was a household name within the pop world, hip-hop had modified, and the identical cool Hammer represented by Hammer faded because the gangsta rap version of Dr. Dre – the follow-up to NWA and Ice Cube’s West Coast hip-hop brand – gained a national following. It didn’t help that Hammer took several years off to pursue such business development groups Oaktown 3.5.7. So when Hammer decided to release an album in 1994, he checked out the musical landscape and decided to go along to get along. This decision resulted in the discharge of the album “The Funky Headhunter” on March 1, 1994, which sounded way more influenced by Dr.’s g-funk sound. Dre than Hammer ever thought he could be. The only caveat is that Hammer was no stranger to Death Row (he eventually signed a contract with the label briefly on the behest of his good friend Tupac). Hammer was friends with Suge Knight for a lot of years before Death Row was founded. But Hammer’s sound and approach were nothing like Death Row’s sound or approach. Hammer’s sound was more unified, faster and uplifting.

Sure, Hammer all the time talked about rappers not wanting to see any a part of his success, but Hammer was pop through and thru. And that wasn’t a nasty thing; Hammer was hip-hop the entire family could listen to. Until he wasn’t and wasn’t at the identical time.

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“The Funky Headhunter” is not a excellent album. The beats are okay, but all of them feel like they’re missing something and kind of highlight Hammer’s limitations as a rapper; when the beat is danceable and Hammer gives you an anthem to recite, you do not really care concerning the remainder of the lyrics. When this is not the case, the songs don’t sound nearly as good. Besides, the irritated Hammer felt…uncomfortable. Throughout the album it felt like he was trying too hard to be (which can prove to be accurate) someone aside from the Hammer all of us knew and loved. Perhaps it would not matter; when “The Funky Headhunter” was released, I used to be 15 years old and completely entrenched within the West Coast sound and aesthetic. If it didn’t sound “real”, I didn’t entertain it, irrespective of what coast it got here from, especially if it got here from the West. And Hammer, due to his previous work, didn’t come across as a man who rapped over beats and talked about what he was talking about. It just seemed forced.

And then there it was “Pumps and the tumor”. Hammer’s first single from the album (looking back, it is also the very best album on the album) was accompanied by a music video featuring Hammer in a leopard-print speedo and girls in bikinis from a time when it was scandalous and sexually suggestive, a far cry from anything that ever heard. Video screenings even banned the unique video due to Hammer in its speedometer, which forced the rapper to reshoot a “purer” version of the film. I like this song more now than I did then, although I’ll admit that without the music video to develop into a talking point, I feel the song would just be one other head-scratching song on an already head-scratching album. At least “Pumps and a Bump,” an ode to butts and good footwear, was entertaining.

I feel most individuals were a bit confused about Hammer’s purpose with this album – why would a rapper known for making music that included songs like “Pray,” “Do Not Pass Me By” and “Have You Seen Her?” start trying to sound like a Death Row rapper? Kurupt and Daz Tha Dogg Pounda it even appeared on the album. Fifteen-year-old me was confused and located it easy to move on from Hammer, especially when Snoop Dogg, Tupac, and Warren G. were available.

Looking back, the album wasn’t even terrible, not by 1994 standards. It’s not great, and I’m sure even Hammer would have done some things in another way, but the way in which it modified all the narrative about Hammer and made him almost obsolete seems a bit unfair. However, music consumers are fickle, and there have been few artists whose sonic and aesthetic changes have been well received by fans. Hammer scored one other 180 with 1995’s Inside Out, which took him back to the sound all of us knew and had more gospel-sounding records.

But by then, Hammer’s experiment was largely over. He was more famous for his financial problems; Hammer amassed an enormous fortune estimated at over $30 million a 12 months, but he had to declare bankruptcy in 1996 due to huge debt to tons of of debtors.

At this point, most individuals who remember Hammer reduce much of his rap profession to some joke, but that is completely unfair. With the exception of essentially the most ardent hip-hop purists and rappers, the remaining of us loved Hammer and apparently all of us got his albums and songs. As with lots of our breakout artists of the Nineteen Nineties and 2000s whose downfalls were public and swift, the punchlines overtook the absolutely cometary nature of their music and profession. Let me inform you what, while The Funky Headhunter is not an album I return to often, all of Hammer’s best hits are filled with culinary snacks, which is a legacy in itself.

And we’ll all the time have Pumps and Bumps that can endlessly be too legitimate to quit.



This article was originally published on : thegrio.com
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Beyoncé will perform at halftime of an NFL game during the holiday game day

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Beyoncé has yet one more trick up her sleeve for the holiday season. This week, the star announced that he will perform in his hometown of Houston at an NFL game on Christmas Day. During the Houston Texans vs. Baltimore Ravens game, Beyoncé will appear at halftime, where she will reportedly perform songs from her country-themed album “Cowboy Carter.”

Beyoncé is already aware of high-energy NFL halftime shows, having showcased her talents in two Super Bowl appearances. As the headliner of Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans in 2013, she reunited with fellow Destiny’s Child members Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams for a performance that became the second most-watched Super Bowl halftime performance in history. At Super Bowl XV in 2016, the megastar joined headliners Coldplay together with special guest Bruno Mars, where she performed her hit “Formation,” which garnered 115.5 million views.

The star’s upcoming performance, produced by Parkwood Entertainment and Jesse Collins Entertainment, will be her first live performance of songs from her Grammy-nominated album “Cowboy Carter.” While there aren’t many details about the show, the streaming platform says fans can expect special guests to look alongside the award-winning artist.

In May, Netflix announced a landmark cope with the NFL, providing streaming rights to the sports league’s games on Christmas Day. Similarly, in 2019, the streaming platform signed a $60 million cope with Beyoncé, through which the two entertainment giants partnered to provide three projects.

Beyoncé shared the news about her upcoming NFL gig Instagramfeaturing a brief clip of him catching a football while standing on top of a automotive covered in red roses, equipped with horns. The show will be available to Netflix’s 283 million subscribers worldwide.

Beyoncé has signed a three-project deal with Netflix for a reported $60 million


This article was originally published on : thegrio.com
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NWA, Janet Jackson and George Clinton receive Songwriters Hall of Fame nominations

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Janet Jackson, Songwriters Hall of Fame nomination, theGrio.com

NEW YORK (AP) – Eminem, Boy George, George Clinton, Sheryl Wrona, Janet Jackson, Doobie Brothers, NWA and Alanis Morissette are among the many nominees within the competition’s 2025 category Songwriters Hall of Fame, an eclectic group of rap, rock, hip-hop and pop pioneers.

Bryan Adams joins them with such radio hits as “Summer of ’69” and “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?” and Mike Love of the Beach Boys, who hopes to get in 25 years after band founder Brian Wilson. David Gates, co-leader of the pop group Bread, can be applying for admission.

Each yr, each performers and non-performers are invited to the Hall, and this yr’s category of the latter includes Walter Afanasieff, who helped Mariah Carey together with his hit “All I Want for Christmas Is You”; Mike Chapman, co-writer of Pat Benatar’s “Love Is a Battlefield”; and Narada Michael Walden, architect of Whitney Houston’s “How Will I Know” and Aretha Franklin’s “Freeway of Love.”

Eligible voting members have until December 22 to solid ballots to pick three nominees within the lyricist category and three within the performance songwriter category. The Associated Press obtained an early copy of the list.

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Several acts have one other probability to make an entry, including Clinton, whose Parliament-Funkadelic collective made a big impact with hits like “Atomic Dog” and “Give Up the Funk,” and The Doobie Brothers — Tom Johnston, Patrick Simmons and Michael McDonald — with classics like “Listen to the Music” and “Long Train Runnin.” Steve Winwood, whose hits include “Higher Love” and “Roll With It”, also participated within the voting earlier.

Hip-hop this yr is represented by Eminem – whose hits include “Lose Yourself” and “Stan” – and NWA members Dr. Dre, Eazy E, Ice Cube, MC Ren and DJ Yella. Hip-hop stars similar to Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg and Missy Elliot are already within the Hall. Tommy James, with hits like “Mony Mony,” “Crimson and Clover” and “I Think We’re Alone Now,” also earned a nod.

If Jackson, whose 1989 album “Rhythm Nation” was a breakthrough, gets into the Hall, it’ll be greater than 20 years after her late brother Michael. Canadian songwriter Morissette, whose influential song “Jagged Little Pill” won Grammy, Tony, Junos and MTV awards, would also join the ladies of rock within the Hall. (Glen Ballard, who helped produce and write the album, is already present.)

Like Crow, the “All I Wanna Do” and “Everyday Is a Winding Road” singer-songwriter is experiencing a renaissance after being introduced to the band Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2023. Boy George raises the flag for ’80s New Wave with Culture Club’s hits “Karma Chameleon” and “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me.”

Other nominees within the unperformed category include Franne Golde, co-writer of Selena’s “Dreaming of You”; Tom Douglas, who wrote country hits for Tim McGraw, Lady Antebellum and Miranda Lambert; Ashley Gorley, fresh off her co-written hit “I Had Some Help” with Post Malone and Morgan Wallen; and Roger Nichols, who co-wrote The Carpenters’ “We Only Just Begun.”

They join Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, who contributed to Brandy and Monica’s hit “The Boy Is Mine”; Sonny Curtis, former member of The Crickets, who wrote and performed the theme song to “The Mary Tyler Moore Show”, “Love is All Around”, and British composer Tony Macaulay, who wrote “Build Me Up Buttercup”.

The Songwriters Hall of Fame was established in 1969 to honor creators of popular music. A songwriter with a big catalog of songs is eligible for induction 20 years after the song’s first business release.

Some already in attendance include Carole King, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora, Elton John and Bernie Taupin, Brian Wilson, James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Lionel Richie, Bill Withers, Neil Diamond and Phil Collins. Last yr we saw REM, Steely Dan, Dean Pitchford, Hillary Lindsey and Timbaland introduced.

This article was originally published on : thegrio.com
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Beyoncé leads 2025 Grammy nominations, becoming the most nominated artist in the show’s history

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NEW YORK (AP) — Welcome to Beyonce country. When it involves Grammy Award 2025 nominations, “Cowboy Carter” rules the nation. She leads the rankings with 11 nominations, bringing her profession total to 99. This makes her the most nominated artist in Grammy history.

“Cowboy Carter” is up for album and country album of the yr, and “Texas Hold ‘Em” is nominated for record, song and country song of the yr. She also received nominations in multiple genres, including pop, country, Americana and melodic rap.

This is her first time receiving nominations in the country and the Americana category.

If Beyoncé wins album of the yr, she’s going to turn out to be the first black woman in the twenty first century. Lauryn Hill last won in 1999 for “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill,” joining Natalie Cole and Whitney Houston as the only black women to win a significant Grammy award.

Post Malone also received his first-ever nominations in the country categories this yr, releasing his debut country album “F-1 trillion”in August. The song is nominated for Best Country Album, and “I Had Some Help,” a collaboration with Morgan Wallen, is nominated for Country Song and Country Duo/Group Performance. This is Wallen’s first-ever Grammy nomination.

Malone is just behind Beyoncé with seven nominations, together with Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar and Charli XCX, who earned her first nominations as a solo artist.

Lamar the ubiquitous diss track released during his feud with Drake, “Not Like Us” is nominated in the categories of album and song of the yr, rap song, music video and best rap performance. In the latter category, he had two simultaneous entries, which is a primary for his profession: Future & Metro Boomin featuring Lamar. “Like That” is nominated for best rap performance and best rap song.

This is his third time receiving two simultaneous nominations for best rap song.

Taylor Swift and first-time nominee Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan each can boast six nominations.

Last yr, female artists dominated essential categories. This yr the situation continues, but the essential trend appears to be species diversity. In the album of the yr category, together with “Cowboy Carter” were latest age André 3000, alt-jazz “New Blue Sun” and “Djesse Vol.” multi-instrumentalist Jacob Collier. 4.” Rising pop stars Carpenter and Roan round out the album with “Short n’ Sweet” and “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess,” respectively, in addition to Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department,” Eilish’s “Hit Me Hard and Soft” and “Hit Me Hard” and Soft” by Eilish. and Charlie XCX ready for the rave “BROTHER”.

Eilish is the only artist whose first three albums have been nominated for Album of the Year.

Last yr Fast won Album of the Year for “Midnights”, breaking the record for most wins in this category (4). This yr, she becomes the first woman in history to earn seven nominations in this category.

“The breadth and diversity of genres represented in the overall field feels new and truly exciting,” says Recording Academy CEO and President Harvey Mason Jr. a developing electoral body for his success. “We were very conscious about our membership and tried to balance it. So not just gender or people of color, different races, but also genre equality and trying to make sure all types of music from different regions and locations are represented in every way possible.”

Only recordings commercially released in the U.S. between September 16, 2023 and August 30, 2024 were eligible for nomination. The final round of Grammy voting to find out the winners will happen from December 12 to January 3.

In the best latest artist category, Carpenter and Roan will go head-to-head, alongside Benson Boone, Doechia, Khruangbin, RAYE, Shaboozey and Teddy Swims.

Beyoncé was joined in the song of the yr category by Eilish for “Birds of a Feather,” Swift and Post Malone for “Fortnight,” “Good Luck, Babe!” Roan, “Please Please Please” by Carpenter, “Not Like” by Lamar Us,” “Die With A Smile” by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars, and “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” by Shaboozey.

Shaboozey she can also be a first-time nominee. His “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” is the biggest song of the yr, spending more weeks at primary on the Billboard Hot 100 than some other – it is so popular that a remix of the song can also be up for a remix recording.

Additionally, Shaboozey is nominated in the Melodic Rap Performance category for his feature on Beyoncé’s “SPAGHETTIA.” The song also features Linda Martell, the country’s first black musician to realize business success and likewise earned the 83-year-old artist her first Grammy nomination.

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In the Record of the Year category, “Texas Hold ‘Em” will compete with Swift and Post Malone’s “Fortnight,” Eilish’s “Birds of a Father,” Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” and “Good Luck, Babe!” Roan, Carpenter’s “Espresso.” “, “360” by Charli XCX and the last latest Beatles song, powered by artificial intelligence “Now and Then”.

“We strive to keep up with how music creators and our community use technology. In this case, the AI ​​corrected that record and allowed him to qualify in the categories in which he qualified,” Mason Jr. explains.

So what’s missing? Like last yr, there is a big dearth of Latin music – fastest growing streaming genre in the United States – overall and without representation in major categories. There are only 4 entries in the Best Música Mexicana Album category, although it is usually one in every of them the fastest growing species.

There doesn’t appear to be any K-pop either. There aren’t any nominations for BTS members who released solo material this yr: RM’s “Right Place, Wrong Person” J-Hope’s “Hope on the Street” Vol. 1” and “Muse” by Jimin. As a boy band, BTS has received five nominations in their profession.

“I definitely see room for improvement in many genres and we continue to invite people to be a part of the academy” – Mason Jr. says. “Without proper representation, we will not get the right results. When I say “appropriate”, I mean reflective and representative of what’s going on in music today. So the work continues.”

The 2025 Grammy Awards will air on February 2 survive CBS and Paramount+ from the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

This article was originally published on : thegrio.com
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