Thursday, January 24, 2008

The Soulja Boy Truth

Alright.

It is now time for me to vent, and let off some much needed steam. SOULJA BOY, SOULJA BOY, SOULJA BOY... I will make this as painless as possible...

You see kids our friend Soulja Boy is nothing more than a symbol. This symbol is a representation of the music industry and it's current state of being. If I were to choose my three best statements to describe the music industry in 2008 they would be:
  1. Over Saturated
  2. Convenience Over Quality
  3. Quick Cash
Soulja Boy's success is a perfect example of targeting an over saturated market with an artist and image that encourages buyers to not think, just buy the record and join the party. He is a prime example of how the industry is desperately seeking any way to boost retail (CD, Merchandise, etc) sales while completely exploiting the new Web 2.0 world (youtube, myspace, blogger) just to make a quick buck. If that kid only knew how much money other people are making off of him, and how quick he will be disposed of when the hype is dead. But he is a naive child with a real life rags-to-riches story behind him, and the industry loves to prey on young, ambitious, semi-talented artists within this niche.

He has no clue that they own his house and his cars, and that the chain around his neck was purchased from his advance money (which is probably recoupable), and the best thing about it is that even if he knew this, he probably wouldn't care. All he knows is at this moment in time he is the shit, and he is going to enjoy the ride while he can.

His fan base is comprised of 11 year old kids from lower class America, with parents too busy to care what their kids listen to. When I was 11 my uncle sat me down and introduced me to vinyl; The Beatles, The Doors, James Brown, Quincy Jones. These were all artists whom I respected because my family made it a point to educated me on music, and why I should listen to the words and interpret the meaning for myself.

Modern day rap/urban music is similar to internet marketing. Artists/producers write songs based on keywords. They know for a fact that these 10 specific keywords will strike recognition with the market, and in turn generate a buzz which will convert to sales. It's all about one and two word catch phrases i.e. Crank That. These catch phrases resonate throughout the lower class communities with serious force. Now if you can attach something physical to that catch phrase, then your odds are even better. You have a catch phrase and a dance. TIME FOR THE BIG MONEY!

Anyways, I guess my point is that Soulja Boy can't make beats. His tracks are one dimensional, thoughtless, and ignorant. They promote stupidity as being cool, and even more they promote the ability to look dumb, sound dumb, and act dumb, while still selling records. It fucking blows my mind when I think about it. The parents of the kids who listen to Soulja Boy are just shy of being mentally challenged. They are letting some brainwashed, hand-in-ass-puppet of an artist guide their children through the world of music, and to be honest, I hate every single one of them, child and parent, for supporting the exploitation of something that is meant to be original, unique, and from the heart. Music would be in a much better state without them.

Respect,

MrBlue
www.myspace.com/basementtheory

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