What is Urban Music?
Urban music covers a wide range of music, which is why it appeals to so many people. It is an evolving genre but at the same time is moving away from its originality. Example of this can be seen everywhere, watch MTV Base, Kiss, Channel AKA even TOTP, listen to the radio; the beats, the melodies and even their videos all look and sound alike.
Wouldn't you also agree that to listen to good music you find yourself either downloading or digging out music you listened to years ago, or even listening to music from older generations so you don't have to listen to the repetitive beats you hear on the TV and Radio. Sadly, most of the genres that fall into the urban scene are suffering.
Although UK Hip-Hop and Grime have attracted many fans it has also led to commercial destruction, with multiple artists releasing singles using similar beats and ideas for freestyle, lyrics, etc. This has resulted in the new generation of music to lack uniqueness and so find that people are reverting back to old school garage with songs in the clubs such as DJ Luck and MC Neat's I'm Sorry and K.P and Envyi's Short Swing My Way with some Heartless Crew in there too. However, artists such as Dizzee Rascal and Roll Deep have successfully emerged through this crowd to show that this generation does have the ability to live up to the achievements of garage.
Hip-Hop, Rap and RnB have also fallen into this flaw, though with greater intensity. Hip-Hop and Rap icons such as Big Daddy Kane, Tupac, Salt n Peppa, Biggie and Naughty by Nature are slowly slipping away as talent of the past, to be replaced by what may also be referred to as 'Pop – Hip-Hop' and 'Pop-Rap'. Although artists such as T.I, 50 Cent and Kanye West have become superstars through their successes. Their success is largely dependant on their use of 'popular' music and beats to provide the world with what has now become commercial music. It has led to devoted listeners to rely upon the older artists such as Busta Rhymes, Missy Elliot and Ludacris with some new such as Papoose and Ciara to provide fans with original forms of Hip-Hop and Rap, with a twist of newness without failure.
Similarly and more painfully, the music industry seems to labelling all types of music that do not fit the category as RnB. It must be refocussed that RnB is a companion of soul – together keeping close to the original genre of the blues create the music and talent. The Pussy Cat Dolls or Black Eyed Peas should therefore NOT be put into the category RnB, because they are NOT that. More accurately they are Pop-RnB. True RnB and Soul music has been received through the Lauren Hill, Aretha Franklin, Carl Thomas, Anthony Hamilton and Marvin Gaye just to mention a few. This was also followed by the success of the later generation of evolved RnB/Soul from legendary groups and artists such as Boy II Men, Az Yet, TLC. It is the RnB music produced today that has become repetitive, lacking the eagerness or brilliance as their originators. The case with RnB does nonetheless still have potential of continuing the success it comes from, though is not available to everyone. Urban Music has become so commercial that the only way now left to listening to it with the same passion as always has led to two method: either listening to old classics or listening out carefully to the unsigned or new artists such as Avant or Amanda Perez or upcoming artist Papoose. You may find that groups that used to produce classic Urban music often convert to please the crowd using the popular beats and become boring.
Urban music has also begun to be associated with new development of music. This includes Reggae and Bashment which have always been around but are only now becoming noticed by groups that were unaware of them. Along with the influences of Asian music have become some of the biggest tracks out in the clubs but also carry the fear of becoming commercialised.
Despite all the ups and downs urban music is going through, it as a whole has been presented itself with a powering influence with the youth today. Hip-Hop dance classes are a massive success, bringing together children, teenagers and young adults to take part in additional activities and hobbies, reducing boredom and increasing fitness. Its has also alters people's reason for going out clubbing from chirpsing to dancing and having fun – the way that it should be.
