Tyrese has been extremely vocal about his campaign to bring back R&B, specifically the soul subcategory. I may date myself here, but those that were cognizant of the 90’s (not born in, but old enough to understand that era) were able to witness the beauty of emotion and transparency. Fans were able to see vulnerability. Fast forward to today’s landscape and his quest is being met with constant obstacles because that genre isn’t what industry think the people want. Or is it?
Tyrese album is doing well snagging the #1 position in 12 countries. Although that is wonderful, it isn’t reflective of the obstacles he has endured. To begin with, Black Rose was under shipped. Why? Well distribution/retailers may have thought R&B (soul) wasn’t going to sell. The problem is, it does. Black Rose has sold out in stores across the nation leaving fans that want that last tangible piece of Tyrese’s vocals scrambling to find the hard copy. The other problem he is enduring is the politics of the industry. He recently took to social media to express his discontent and school an uninformed individual who believed he was pulling the “race “card simply because he outlined the difference in spins. [Reading is always fundamental]. I’m so over individual’s inability to comprehend. If you legitimately do not understand the context of something just zip it. You save yourself the embarassment.
Peep the video and his response below.
Is there still racism in radio..?? If my song #SHAME is #2 on billboard already and headed to #1 other than the LOVE I’m getting from Urban AC radio… Will POP, Mainstream and TOP 40 radio support R&B soul on their stations too??? Music has no race, it has no boundaries right?????? Answer the question.?? And I need YOU the fans of Kiss FM, Z100 in NY and other MAINSTREAM STATIONS to start playing SHAME ft Jennifer Hudson… Or are you gonna decided that because I’m black my music should only be played and supported on URBAN RADIO..???
Posted by Tyrese Gibson on Monday, July 13, 2015
If the video doesn’t play…click this link.
In urban media, all music plays. So if Sam Smith or Adele is hitting, the stations will play them. However the reciprocity is never returned. As Tyrese explained, it limits the reach of fans. An artist should never feel they have to crossover or dilute their brand just so they can get play. If it’s hot, just play it. Music isn’t about who is singing what, but what the people want to hear. They want to hear Tyrese. I will say this time and time again, Black Rose is phenomenal. “Shame” is incredible.
-Niko Rose