Is There A Gen-Z Comparison?

[Pioneer1]

But that intro though -(if you don't miiiiiind...say it agaaain)


That song is about 30 years old.

Come on @ProfD...
Like you said, every generation critics the following generation and I know music and styles change over the generations, but seriously....what group among the Millenials or Generation Z has come up with any RnB group that could compare to Boy-II-Men, Jodeci, Mint Condition, or Guy?
We won't even get into the genius work of George Clinton and The Parlaiment, The Commodores, and Marvin.

These kids aren't even singing anymore.
They're letting "autotunes" and AI generate the sounds for them.

 

[ProfD]

10 hours ago, Pioneer1 said:

Come on @ProfD...
Like you said, every generation critics the following generation and I know music and styles change over the generations, but seriously....what group among the Millenials or Generation Z has come up with any RnB group that could compare to Boy-II-Men, Jodeci, Mint Condition, or Guy?
We won't even get into the genius work of George Clinton and The Parlaiment, The Commodores, and Marvin.

No comparison. Different times.

 

IMO, music doesn't have the same meaning and social impact to current and future generations. 

10 hours ago, Pioneer1 said:

These kids aren't even singing anymore.
They're letting "autotunes" and AI generate the sounds for them.

Technology has been a blessing and curse to Black music since the 1980s. Drum machines, sequencers and samplers killed Black bands.

 

The 1990s consisted mainly of singing groups, solo artists and rappers.

 

Music *producers* controlled the music. No Black bands using real musicians though.

 

Mint Condition was the last self-contained Black band standing through the 1990s and into 2000s. 

 

Tools like Autotune and other software programs have lowered the barrier of entry into the music-making process.

 

Folks don't have to be knowledgeable about music or know how to *sing* in order to produce music.

 

As a result, current music lacks the artistry in songwriting, music production, arrangement, live musicianship and everything else; most importantly, the social environment that served as the cocoon for the music of yesteryear.

 

There's no shortage of talented artists snd musicians running around foday. The difference lies in how they see the world and reflect it in their music.

 

From a generational perspective, the current and future generations don't *need* what we had in the past.

 

No different from how our generation didn't embrace or carry forward all of the music that preceded us. In fact, we thought our music was *better*. 

 

As a musician, I see it as a part of the same cycle that has been ongoing since the dawn of recorded music.

[Pioneer1]

When I catch myself trying to explain my love of Jodeci to somebody under 30 years old, I often think about that character "Pops" from the Wayans Bros. and how he used to talk about Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes.
 

 

 

 

Another thing introducing Autotunes and making it common among contemporary artists did was "even" the playing field so that White artists and Black artists could pretty much sound the same on the rhythm tip when our natural voices are clearly superior.

Before 2000, it was fairly clear and well known among Americans both Black and White what "sounding Black" meant.
Even when talking over the phone.

So when a Paula Abdul or Tina Marie came out you had to look at them funny and be amazed at how these White girls (Arab in the case of Paula) could "sound Black".
Same with Michael McDonald back in the day, and less with Justin Timberlake.

One of the prides of FBA culture was being able to distinguish ourselves through the quality of our entertainment.
Racists constantly seek ways to either copy or neutralize this distinction because it's hard to claim superiority when everything AfroAmericans do is of higher quality and in higher demand.

[ProfD]

43 minutes ago, Pioneer1 said:

When I catch myself trying to explain my love of Jodeci to somebody under 30 years old, I often think about that character "Pops" from the Wayans Bros. and how he used to talk talking about Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes.

Having to *explain* the music you dig is the 1st sign of a disconnect.

 

Surely, there are some folks who have an appreciation for music outside their generation.

 

For the most part, people gravitate towards music on which they grew up as it is the soundtrack of their lives.

 

43 minutes ago, Pioneer1 said:

Another thing introducing Autotunes and making it common among contemporary artists was "evening" the playing field so that White artists and Black artists could pretty much sound the same on the rhythm tip.

Autotune was intended to be a studio tool used to fix *bad* notes. Artist T-Pain used it to enhance his voice. Copycats emerged. 

 

That's one of the gifts only AfroAmericans can bring to the table. We make lemonade out of lemons. We add *flavor* to the bland.

 

Drum machines and samplers were invented as studio tools. Black folks built Hip-Hop on it.

 

43 minutes ago, Pioneer1 said:

Before 2000, it was fairly clear and well known among Americans both Black and White what "sounding Black" meant.
Even when talking over the phone.

So when a Paula Abdul or Tina Marie came out you had to look at them funny and be amazed at how these White girls (Arab in the case of Paula) could "sound Black".
Same with Michael McDonald back in the day, and less with Justin Timberlake.

Blue-eyed Soul was around long before the aforementioned artists.

 

White folks have always taken Black music and put their own spin on it. 

43 minutes ago, Pioneer1 said:

One of the prides of FBA culture was being able to distinguish ourselves through the quality of our entertainment.

Sadly, we never codified it to the point of ownership. 

43 minutes ago, Pioneer1 said:

Racists constantly seek ways to either copy or neutralize this distinction because it's hard to claim superiority when everything AfroAmericans do is of higher quality and in higher demand.

White folks have never really cared about that because they always make the most money in the long run.

[Pioneer1]

On 5/4/2025 at 7:05 PM, ProfD said:

Having to *explain* the music you dig is the 1st sign of a disconnect.

 

Lol....good point.