Macklemore is the Wii

[THeFraz]

1. Macklemore may have swept the Grammys this time, but hip-hop still belongs to the hardcore audience.
2. He didn't win because he was white, but because of his mainstream appeal.
3. This whole argument is entirely pointless in the long run. Can't we just sit down, listen to some music, and play whatever game we please?

I completely agree with these points you made right here. I understand the Wii comparison, but like others have pointed out, sales and awards can't really be compared (sadly, that doesn't mean one won't inform the other). Do I think Kendrick should have won? Yes, good kid, m.A.A.d. city is a phenomenal concept album, and has just as much substance as any other release in any other genre. However, I don't need an awards show to validate my opinion on that. Besides, it's not like I've ever been impressed with their decisions before (except when The Suburbs won AOTY, that was interesting).

In other news, Daft Punk's RAM won AOTY which is cool.

 

[kilenem]

If rap is about who appeals the most then Souja Boy had one of the Best albums of the Last Decades because he appealed to every one. Even people at Nascar tracks were cranking that Souja Boy. Souja Boy is the Wii

 

[kilenem]

I can't claim to know much about music. The only thing I know about Macklemore is that he's white and a rapper and Tumblr hates him because he dares to be both of those things at once, and that's cultural appropriation. I think. Anytime someone on Tumblr spews out the phrase "Cultural appropriation" I tune out, because nothing good is going to come of that.

As for comparing him to the Wii... well, yeah, didn't a lot of gamers feel burned when Nintendo decided to pander to casuals with the Wii? That's probably where a lot of this "Nintendoomed" stuff is coming from. People have loooong memories, I guess, especially with negative experiences.

Saying Macklemore won because he's white sounds kinda dumb, though. Don't black rappers typically win? I mean, Beyonce, Kanye West, uh... that's the extent of my knowledge of pop music. But haven't there been white rappers before? Like... Eminem, isn't he white? And... Vanilla Ice, or... snow, or something?

Yeah, I still know nothing about mainstream music. But I kinda wish we'd all just like what we like and leave others alone, too.

Actually Eminem talks about his skin color a lot. He talks about in White America and talks about if he wasn't white would he be as popular. He also makes a joke in With out me. I am the worst thing since Elvis Presley To do black music so selfishly And used it to get myself wealthy. I believe EM is aware of his skin color boosting his status. Granted he receives more flack for Homophobic lyrics even though he has rappers signed to his label that say racist things about white people and no one bats a eye.

 

[Yoshi4102]

I'm more pissed about his co-opting of the struggles of LGB (let's not even pretend he cares about the T) people when he's clearly not actually about fighting for it. Same Love is about a straight person for fucks sake! And Mary Lambert, an actual queer person, who sings the lady parts of the song was hardly even shown or mentioned during any of the talk relating to the song. ??? There have been tons of better LGB anthems out there done by actual gay people, and Cracklemore gets all the applause? Nah, son.

Sooo a straight guy currently in the public eye speaks out in support of gay people, and that's a BAD thing?

It's not a complete negative, no, but it's kind of like a white person writing about being African. He's speaking over the voices of the queer community, and taking attention from the people who are actually saying important things about the lives of those people. There is no way he could ever actually know what it's like to be gay/bisexual/ace/etc, and his song is literally about his straight feelings in relation to those of the queer population, so the fact that people are hailing him as some hero to the cause is ridiculous. Particularly because in the past Macklemore has made many a homophobic comment.

Actual gay artists are snubbed and ignored ALL the time because of this kind of thing, and people actually complain when queer people talk about queer topics. But suddenly when this straight guy does it, it's amazing?

So to recap: Yes it's good that people are excited about gay rights because of his song, but NO, Macklemore doesn't deserve to be held up as the voice of the queer population like he is, because HE IS NOT QUEER.

So gay people want to be recognized in popular culture. Now that they are, it's a terrible injustice because the musician isn't gay himself. That's like saying we should have waited for a black president before we could abolish slavery in the US. I was unaware that it turned into a special club that you have to be a part of to speak about.

 

[BX3]

The funny thing about the backlash toward Mack winning is that apparently he acknowledged that Ken shoul've won. Heh, heh, music fans. How do they work?

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Anyway, I'd liken Macklemore to perhaps... i dunno... Mario games. Palatable, wide crossover appeal, appeals to even those that aren't a fan of the genre (gaming/hiphop), super popular. Has a backlog of truly skillfull and somewhat unique works (Mario TTYD, Mario&Luigi/Language of my World, Unplanned Mixtape) but it is sadly overshadowed by the more recent and widespread works (NSMB/The Heist) which are good in their own right, but tend to cause some detractors to label them over-rated due to their simplicity.

Also, the very thing that got them famous (Nintendo/Rap music) is currently suffering from years worth of illwill from the aficionados of their respective mediums (Gamers/music fans) that may or may not be deserved, depending on who you ask.

 

[RedDeadFred]

Honestly, out of all the garbage pop music I listened to this year (entirely taking place in the summer and not by my choice at all), Macklemore was one of the few bright spots. I don't know if Grammy's primarily deal with pop but if they do, I think they made the right choice. At least some of his songs were different from the usual "ya we're in the club and I really want to fuck you" garbage. I actually enjoyed the three songs I heard of his on the radio this year (Thrift Shop, Can't Hold Us, that one about homosexuality). Way better than "Get Lucky" which everyone and their dog seems to be raving about.

I don't know who Kendrick is so I wouldn't be able to tell you if I've heard his songs. I don't listen to very much hip-hop though so there's that...

 

[MrHide-Patten]

Whut, whut, whut, whut?

*Sorry, I had to* and that is to the extent of any music of his that I can remember. The only news I've heard about the Grammy's in recent days was that Draft Punk took it home, as they should.

 

[LetalisK]

And is anyone surprised? The Grammy people are notoriously racist. Kanye has won 21 Grammys but not ONE of them was against a white artist.

Erm...what? He's won 8 Grammies going up against white performers in the rap categories(5 of those times up against Eminem and one of those going up against two white performers). Conversely, he's lost to white rappers four times. Twice to Eminem, twice to Macklemore.

Cracklemore

If you're going to rant about racist organizations, you shouldn't lose awareness of what you're saying and how it looks. At least, I hope the implication of a racial insult was unintended while implying drug use or low cut jeans.

 

[FoolKiller]

I'm more pissed about his co-opting of the struggles of LGB (let's not even pretend he cares about the T) people when he's clearly not actually about fighting for it. Same Love is about a straight person for fucks sake! And Mary Lambert, an actual queer person, who sings the lady parts of the song was hardly even shown or mentioned during any of the talk relating to the song. ??? There have been tons of better LGB anthems out there done by actual gay people, and Cracklemore gets all the applause? Nah, son.

Sooo a straight guy currently in the public eye speaks out in support of gay people, and that's a BAD thing?

My thoughts exactly. He's trying to break down the stereotypes that are present in society and then gets blamed for it.

The irony is that norashepard is guilty of the type of hate that Macklemore was against in Same Love and that is just sad.

 

[Raikas]

So, what can we take away from this unusual repetition of history? Three main things:

1. Macklemore may have swept the Grammys this time, but hip-hop still belongs to the hardcore audience.
2. He didn't win because he was white, but because of his mainstream appeal.
3. This whole argument is entirely pointless in the long run. Can't we just sit down, listen to some music, and play whatever game we please?

I don't buy the comparison purely because, unlike console sales, the Grammys aren't (on paper) meant to reflect popularity - they're supposed to reflect a judgment of quality from a panel of judges.

Personally, I don't think those kinds of awards are particularly useful because they don't have the honestly of an actual music review (which would detail the pros/cons of an artists work) and aren't a genuine statement of popularity (as much as people hate singles charts, at least they do represent sales).

And honestly, I think a lot of people who are upset about Macklemore's win are more fussed about what he symbolizes (the palatability of a generic/non-threatening artist who is entertaining-but-mediocre versus someone who might be better but less palatable for a wider audience) and about the lifting of part of one of his songs from another artist than it is about mainstream appeal (I think if he'd just won the pop category the outrage would be minimal - or at least would be tied to the whole marriage performance thing - which again is less about his popularity and more about his symbolism).

People who hate the Wii for its mainstream popularity just don't remember the way the NES was advertised back in the day - if anything it's a throwback to that parents-and-kids together type of gaming.