The term 'urban' has caused myriad problems for Black artists working in the music industry, argues Nina Robinson, who helped launch BBC 1Xtra.
Rounding up very distinct music genres, such as Hip-Hop, Soul and R&B, whose only seeming connection is that they are largely performed by Black artists and putting them all into a box labelled 鈥榰rban鈥�, is no longer acceptable practise in the UK music industry. In a new pledge to stamp out racism, it鈥檚 listed at the top of the Ten Point Action Plan from UK Music 鈥� an umbrella organisation representing the UK music industry, which states that the:
鈥淯rban classification [should be] replaced in all reports and communications - either by genre, such as Soul or Rap; UK Music members will commit to support those who wish to use the term 鈥榖lack music鈥�.鈥�
How did a word come to be so associated with racial discrimination and injustice? The use of 鈥榰rban鈥� by the music industry, was seen as an act of 鈥榮ilo-ing鈥� Black artists, lumping them into one homogenous group and tarring a wide expanse of Black talent with a very broad and biased brush. Some music industry executives used the categorisation to marginalise Black artists, justifying the signing of white artists and not of Black artists. The X-Factor winner, Alexandra Burke, said in an Instagram video, that she had been told by a record producer; 鈥淚 already have one Black artist, I don鈥檛 need another鈥�.
Conversely, the categorisation keeps Black artists in one box, limiting their success and exposure to different audiences. The huge hit song by Lil Nas X 鈥極ld Town Road鈥�, was easily slotted into the Hip-Hop/Rap category, but was removed by Billboard鈥檚 Hot Country Songs chart for not 鈥榚mbracing enough elements of country music鈥�.听
The term 鈥榰rban鈥� sits uncomfortably for many. After his win in the 鈥榰rban鈥� music category at the 2020 Grammy鈥檚, the artist, Tyler, The Creator, said:
鈥淚 don鈥檛 like that word, it鈥檚 like a politically correct way of saying the N-word to me鈥�.
Will Dropping 鈥楿rban鈥� and Reclaiming 鈥楤lack Music鈥� Really Change Systemic Racist Issues or Solve Underlying Diversity and Inclusion Problems that are Inherent to the British Music Industry?
For me, as a member of the launch team for BBC Radio 1Xtra, which, in 2002, burst onto the music landscape under the banner 鈥楾he Home of New Black Music鈥�, the change from 鈥楤lack鈥� to 鈥榰rban鈥� means a lot. 1Xtra鈥檚 original tagline proudly represented Black culture with a diverse set of DJs; from the Rampage Duo, known for their legendary sound system at Notting Hill Carnival, to Robbo Ranx, with his expansive network of contacts in Jamaican dancehall, to DJ Flight, who quietly took her place behind the decks via pirate radio for appreciative Drum 鈥榥鈥� Bass fans. When the marketing of the station changed, and 鈥楤lack鈥� was dropped and replaced, not only with 鈥榰rban鈥�, but also with 鈥榮treet鈥� music monikers, it was a signifier of change. Arguably, the loss of the 鈥楤lack music鈥� identifier was whitewashing a rich history, severing Black musical roots and leaving open the door to cultural appropriation.听
For decades, the term 鈥榰rban鈥� has been used as a classification by record companies, which is thought to date back to 1974, when it was used by a radio station in New York. It was dreamt up by (white) marketing strategists who were packaging Black music whilst minimising attention to the Black artist; offering an acceptable face to the white mainstream, to attract more listeners and advertising dollars. The term鈥檚 history is also linked to the US federal clean-up programmes of the 1950s and 鈥�60s that targeted slums and Black people living in poverty. Urban was negatively connected to being poor and Black. It鈥檚 worth noting that, before 鈥榰rban鈥�, the term 鈥榬ace records鈥� was used. 鈥楿rban鈥� was deemed to be less offensive by white music executives, even though 鈥榬ace records鈥� had helped generate income for a Black music industry and implicitly acknowledged its debt to Black people. The 鈥榰rban鈥� classification hid the racial element, and would also ghetto-ise Black artists. Some of the Black artists who were marketed in this way went on to forge highly successful careers, and were loved by audiences globally. These included Stevie Wonder, Barry White and The Stylistics.听
Debate on the use of the term 鈥榰rban鈥� by the music industry had been ongoing for decades, but pressure to finally drop it, gathered pace amid the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020, when Ariana Grande and Drake鈥檚 label, Republic Records, announced that they would be erasing it 鈥渇rom their verbiage in describing departments, employee titles and music genres鈥�.
For many in the British music industry, the word 鈥榰rban鈥� will not be missed. Vin Gadher, a music producer and promoter, thinks it was always pretty meaningless.
鈥淭o me, it is what music they make, the genre of music they make. Is it Soul? Is it R&B? Is it Jazz? Rather than calling it 鈥榰rban鈥�. What is urban?鈥澨�
Yaw Owuso, a music entrepreneur who has managed artists as exec. at the Playmaker Group, which is based in Liverpool, agrees. He sees some benefit in using the term from a marketing perspective, because he thinks it helps 鈥榖roaden things鈥� and removes the political element from the music, since he sees how the term 鈥榖lack -- as a small b or capital B is very political鈥�. The removal of these associations from music and artist, he thinks, may help to sell more records. This is far from proven to be the case.听
Jay Davidson, launch and brand manager at 1Xtra for 4 years from 2002 says she was disappointed when 鈥楤lack music鈥� was dropped from all branding.听 But she was not surprised. 鈥溾�楤lack music鈥� was seen as a barrier in trying to grow the station to a majority white audience鈥�. She thinks that audience research may have indicated that white listeners would feel 鈥渁lienated鈥� and that 1Xtra did 鈥渘ot reflect them鈥�. Station management, she feels, could not afford for potential listeners to 鈥渇eel excluded鈥�.
Ultimately, Yaw Owuso finds 鈥榰rban鈥� to be problematic.听
鈥淚 see it as a catch-all term that allows white artists to do what is classed as Black music, it felt like it was to champion them. So, I think the change is good to show there is a wind of change. I don鈥檛 think anyone will be fighting to keep it鈥�.
When BBC 1Xtra lost its 鈥楤lack music鈥� tagline, there was a shift felt by some people working at the station. Whilst it is not possible to distinguish correlation and causality, a change in the proportion of Black and ethnic minority staff working on and off-air has been noted by some. In their award-winning Black Lives Matter inspired show, 1Xtra Talks, long-time 1Xtra DJs, Ace and Seani B, bared their souls, as Black men, they spoke of the institutional racism that they had encountered in their lives, including inside the workplace.听
Seani B, who has been a DJ at the station for 18 years, noted that if 鈥榳e looked different鈥�, then his career would have moved further along, since he had been denied his chance to have a 鈥榞ood crack鈥� at the work he had dedicated his life to. He knows this was due to the perception that, as a Black man, he was less 鈥榩alatable鈥� than white DJs. Just as 鈥榰rban鈥� was supposed to make Black music acceptable to (white) audiences, maybe a white DJ could package Black music with a wider appeal to British listeners.听
That the radio industry has a serious diversity and inclusion problem is not really in any doubt. According to Ofcom鈥檚 2019 diversity report, in BBC Radio as a whole, only 9% of staff are from a black and ethnic minority, which drops to 6% at senior leadership levels. Commercial radio is even worse, with only 6% of all staff at Bauer Media, which includes Kiss FM, and no senior leaders.听
Speaking to one long time senior 1Xtra employee, who wishes to remain anonymous, the lack of diversity in youth music radio at the BBC is plain to see. As they sit and speak via Zoom on the 8th floor of New Broadcasting House, on a busy workday, they survey the room and can see only two other Black producers across not only 1Xtra, but also its sister station, Radio 1.
鈥淎 lot of people left last year. That was among this whole 鈥楤lack Lives Matter鈥� stuff 鈥� we lost 5 DJs over the summer, including Sideman. That was crazy.鈥澨�
In August 2020, DJ Sideman resigned from his Saturday mid-morning show on 1Xtra as a result of his employer鈥檚 refusal to condemn the use of the N-word by a white news journalist.听
A multitude of listening sessions took place at the BBC over the summer of 2020, which led to an outpouring of painful and traumatic experiences detailing incidents of bullying and everyday microaggressions for staff of colour who work at the organisation.听
1Xtra had become a stepping stone for white people to move into Radio 1, rather than a destination for people who want to celebrate 1Xtra鈥檚 music and culture, according to an insider source.听
鈥淣obody is saying that you have to be Black or brown to appreciate Black culture, obviously not, but people being hired, who were not Black or brown 鈥idn鈥檛 have the integrity to work on the station.鈥澨�
The 1Xtra employee explains how an appreciation of 1Xtra鈥檚 music was simply not a requirement of the job. At recruitment boards, interview questions to potential employees did not reference Black culture. Instead, 鈥測ou could get the job by talking about generic things, like the Olympics:听
鈥�, but when it came down to explaining how important Nipsey Hussle [an American rapper] was, those kinds of questions were not being asked and therefore, 鈥渄iversity was tough鈥�.
Would Reclaiming 鈥楤lack Music鈥� Help to Solve the Problem?听
Reclaiming the 鈥楤lack鈥� in 鈥楤lack music鈥� will not solve systemic racism, but for many people of colour in the British music industry, it is at least an acknowledgment of where the music comes from. Vin Gadher was manager of 鈥楾he Skatalites鈥� in the 1990s. He says that they would probably tell you that their Ska sound came from:听
鈥溾�� listening to Jazz and Mento, so the history there is long. I think the Black sound comes in a spiritual way. It is the Soul-ness of it.鈥澨�
A New York Times audio series, traces the deep roots of Black music in the birth of American music itself. It tracks how the Black sound has permeated all genres today. It can be heard in the 鈥榞ravelly tones of the white singer Kenny Loggins鈥� for example; 鈥渓ike he is scraping the bottom of a pan to get all the good bits off of it before you pour the gravy in鈥�.
Black music has become the popular culture, according to music exec., Yaw Owusu.听
鈥淪treaming has allowed us to measure this impact in the mainstream, and it is undeniable鈥� he says, 鈥減eople have known that Hip-Hop is the biggest form of music forever,鈥� but it was only when the download figures from streaming sites were revealed, that 鈥渢he maths and the push through of Black music鈥� as the dominant genre of music鈥� became clear.鈥�
Latest figures compiled by Billboard/MRC Data show that the number one category for audio and video streams and downloads in the US were for Rap/Hip Hop/R&B, followed by Rock and then Pop.听
Given that this is the case, you might expect that 鈥楤lack music鈥� is the principal sound that is recognisable on the A playlist of 1Xtra鈥檚 sister station, Radio 1. Radio 1 enjoys a rich historical legacy on UK analogue radio that dates back to 1967. 1Xtra was launched on DAB just under two decades ago. Radio 1鈥檚 lineage affords it an elevated status, with the budget to match (拢38 million compared to 1Xtra鈥檚 拢8 million).听
Disparity between the stations exists on many levels, the big one is the weekly listening figures which, for Radio 1, is ten times greater than for its 鈥榮ister鈥� station. It may be more accurate to say that 1Xtra is the 鈥榩oor cousin鈥� of Radio 1.
鈥淏lack culture is furnishing popular culture, which is fabulous, as long as we remember where it started.鈥� For a senior 1Xtra employee, respecting this fact is a key element of any successful diversity and inclusion policies in music radio.
鈥楻espect鈥�, is one of the three litmus tests that are detailed in the for recognising the cultural appropriation of music. The other two are: giving credit to Black artists, and, to ensure something new is made from what came before, rather than just taking it as your own.
In an emotional and highly charged radio appearance, in 2014, the Black artist, Azealia Banks, speaks of how hurtful she finds the white Australian 鈥榬apper鈥�, Iggy Azalia, who, in one of her lyrics, refers to being 鈥榓 runaway slave master鈥�. Iggy Azalia was nominated for a Grammy award in the rap category.听
鈥淚 feel just like, in this country, whenever it comes to our things 鈥� like Black issues or Black politics or Black music 鈥� there鈥檚 this undercurrent of kinda, like, a 鈥榝uck you鈥�.鈥� Banks refers to there being a cultural 鈥渟mudge out鈥�, which 鈥渢ells Black kids you don鈥檛 own shit, not even the shit you created for yourself.鈥�
Former 1Xtra DJ Flight, keenly feels there has been cultural appropriation of Black music in the Drum 鈥榥鈥� Bass scene. She was part of the original 1Xtra launch team and hosted a weekly show for 5 years, until 2007. The roots of DnB are embedded in Jamaican sound systems; Jazz, Funk, Soul and Reggae. But when the Drum 鈥榥鈥� Bass label, Hospital Records, bought the rights to the back catalogue of Reggae label, Jet Star, in 2020, all of the 18 remixes they put out were by white producers, except for 1听
鈥漈he amount of people who think it鈥檚 just fine to sample any old Ragga vocal 鈥� they don鈥檛 even know what the person is saying, but they stick it into the tune, they put red, yellow and green on their artwork 鈥hat kind of shit 鈥� very superficial.鈥�
She also notes the switch to white DJs at the BBC. In a team which used to consist of 5 Black DJs across both Radio 1 and 1Xtra (DJ Flight, L Double, Bailey, Fabio & Grooverider), today, in 2021, there is only one white Canadian, representing British DnB music.
听鈥淚 could feel my whole career and achievements being erased before my eyes鈥� she says.
1Xtra鈥檚 Ace and Seani B also feel as if their music has been taken from them and replaced by white line-ups. In their Black Lives Matter Talks Special they explain how;
鈥淥ur aesthetics are scary, so [the solution is] let鈥檚 give people what鈥檚 not scary to deliver the music they love, which is our music.鈥�
Seani then lays down his truth, and asks a question that is inspired by seeing so many white artists representing Reggae and Dancehall, both on radio and on festival rosters: 鈥淐an you imagine if I was a white Dancehall DJ??鈥� He is thought to be referring to a disparity in treatment and opportunities offered to the white Dancehall DJ, Toddla T, who left 1Xtra after 11 years in August, 2020, during the summer of Black Lives Matter protests. Toddla T is also married to veteran Radio 1 DJ Annie Mac.
1Xtra has recently appointed its first Black Station Head, Faron McKenzie. Music executive, Yaw Owusu, knows him, and thinks that, 鈥渕oving Black people into positions of influence鈥� will see things 鈥減lay out very differently鈥�.Already, line-ups are starting to change. Rampage and The Heartless Crew are among the Black DJs who have been brought back to the schedules.
Historic Racial Inequalities and Exploitation Play Out Today听
After decades working in the UK music industry with Jamaican and South Asian artists, Vin Gadher is 鈥渟till shocked鈥� by how many white faces he sees, even in departments representing global regions whose populations are Black or brown. He is concerned about the exploitation of Black artists.
鈥淎s musicians [The Skatalites] were highly respected but, economically, they weren鈥檛. When I discovered them again in the 1990s, they were in New York State doing manual jobs, and I was thinking; 鈥淭hese guys are geniuses, why haven鈥檛 they been given the income due to them?鈥�
It is a common complaint voiced by music industry diversity campaigners, pointing to systemic inequalities resulting in poor contract terms for Black artists when they are signed. Shauni Caballero, speaking to Power Up, a long-term initiative to address racial disparities in the music sector, says, 鈥淚 tell them, they have a duty 鈥� the major labels especially --because you profit so heavily off these artists, there are certain things you need to tell them鈥� at least give them the basics of understanding [about] their publishing rights.鈥�
Exploitative practises in the music industry date way back too, of course. In the 1950s, the father of rock n鈥� roll, Chuck Berry, spoke of his managers and promoters, 鈥渨ho were usually friends, or businessmen, as there was a lot of money transacted that I didn鈥檛鈥� know about,鈥� he said in a BBC interview.听
When the interviewer asks him what advice he would give to a young artist, he replies;
鈥淢ajor in math, then take up music, which is really half math, and then major in human nature.鈥�听
This remains essential advice for Black music artists in 2021.听
Long-term plans to address systemic racism are currently underway, instigated by influential UK music industry insiders on a variety of fronts. These include Power Up, which offers grants to Black creators, combined with professional network support. The founder of the MOBO Awards, Kanya King, is launching a platform to connect Black people to mentors, and the Black Music Coalition presents a manifesto for change. For Yaw Owusu, the solution ultimately lies in 鈥渋ndependence and autonomy鈥�. He gives Stormzy and Jamal Edwards as examples to follow.
鈥淲e are seeing that people want independence from the corporations. What Jay Z is doing in America, and there is a lot of social and structural stuff to do鈥�.
He says it will all take time, another generation perhaps.
As for black music on Radio 1 and 1Xtra, DJ Flight puts it succinctly; 鈥渘othing really changes at the BBC鈥�.听
If a new generation of music artists have any hope of breaking free from the systemic racism in an industry where it runs deep, pulling off the disguise of a well wrapped up term, such as 鈥榰rban鈥� is an obvious first step. If the huge and continued success of Black music tells us anything, it鈥檚 that audiences do not need a dilution or cover-up of 鈥楤lack鈥� to make it more marketable or palatable. Recognising its history and culture through people who work in those industries today is necessary to reveal those connections between what happened before and what is still happening today.