Austin360 blogs > Almost Urban > Archives > 2007 > June > 18
Monday, June 18, 2007
‘Making the Band 4’: looking for a few good men
As the show kicks off, Puffy lets us know that this time he’s trying to make a “male hip-hop soul pop group to follow in the footsteps of the greats.” He rattles off a mess of very big names including the Temptations and New Edition. With a shrug he tacks on ’N Sync. I, for one, am a little dubious about his lofty aspirations for the wannabe crooners (perhaps the Backstreet Boys would be a more reasonable goal), but when Diddy introduces his talent scouts, the first face splashed across the screen is Michael Bivens of New Edition. Also included on Diddy’s “dream team” are rnb singer Joe, superproducer Bryan Cox, vocal coach Ankh Ra and the lone female, choreographer Laurie Ann Gibson.
I never watched the first few seasons of “Making the Band,” so I’m very pleased to discover that the show is fast-paced, much more so than “American Idol,” which has a tendency to drag along agonizingly, especially in the beginning. Instead of emphasizing embarrassing outtakes, the audition sequences are a highlights montage. Only the superfools - the portly cat who thought it would be a good idea to show up in a tiara and the middle-aged rhythmless white dude who’s probably a YouTube hit in his office building right about now - manage to sneak 15 seconds of fame out of it.
Having caught an unfortunate performance or two from Season 3’s (ahem) supergroup, Danity Kane, I wouldn’t be surprised to discover a few of the ladies cut their dance chops on the pole of a local gentlemen’s club. In this season, however, as we progress rapidly through endless renditions of “My Cherie Amour,” there’s a consistent theme to how the boys learned to sing. In the church.
The show flies through the auditions, and the faces come at us fast with only a few of the young men getting enough air time to make an impression. These include Dan, the big-boned, spiky-haired white boy from Orlando who apparently could be a sex symbol if he dropped 20 pounds; Julius, the adorable, emotional crooner who at first seems too young but sings his heart out when put on the spot; and Sam, the sweet, self-described F.O.B. Asian cat who talks about coming to this country and being blown away by rnb music. I like Sam.
Half an hour into the show, the hundreds of potential Puffy protégé’s are sliced down to 48 who are granted tickets to New York. Unastonishingly enough, the cities with the strongest representation are Chicago, Detroit, Atlanta and New York.
Upon arrival in New York the boys are marched out into a snowy park where they line up in an amphitheater and get a pep talk from Puffy Michael Bivens, who tells them he wanted to meet them out in the cold because it’s a cold cruel world (or some such thing). Then the boys are sent off to rehearsals.
After a flashy montage of young men busting butt, and a brief pause, during which Puffy shamelessly plugs his sunglasses, we come to the first round of cuts. The boys are gathered onstage, and they sing a touching ensemble number about “the end of the road” setting the scene for Diddy’s grand entrance. Come to think of it, half of the show seems to be a setup for grand entrances for Diddy, take that Simon Cowell. What follows is another speedy audition montage, this one complete with unfortunate warbling and stumbling dance moves. The talent panel, all of whom are, oddly enough, wearing sunglasses in the dark theater, is not terribly impressed. Vocal coach Ankh Ra says a lot of the boys choked under pressure.
The first round of cuts whittles away half the group. Puffy moves fast through the ranks, announcing the numbers of the kids who made the cut, with a gratuitous suspense-building pregnant pause before the last two, one of whom is my boy Sam. Before our crooners even take a sigh of relief, however, Diddy let’s us know we shouldn’t get attached to anyone because another 50 percent of the kids are about to get the ax.
A select few are given a second chance to sing. “But you won’t get a third one,” Puffy warns. The second round only gives us enough time to get more attached to earnest Julius, hair gel enthusiast Dan (who, taking the potential sex symbol comment to heart, has dropped a lot of weight since his first audition) and sweet immigrant Sam.
With lightning speed the talent scouts deliberate on who’s in. Puffy Michael Bivens says Sam can really sing, but he might not be right for the band, and Laurie Ann lobbies for young Julius.
Finally, the boys are marched back out, and with little ceremony (but ample adjusting of sunglasses) the finalists are announced. Laurie Ann wins, and Julius makes the final cut. My boy Sam doesn’t. The camera pans to him in the room full of sullen disappointed faces and with a genuine smile he tells us he tries to keep a positive attitude about everything, he’s glad he made it this far and he’s going to continue working hard and singing. Aww… Puffy’s right, though. As a brief flash of a Danity Kane video flits through my head, I realize the kid’s probably way too good-natured and well-adjusted for this show.
Coming soon on “Making the Band 4”? Along with singing and dancing expect boxing, brawling and perhaps even a little quiet manly tear or two. And, of course, sunglasses, more sunglasses. Your girl will be watching. Stay tuned.
- Episode 8 recap
- Episode 7 recap
- Episode 6 recap
- Episode 5 recap
- Episode 4 recap
- Episode 3 recap
- Episode 2 recap
- Episode 1 recap
Juneteenth Special: Mr. Blakes delivers ‘The State of Texas Hip-hop Address’
A year ago, on Juneteenth weekend, I launched this blog with a write-up of “The State of Texas Hip-hop” showcase hosted by prominent local rapper Bavu Blakes. To commemorate the occasion, I asked Bavu to deliver a “State of Texas Hip-hop” address, which he did, with great dignity, here.
In the year that has passed, Bavu has kicked it with Matthew Knowles in L.A., received props from the Village Voice in N.Y.C. and been promoted to the position of urban music director for ME Television in Austin. In honor of the Juneteenth holiday, I asked the venerable Mr. Blakes to take a moment to reflect, once again, on The State of Texas Hip-hop.
With no further ado, Almost Urban proudly presents: A guest entry from Mr. Bavu Blakes.
My fellow Texan hip-hoppers and rap music lovers:
2006 was a crucial year in hip-hop for two reasons.
First, Nas said “Hip Hop Is Dead” and further opened a huge, desperately needed dialogue. The consensus reply, especially from a Texan’s perspective, was “Hip Hop Ain’t Dead, It Moved to the South.” Second, Rap CD sales dropped tremendously. In fact, no rap releases cracked the Top 10 for the year.
A recent USA Today article titled “Can Rap Regain Its Crown?” analyzed the effects of rap going pop, and whether fans are tired of current trends or if the corporate business model pushing major rap releases is just too old.
It’ll be interesting to see how well 2007 releases from Paul Wall, Mike Jones and Chamillionaire sell. Let’s face it: In the industry’s eyes, Houston is Texas. The current XXL magazine cover reads “What’s the Problem With Houston?” Meanwhile, Dallas’ superstar-in-the-making Big Tuck had lukewarm sales for his national debut “Tha Absolute Truth” (Universal) to put it gently.
So what’s anyone going to do about it? Lay down and concede that the Texas wave is over? Create the next big movement? Just humbly take it a day at a time? I subscribe to the latter, because that’s how every movement or wave was ever made - by persistence, humility, patience and consistency.
Hip-hop is far from dead. But it is swiftly and ironically returning to its humble beginnings, where the dead are laid to rest -underground!
So ask not what Texas hip-hop can do for you. Ask what you can do for Texas hip-hop! Otherwise, no further questions.
Thank you,
Mr. Blakes
(photos by Ricardo B. Brazziell)
