#TTOT: The Newsletter 003

Tinashe's Song Of Summer, Drake's Pop Star Status, Why Solange Is Everything & Understanding Why Usher Has Been HIM!

Jun 30, 2024

Listen. Tinashe has always been that girl.

She’s earned this moment and long been prepared for this moment, and has never been a slouch with the pen, in the studio, or on the stage. So, now after three major label releases, three independent albums, self-funding tours, and music videos, writing her ass off, and giving us life time and time again, Tinashe’s got an undeniable hit in “Nasty,” which has become the song of summer 2024.

Some will likely say that it’s the virality of the song and the lyrics being an earworm with:

I’ve been a nasty girl, nasty

I’ve been a nasty, nasty, nasty…

It may be the fact that sometimes we really do need someone to match our freak and our nasty.

It may be the hard-hitting choreography in the video that’s reminiscent of Mya’s “Case Of The Ex” and Janet’s “You Want This” vibes due to being in the middle of the desert going crazy with the dance moves.

Or maybe it’s just Tinashe’s time. She’s worked hard in entertainment as an actress and performer for half of her life. She’s dedicated to the craft and to her work. She has persevered and followed her creative vision because no person and no label knew Tinashe better than she knew herself. She’s a student of the work and part of a tradition of pop singers who bring dance into the mix on a very high level.

Tinashe is ready because she’s been ready, and she didn’t have to get ready once the rest of the world caught up to her work. Tinashe met the moment, and now that it’s here, she’s riding it as she should, and so will we as we listen to “Nasty” all summer 2024.

They Say That Drake Turned Pop, But He Always Has Been

I’m keeping this short and clear — Drake is a Pop star.

Being a Pop star does NOT negate his being one of the biggest stars that Hip Hop has seen in the last two decades. Being a Pop star also does not mean that you are successful in what people refer to as “white” music. Being a Pop star literally means that you are amongst very few people who are finding success with multiple audiences — you are POPular.

Honestly, calling Drake “Pop” is not the insult that I believe people think it is because, again, the term has been synonymous with whiteness even though some of the biggest and most influential Pop stars of all time have been Black people or incredibly influenced by Black people and Black music genres.

Michael Jackson. Janet Jackson. Beyoncé. Prince. Whitney Houston. Mariah Carey. Diana Ross. Dionne Warwick. Usher.

Pop stars.

So, the question to ask about Drake is why this is becoming a thing now. It’s simple yet nuanced and complicated for some – he lost his battle with Kendrick Lamar, where race, culture, and appropriation were centered. That loss woke a lot of people up and put a lot of people in a spiral of denial. For some of us, it said what we’ve been thinking and discussing in our private circles once we saw Toronto’s very own change his accent, sound, and Black cultural references a few too many times for us to believe who we were hearing and seeing. I’m actually not sure he ever had a chance of winning once they both got in the ring. But what I do know and is that I can keep it honest about and say that losing that battle does not negate Drake’s influence or impact since So Far Gone hit our speakers. It doesn’t erase the hits, the quotable lyrics that were always flipped into Instagram captions, or the fact that Drake is a star.

Just remember that even though it seems that Drake has been exposed, he hasn’t. Drake is part of Hip Hop’s fabric and history and will continue to be, and he never turned Pop because that is really what he always was and probably what he always wanted to be.

Why Solange Is My North Star

There is freedom in being a creative. I was born a creative, so I honestly don’t know another way of being. I don’t know what it’s like not to be deeply fascinated with dance and music and visual mediums from the stage to the screen. I don’t know what it’s like not to feel, but I do know what it feels like not to be seen.

Solange Knowles filled that gap for me.

I don’t know if it’s the fact that Solange is a Cancer like me or that she always seems to show up exactly as who she is in every single moment, but she is my North Star.

This doesn’t mean that I idolize her – it simply means that when I create and visualize what I want for myself and how I want to grow or expand creatively, I look in her direction because, for me, life is about authenticity.

Solange has grown into a multidisciplinary creative who is never outwardly shy about what she wants to convey through her artistry. When she wants to let us know that she’s Black and proud – she tells us. When Solange wants to relax and live a glorious life stacking her coins yet waking up on CP time – she tells us. When she wants to become the first Black woman to compose music for the New York City Ballet – she does it. When she wants to choreograph a movement rooted in modern dance – she does it. When she wants to design glassware – she does it. When she wants to curate performance art – she does it. When she wants to live life out of the spotlight and just be – she does it.

There is power in living this way. There is power in putting action behind what you want, but there’s also freedom in doing what you want in the ways you want to because you know that you are divinely led and connected to a source higher than yourself. There is power in that confidence. That is what Solange leaves me with and why she inspires me.

The moment I began to step into my power and move in the ways my intuition led me creatively, I started to make big and small breakthroughs. The most significant breakthrough is that nobody outside of me can see my vision through. No person, company, group, or piece of technology – nothing. There’s freedom in this, and there is often an incredible feeling of self-validation when you complete something because you can say, “That came from my idea, and I brought it to life.” At this point in my life, embracing this aspect of my gift matters to me. Now, if my work makes an impact and makes people feel good or, most importantly, spreads thoughtful and factual information about Black culture, that is the cherry on top. That is alignment and what it means to walk in my dream and live in my purpose constantly. I’ll get back to this at a later date.

I hope that Solange knows and feels her impact. I hope that she knows that she inspires. I hope she knows that living in her purpose has opened space for folks like me to feel more free and more seen. That, I hope she knows.

Urrrsher, Baby! He’s BEEN Him!

Usher Raymond IV is special.

Yes, Usher has sold millions of records. Yes, Usher turned Las Vegas on its head for three years with one of history's most memorable and talked-about residencies. Yes, Usher was the 2024 Super Bowl Halftime performer. But for me, Usher's greatness is about so much more than these moments.

Sure, milestone moments in culture matter to artists, and they also matter to us, which is obviously why we're excited that Usher is being honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award tonight at this year's BET Awards. The fact of the matter is that he deserves every accolade that he's received. However, it's the quiet accomplishments, more so the moments and that actual skill, that we don't discuss or acknowledge enough, so I'm going to.

Usher has been HIM. And he's lived, worked, and adapted through many different musical eras at this point. We're talking about smooth R&B on his first four albums, which often infused a Hip Hop feature here or there, diving in head first to the dance music that took over in the early 2010s, which was assisted by Will.I.Am, who also deserves praise for his musical prowess, but I'll hold that for another newsletter.

However, while all of this is amazing, for me, the most amazing thing about Usher's career is his longevity through his legacy. It's one thing to have a long career, but it's another to know and understand how to sustain success at such a high level because not only did he study the greats, but he has shared a stage with the greats, which makes him a very special part of a very delicate legacy of R&B and Soul music.

At this point in his career, Usher has shared the stage with too many artists to count. We've seen him share the stage as an elder statesman of R&B with newer acts like Summer Walker, but it's knowing that we've also had the pleasure of watching him on stage with some of the most prominent and most influential blueprints in Black music that will always stand out for me.

It's significant to have seen Usher share the stage with James Brown at the 2005 Grammy Awards. Known as "The Godfather Of Soul," James Brown served as one of Michael Jackson's blueprints and Usher's. Once Usher finished his megahit, "Caught Up," James Brown appeared onstage and lit it up again! The two engaged in some call and response as they sang and danced. They shared the stage for two minutes, and during those moments, we saw Usher make room for James Brown, but we also saw James Brown leave room for a man that would carry modern R&B with reverence and respect for two decades after. They exchanged smiles, and we saw the torch passed. Since then, we've seen Usher pay tribute to him, but most importantly, we can feel that he carries this legacy seriously.

And then, there is, of course, Usher's admiration, respect, and love for Michael Jackson. It's never been a secret that one of his biggest influences, if not his biggest influence, especially as far as being a showman is concerned, is "The King Of Pop." And again, in this instance, we saw a torch being passed as Usher took the stage with the greatest Pop star to ever live at Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration, a TV special that celebrated his solo career up to that point in time. This moment of tribute came in 2001, four years before he had James Brown onstage with him, and while he didn't sing, he surely glided and danced across the stage with the best to ever do it.

He is also a performer who has not only seen his icons pass on, but he is a performer who has been called to remember them through his gift, as he did at Michael Jackson's memorial service, where he sang "Gone Too Soon." Years later, he opened Kobe Bryant's memorial service at Staples Center (now Crypto Arena) by singing "Amazing Grace." These gestures and moments are maybe some of the heaviest, but as we know, in Black culture, one of the highest honors we give our loved ones happens during their homegoing ceremonies and to do this for those you admire deeply and who have impacted you is never easy because it is a responsibility, one that Usher carried gracefully.

So, today, when I watch Usher receive his Lifetime Achievement Award, I'm going to clap. I'll probably tear up because he's important to the culture and carries a lot within him that he has continuously shared with us. It's always going to be about the moments that he gives us one of the most amazing shows in the world, but for me, it's always going to be about what he's preserving, what he is contributing, and the fact that he truly is one of one.

Now, get into #TTOT: The Newsletter playlist, "My Usher Songs," HERE on Spotify.

MUSEBOARD

Things that stuck with me this week. 🧠🥂🔮

XOXO…

Make sure that you’re registered to vote. It’s beyond necessary that we vote this year, so make sure that you’re keeping up with When We All Vote throughout this election cycle.

Free Palestine! 🇵🇸

My birthday is on July 10th, so like… do me a favor and share this newsletter and give me feedback! Tell me what you want more of, less of, and if you’re enjoying it. Also, engage here on the platform. 🦀🥂🎉