What does Shawn Stockman have to say about the state of the industry? Find out this Boys II Men member’s hot take on today’s R&B music below.
Shawn gets brutally honest
Since the Omarion/Mario Verzuz, discourse has been flying on social media about the R&B vocalists of past and present. Many music listeners are clearly underwhelmed not only with the vocal ability of current R&B, but the lyrical content as well. One of those noticing a decline is Boys II Men alumni Shawn Stockman.
‘One Sweet Day’, ‘On Bended Knee’, ‘It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday’, are all instantly recognizable anthems from Boys II Men. Stockman, along with Wanya Morris, Nathan Morris, and Michael McCary brought R&B to a global level with their chart-topping discography throughout the 1990s. Boys II Men has sold over 60 million albums worldwide. The 1988 group has three certified gold singles and seven platinum. It goes without saying, being part of the best-selling R&B act of all time gives you a certain authority on the subject. Shawn Stockman knows this all too well and used his industry experience to shed some light on the state of R&B music recently. In a medley of tweets from earlier this week, the ‘End of the Road’ singer gave some honest opinions on today’s vocalists.
“ There was a time when it was kool to identify as an R&B singer. It was kool that there was a clear distinction between a rapper and a singer, persona wise. And it was respected.” He began. “It wasn’t viewed as being ‘soft’ to be smooth and to speak to ladies a certain way”
He continued to explain his point of view, “R&B has lost their identity because it felt like it had to compete with the bravado of the hip hop world. Because labels stopped supporting the perception of Black men being more than displaying a ‘thug image’.”
Everyones a critic
In his rant, Stockman clarified that he still thinks this generation has great talent. He reposted Ella Mai and praised Luke James on his Twitter page following his brief rant. But unfortunately, this Philly-born star isn’t too pleased with the way mainstream singers in the genre are currently portrayed. Particularly, male singers appear to be the center of Shawn Stockman’s issue.
It’s an observation that is hard to ignore. The lyrical content and imagery of R&B music were comparatively tamer in the 1990s/80s. Truly, there’s a stark difference between ‘I’ll Make Love to You’ and ‘I Invented Sex’. It was once rare for R&B stars to curse heavily on records, now the lyrical content is nearly comparable to hip-hop records. Of course, music changes constantly and it’s natural for trends to shift within a genre. But judging by the responses to Shawn’s tweets, music fans are sorely missing the romantic aspect of rhythm and blues.
“This is very, very important. God save R&B.” Media executive Geneva Thomas replied. “I’ve also noticed a lack of emotional vulnerability. Overtly graphic…less romantic.” another fan tweeted.
On the other hand, some disagreed with Shawn’s opinions. Obviously, there are exceptions to any trend and several modern R&B fanatics were glad to provide examples.
https://twitter.com/pablotdon/status/1542651891297001474?s=21&t=Lnv9QhhEjmq0xc2zgr-xug
https://twitter.com/hennyondatweet/status/1542541952343633920?s=21&t=Lnv9QhhEjmq0xc2zgr-xug
Of course, music lovers should stream whoever they like regardless if they agree with Shawn Stockman or not. Whether your loyalty lies with the music of the 80s and 90s, or you’re accustomed to the new class, R&B as a genre will always have its supporters.
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Dreema Carrington|IG: @dr3amgirl79 | Twitter: @notdreema
