it has a lot to do with the decline of black bands.
the music snobs talked about this. when kids go to hip hop/ r&b shows now...
they want a "spectacle," but they don't neccesarily expect a "show" the way we are.

who is to blame for this?
probably MJ. because MJ performances became very much about spectacle,
and the people that watched him forgot he was also a master of putting on a show.

live singing, and live playing just isn't valued the way it was
with black bands in the past... or with white bands now.

i guess it started when the black bands started disassembling in the 80s.


i can't just blame one thing.
people copying the wrong parts of MJ is part of it.
the fact that an artist can now have a career without having to hack it live is another part of it.
bands not having to test their chops on the chitlin circuit is a part of it.
the fact that a kid that wants to get into music now instinctively starts to write rhymes or make beats is another part of it.

and all of that lead to kids not expecting it when they go to a show.




still, folks that value live performance in black music can still find it...
even if it's not the norm anymore.

JT does it. the roots does it.
hell, pharell does it... for whatever that's worth.