In the late 1960’s Motown lost its monopoly on Black America because Berry Gordy refused to let his artists sing about the times, while soul stirrers like Curtis Mayfield and others were telling it like it was, then Marvin Gaye asked “What’s Going On?” and the rest is history. Then during the 80’s into the mid 90’s when hip-hop was reporting live from the streets, young Black America took a seat at the table and forced their way to becoming part of the national conversation much like the Black Power movement two decades prior. But somewhere between then and first-week sales the importance of being a voice for those without has been lost.
Enter Marsha Ambrosius and her new video “Far Away”, a bold step at a time when many artists are tiptoeing around criticism or being provocative in a manner that doesn’t illicit thought or positive conversation. It seems the thing to do now is show your artistic growth with all of that post-modern abstract impressionist stuff that no one understands (see Kanye West’s “Monster”), but Marsha and her manager-turned director Julius Erving III (yes, that Julius Erving) have crafted the perfect marriage of music and video, combining the artistry of her lyrics, Just Blaze’s production, her melodic voice and a video that tells a true story that’s reflective of our cultural climate. At its heart that’s what soul music is supposed to be, an honest depiction of life set to music and by extension the music video should do the same, but the two are often divergent.
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