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Why no Hype for the young Brothers?
- Thread starter Billy Low
- Start date
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Rickett Customs
Commercial User
JAUQO III-X
Inactive
And there's the answer to the thread
That's not the answer to this thread at all.
Aren't black bass players a part of the music business?
Rickett Customs
Commercial User
Sure, Everyone is, even black bass players. I don't think anyone is going to deny that
Nobody said that the music business is fair either, maybe that should have been my answer.
But more importantly, what is your answer? I now realize the previous is not your answer.
I'm not so sure this is true. I tend to think BP is more a mirror than a guiding light. Someone earlier mentioned that the same three players finished at the top of the reader's poll for a few consecutive years. Doesn't that reinforce the point that BP doesn't guide the readers, but the readers guide BP?
I'd love to get a look at BP's newsstand sales figures. How much better does a Flea cover sell than, say, the Paul Chambers cover they just did? Or the AJ cover from a few months ago?
- Aug 16, 2003
- 1,130
- 24
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist;Essential sound products,Dunlop, Ergo Instruments
You hit the nail on the head. Too many assume that Blacks don't buy. I'm sure most Black players have had the experience of going into a shop, wanting to see gear, and the salesman asks, do you know what that costs? Literally, at the same time, I have seen white teenagers casually grab the most expensive things in the store without anyone taking a second glance at them.
I actually think I bought a bass or two just to prove a point when I was younger.
The funny thing is that boutique makers know who buys their stuff. Mike Tobias knows how many young black guys are buying his basses, so does he guy at LowEnd or the folks at Warrior. The same goes for Brubaker. The websites of all those outfits show that they know where their market is.
I believe that the overall subject we are discussing influence's the type of behavior at music stores that you are talking about and I have had the same thing happen to me. I have been in stores and had salesmen refuse to take down a bass for me to play "because it's really expensive " and this is when I was in my '30's!!! I was at a GC in Chicago and noticed a Modulus frettless I wanted to check out,after 15min of being ignored by the salesmen I finally got his attention and asked for a cord to plug it in. The salesmen reach over and TOOK the bass from me and said"this Bass is $1600 dude" to which I said "So what" then he asked me "well I don't know if you can afford it" and I told him "Trust me,I can" to which he said "Are you sure? because i don't want this to get scratched up" So I pulled out my platinum card and 450 in cash (I was buying something else in the store) and said "I think I got it covered" at that point I saw the recording dept manager who I knew and he came over and said hello and I told him "this guy dosn't think I can afford a $1600 Bass,maybe I should of worn a tie?" the Manager laughed and said "i think he's good for the money" and pulled him to the side when the salesmen came back he had a entirely different attitude but I was done with him and went to buy what I came there for. the point is;why would this guy assume that I couldn't afford the bass? I was dressed like most people in the store,Im not a teenager by far,I speak standard English ect maybe it was because I'm......... chunky? I don't know but i felt bias had a lot to do with my treatment.
Rickett Customs
Commercial User
And, I'm stepping out of this thread. The turning subject matter does not bother me too much, I'm just feeling a bit unqualified to answer this question now. Have at it though
Your not chunky...your pleasantly plump. Actually I have seen discrimination against pleasantly plump people..no matter if they even had dreads!
Seriously though, why were you in GC? The on by the mines??? UGH! I'd rather play arlon spector in a made for tv movie.
Seriously though, why were you in GC? The on by the mines??? UGH! I'd rather play arlon spector in a made for tv movie.
Where did I say a Black Bass Player magazine was a bad idea? Don't be so set on scoring points that you don't actually comprehend what my post meant.
It is clear that you think the criticisms being raised here have no merit, so why do you waste your time reading them? It would be like me listening to Rush Limbaugh for hours, making myself mad. It's good to hear different points of view, but once you get them, don't linger if you see there can be no meeting of the minds.
I've gotta ask....why do you care how I waste my time?
My impression of this thread:
Billy Low asked a legitimate question. Then a whole bunch of pages of people whining and complaining about the whole injustice of the "unrepresented young black bass player" and not one suggestion on a solution to the perceived "issue".
I present a possible solution, Jauqo points out that it's already being tried, you get defensive about it. (What's up with that? )
Yes, it is clear that I think bitching about something over and over will not change anything. If you have a constructive solution to this "problem", please post it , I am truly interested in reading what you come up with.
Telling an under-represented minority group "Sorry, maybe you should go do your own thing" isn't exactly solving the problem. More like entrenching the division, whether that division is real or perceived.
Were did he ask for a solution? "He who hath created the problem must provide a solution to that problem" not the ones who called it to the table. BP needs a long and well desrved wake up call and some just can't seem to understand this.
Yeah I was trying to check out an elrick but the guy would'nt even take it down for me. I purchased a 6 string claro walnut and took it with me back to the boooooooteek store and purchase two medium picks from the guy. HAH
This day and age musicianship is lost on the mainstream labels, promotors and editors for the most part. Anyone see a write up or publicity on Esparanza? Bad upright bass playing sista. Anyone depending on magazines and labels to furthur their love of music will be in for a big letdown. All the tools are available to front yourself.
Hey Will you still got all those new basses you can't play? That's what Eric said.
Ahh you know who it is now!
Unless your the wrong Will.
Yeah I was trying to check out an elrick but the guy would'nt even take it down for me. I purchased a 6 string claro walnut and took it with me back to the boooooooteek store and purchase two medium picks from the guy. HAH
This day and age musicianship is lost on the mainstream labels, promotors and editors for the most part. Anyone see a write up or publicity on Esparanza? Bad upright bass playing sista. Anyone depending on magazines and labels to furthur their love of music will be in for a big letdown. All the tools are available to front yourself.
Hey Will you still got all those new basses you can't play? That's what Eric said.
Ahh you know who it is now!
Didn't Esparanza get a BP cover last year?
EDIT: She was on the June 2008 cover.
That depends on whether you want to solve the problem, or just b*tch about it.
Ever see the movie Clerks? There is a perfect scene in this vein towards the end.
RANDAL: That's all bulls**t. You know what the real problem here is?
DANTE: I was born.
RANDAL: You should s**t or get off the pot.
DANTE: I should s**t or get off the pot.
RANDAL: Yeah, you should s**t or get off the pot.
DANTE: What are you talking about?
RANDAL: I'm talking about this thing you have...this inability to improve your situation in life.
DANTE: F**k you.
RANDAL: It's true. You'll sit there and blame life for dealing a cruddy hand, never once accepting the responsibility for the way your situation is.
DANTE: What responsibility?
RANDAL: All right, if you hate this job and the people, and the fact that you have to come in on your day off, then quit.
DANTE: As if it's that easy.
RANDAL: It is. You just up and quit. There are other jobs, and they pay better money. You're bound to be qualified for at least one of them. So what's stopping you?
DANTE: Leave me alone.
RANDAL: You're comfortable. This is a life of convenience for you, and any attempt to change it would shatter the pathetic microcosm you've fashioned for yourself.
DANTE: Oh, like your life's any better?
RANDAL: I'm satisfied with my situation for now. You don't hear me b**ching. You, on the other hand, have been b**ching all day.
Why do they need it?
Are they losing money? Losing advertisers? Would they make MORE money if they were more diverse?
Unless the answer to at least one of those questions is yes, they don't need to do anything.
They need to do whatever maximizes their profits within the bounds of the law.
Under normal circumstances I couldn't care less, but when you keep posting on thread saying how pointless it is, I do wonder. As I said earlier, I don't waste my own time on things that I thing are silly or pointless.
By using this standard, most of TB is people bitching and wasting time. How much of our bitching and moaning changes Fender or the price of Foderas? How much does posting on TB get older players gigs with young and hip bands? Has talking about GAS-ing for a bass ever got someone a new Sadowsky or Lakland or even a SX?
A forum is place where people come together and talk about issues unless they happen to be Black people talking about something that concerns them.
That is the feeling I get from you.
Maybe instead of looking at just BP mag with regard to the ratio of representation of black to other color players, we should look at all media in general and see what the trend shows.
I am guessing that the trend in BP and other media are following a similar curve, however I have no data to reinforce that wild assertion.
But here goes the wild assertion anyway... A long time ago, black people we woefully underrepresented by all media - TV, movies, magazines, etc... If we compare then to today, I believe we can all agree that trend has shifted and black people are significantly more represented (as are other marginalized groups). Certainly not 1 to 1 (yet), but I bet that curve went from damn near flat (long ago) to quite steep (recently) and is continuing to trend toward "equal".
Why? So many reasons it's literally impossible to even start to list them, but one reason is that people raise the issue and discuss it.
Do I think Bill Leigh was - and John Herrera is guilty of racism (unintended or otherwise) in their duties as EIC at BP? No. Do I believe the market and it's apparent racist tinge (intended or otherwise) may have influenced the content of BP? Yeah.
Do I think that will slowly but surely go away over time. You bet. If we pay attention to how race representation in mass media has trended to date, it's hard to believe it won't.
As a bass player - and subscriber to BP - I have to admit - it never occurred to me to pay attention to the race of the players *I* read about. {Edited}
I am guessing that the trend in BP and other media are following a similar curve, however I have no data to reinforce that wild assertion.
But here goes the wild assertion anyway... A long time ago, black people we woefully underrepresented by all media - TV, movies, magazines, etc... If we compare then to today, I believe we can all agree that trend has shifted and black people are significantly more represented (as are other marginalized groups). Certainly not 1 to 1 (yet), but I bet that curve went from damn near flat (long ago) to quite steep (recently) and is continuing to trend toward "equal".
Why? So many reasons it's literally impossible to even start to list them, but one reason is that people raise the issue and discuss it.
Do I think Bill Leigh was - and John Herrera is guilty of racism (unintended or otherwise) in their duties as EIC at BP? No. Do I believe the market and it's apparent racist tinge (intended or otherwise) may have influenced the content of BP? Yeah.
Do I think that will slowly but surely go away over time. You bet. If we pay attention to how race representation in mass media has trended to date, it's hard to believe it won't.
As a bass player - and subscriber to BP - I have to admit - it never occurred to me to pay attention to the race of the players *I* read about. {Edited}
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