I liked the Motown tribute by Jennifer Lopez. I especially liked that early 60s songs were featured. I don't follow current music, nor have I the past 20+ years, but it seems like most of the performers seem to wear skimpy costumes. I'm glad Motown got recognized.
When Ed Sullivan broadcast an Irving Berlin tribute show in 1968 Diana Ross and The Supremes did an updated version of the love ballad "Always". My parents immediate reaction was that they "ruined" a beautiful song. lol They did feel The Supremes "redeemed" themselves with the medley of Irving Berlin songs sung as they were written.
I think I will play them the clip and see what their reaction is 50 years later. I think my mother will enjoy it but my father will stubbornly stick to his first reaction!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NglN3ja_syE
Last edited by johnjeb; 02-12-2019 at 02:36 PM.
Just adding my two cents to the discussion.... I wasn't annoyed that Jennifer Lopez did the tribute. I was annoyed that they focused on her when Ne-Yo was playing and singing. I was annoyed that it had far too much focus on the butt. I liked the idea of using songs that are not typically used to showcase the Motown sound. Motown crossed boundaries and racial lines. It would have been nice to see that represented by having a true Motown artist start off the tribute then add people of other cultures into the mix so we could see the far reaching of the Motown sound. They didn't really think through the tribute and ended up with a Vegas showroom presentation. But, I felt that way about a lot of the mash-ups presented on the broadcast - they just didn't think them through and they all looked thrown together without enough rehearsal. At least J-Lo looked professional.
I watch and tape the Grammy Awards and honestly have been bored with the last few years. I have to say I rather enjoyed this year's emphasis on female content. I am fully aware of the J Lo Motown tribute controversy, and agree it should have been more connected to Motown. However, I want to make the point that all the controversy that this misstep has caused, is drawing a LOT of attention to the 60th anniversary of Motown coming up, and isn't any publicity good for the cause? Let's hope the producers get that right!
The Grammys, like most of the awards shows have always been an easy target...some of which well deserved, however, Motown received it's well deserved fair share of the 2019 edition attention, from the Diana tribute segment to the Motown tribute segment, Michelle Obama's shoutout, frequent promos for the upcoming Motown 60th anniversary special to many affiliated Motown people sitting in the primo up front seating at the event [[I even recognized a few minor Motown players and associates like road managers all dressed up sitting in the front row)...yet many will still find reasons to bitch, moan, and complain...Plus, not just here...but on other sites and Facebook posts...EVERYBODY is a "producer" who could have put together a better segment spelled out in great detail in many cases including what songs out of the thousands recorded at Motown should have been included and folks were personally insulted that THEIR favorite song was not included... I'm waiting for the accusation that the entire NARAS organization is a Mafia front...Once again, Ricky Nelsons Garden Party lyrics come to mind..."You can't please everyone, so you've gotta please yourself"...
Last edited by StuBass1; 02-12-2019 at 05:58 PM.
While they begin planning for this telecast months in advance...the real work takes place in the month or two leading up once they figure out who's gonna be who. Can you imagine the work going into, even that opening segment they did with Ricky Martin, J Balvin and the great Arturo Sandoval...from the choregraphy, to the set design, to organizing the participants...and that's just one segment, which is what cheeses me about that little brat Ariana Grande who was insisting that SHE would put something together at the last minute and they should insert it into the show. She was rightfully told to go pound sand and get back to random donut licking...
I'm all over this but I see Smoke can't let this go.
It's okay to admit you want that booty, Smoke.
It's all about the talent to me and Smoke, she didn't have it.
But if you wanna make it about race, then be my guest! They think he's a c**n for this but I had no issue with a NB performing Motown. Just didn't need a Salsa version of the Motown Sound lol
Would've been nice if she did You Beat Me to the Punch though. That had calypso in it. Lol
Last edited by midnightman; 02-12-2019 at 08:21 PM.
Ariana wanted to get in the Latin segment??? She does horrible versions of "black" music herself [[way worse than J. Lo I might add, who did do some decent hip-hop/R&B in the beginning of her music career despite the fact she's a two-note vocalist lol).
LOL at "random donut licking".
Didn't their vocal track skip when they were live on tour and it was broadcast on TV? Fabrice Morvan has said it wasn't a big deal but that's not what Rob Pilatus said [[can't find the Behind the Music clip but here's what he said verbatim at the time, eight years after the fact:
"I wanted to die. It stopped. [Singing]Girl you know it's, girl you know it's... I couldn't repeat it 50 times. It got all weird so I stopped, I ran off stage. Julie Brown, who used to work for MTV, ran after me. I didn't care. 80,000 people waited. I said 'I had enough, I quit.'"
Also, I think the "real" Milli Vanilli were going out to the press to talk about how they really sang on the track. But I guess to Arista and the music industry, they were just lying... until their producer said "yeah they ain't singing on it". Lol
Tell it Smokey...Motown was created for everyone on the planet to enjoy and participate in...Tell Joe Messina that his guitar shouldn't have played those amazing backbeats, tell Babbitt that his basslines on Inner City Blues or Signed, Sealed, Delivered, what business did Rare Earth ever have to record Get Ready, or what if Harry Balk never ascended to the head of Motown to CONVINCE Berry top release Whats Going On...
Well, another Motown legend just spoke and, uh... let's just say she DOESN'T share Smokey's utopia LOL
That message was from Marvelette Katherine Anderson-Schaffner.
Last edited by midnightman; 02-12-2019 at 08:59 PM.
Dennis was terrific and MANY musicians including my own brother who played flute in the woodwind session on For Once In My Life and arranged several Motown albums and wrote and produced the theme song for the Motown film the Last Dragon and produced The Commodores and Temptations and literally dozens of musicians from various ethnicities Hell...Irene Ryan [[Granny on the Beverly Hillbillies) recorded for Motown... I wasn't meaning to slight anyone among the dozens of Motowners from various walks of life... Mentioned Joe and Bob as members of the legal entity known as The Funk Brothers who were instrumental in Motowns success. So many others played with the Funk Brothers and had a great impact on the label over the years...
As performers???... I saw them on one of TJ Lubinskys shows several years ago and they were pretty much up to their limit. Once again...I have no personal involvement or interest in any of this, so I trust they will invite those they feel should be invited and not invite those for whatever reason they choose not to invite. As evidenced by this most recent dust up...they will NEVER please everyone, so do what they do and the proof will be in the pudding, although all the amateur "producers" are sure to have their say...
Well said Katherine!
Ive had discussions on this with Patricia Washington and understand she has strong feelings. I just happen to disaagree with her, but like anyone else, is entitled to her opinion. After admitting that she did not watch the J-Lo performance but commenting on it as Katherine from The Marvelettes did only illustrates a very subjective opinion based on nothing but a photograph. I certainly appreciate her contribution to the Motown Sound, however, harking back 55 years to a different day and time when the ladies wore their skirts below the knee is much different than contemporary mores of today, and thankfully, she didn't have to witness Cardi b's performance and outfit...Times change...As for the question of who is invited...I have no idea what the criteria is...I know there are always limitations to these things. I was in charge of one Motown event and had to actually inform a certain member of a certain well known female group that I could not accomodate her for admission into a certain VIP area and felt bad about it in addition to other people I could not accommodate, but ultimately, just decided to accept the fact that in the end...to some folks, I would have to be the "bad guy...but I had my limitations. These things happen. I'm sure Motown will include those they can who they feel should be there, but there are always situations that most of us aren't aware of that influence other decisions...Once again...you can't please everyone...Do your show and move on...
Last edited by StuBass1; 02-12-2019 at 10:34 PM.
Marv if you talk to Katherine tell her she has support!
It's not controversial to say Motown was a predominantly black record label that revolutionized the world and it appealed to everyone and still diss J Lo.
Different people may have different motivations behind their opinions. I can tell you for CERTAIN that I've come across MANY people on both Facebook and YouTube...MANY people who have come right out and criticized the selection of J-Lo because they believe that only a Black artist should be doing that tribute...they admit it and don't hide it. I suspect some others who cite different reasons actually feel the same way, and some may sincerely believe that someone else could have put on a better performance and are disappointed that NARAS didn't seek them out to produce the segment...I can't speak for everyone and folks can explain their position the way they want and everyone is entitled to their opinion, regardless of their stated reasoning...however, I also suspect that some folks would rather see an 80 year old performer trying to sing songs with notes they can't begin to hit leaning on their walker than to accept the fact that J-Lo, a Latina was given the slot to perform the segment... That said...nobody is going to die as a result of this performance and it's funny that a 10 minute performance halfway to Mars by now is still being debated...LOL
Last edited by StuBass1; 02-12-2019 at 11:25 PM.
MJ controversy led Grammys to change their plans on Motown celebration:
https://www.freep.com/story/entertai...te/2852604002/
THAT'S WHY it changed so much.
Also Stevie was initially part of it but then dropped out [[who knows if it was related to MJ or not; I know he's supposed to be in the actual Motown tribute show). Berry Gordy was also part of the planning lol
I think that's why Smokey is defending the decision lmao
So I think I'm finally getting a clue on why they asked Lopez. I know many won't agree with why but eh, they had to do what they do, I guess.
But this is why America is a great country. You can have differing opinions as long as it don't turn into divisive screaming matches. I'm pretty much seeing both sides of the argument though I can agree to disagree on some elements.
Last edited by midnightman; 02-12-2019 at 11:36 PM.
Most think because it's black history and Motown's history consisted on making a bunch of black musicians world famous icons that they felt black artists were being "shut out". Maybe it's humorous to you but it's not really that much of a baseless complaint. Someone said in another thread that they talked to a Latino worker after the show how they would feel if an R&B artist had done a tribute to a Latino artist and they suddenly were like "oh OK I get it now."
I mean I think it's a complex issue, least on my end, it is!
If according to Brian McCollum who I've had dealings with in the past and is a credible reporter is correct, apparently this Neverland thing on cable [[which I've not seen) created a backlash, either by MJ's family or NARAS not wanting to become embroiled in a serious controversy is understandable... These segments are not put together in a week...way too many end to pull together...set design, musical arrangements, backup singers and dancers, producers and choreographers, etc, etc, etc...and could never have been pulled together from scratch in such short time, so It's completely understandable for them to have stuck that already produced and rehearsed segment into the Grammy telecast... Otherwise, they would have had to slap some much less produced segment into the show that would not have had a Motown flair, or shortened the show... I imagine that changes then had to be made to tonights Motown 60 taping...
If you look at it through a narrow lens, then yes, you could make a case that is cut and dry...but you are now contradicting yourself from two posts up where you stated that race has "nothing" to do with Lopez getting criticized, and now you are making the case that race IS the prime factor based on your anecdote about the Latino worker you mentioned. You are entitled to your feelings based on whatever reason you maintain, but like the weather, you can't have it both ways...And finally... I'm also convinced that so many people who voiced their opposition to this J-Lo segment were so vested in their opposition, that she could have put on the greatest performance in the history of show business and most of those people were not about to admit that perhaps they jumped the gun, although I have come across a few, like Tyler Perry who originally questioned the selection, but gave the performance an enthusiastic thumbs up...
Last edited by StuBass1; 02-13-2019 at 12:05 AM.
Anyways...by now...J-Lo is still worth over 300 Million and I'm not, and I'm sure she is over it...Many others...not so much...
Late to the party on this one!
Well, I too thought it was a non-Motown Motown show segment. But please know that the producers are TV people. They do not care about tradition. It's only about ratings. What looks good and hopefully sounds good but most importantly the ratings. Ratings which have been going down down for years on ALL Award shows.
The TV networks go crazy with a too-long show...The Grammys are over 3 hours. The Oscars had a major member revolt by sending some awards to be given during commercials to shorten the show! And it's all driven by mega-TV conglomerates who THINK they know what they're doing!
As I see it...
Motown is no more. Sucked up by Universal's UMG its just another label of the past along with Capitol, A&M, Verve and on.... The Enrichment went to the founder along with huge publishing rights. Everyone should be really happy that the memories and the music warrant a 60th anniversary celebration! And now TV and Streaming are the kings.
I will add that IMO it was done in poor taste! J-Lo might be a great performer in her genre but did not belong in a Motown segment.
I ask why is it when it comes to shows, segments or specials for Blacks everyone screams inclusion? The Dolly Parton segment wasn't inclusive. They didn't ask Dionne or J-Lo or to sing her songs. Who remembers when there was talk of Patti Labelle portraying Celia Cruz. It was an uproar. The inclusion and diversity is very selective.
I understand Motown was created for ALL people and intended to bring people together and in the same vain the tribute should have been done by someone who was there and actually a part of it.
This was your typical performance politics at play and nothing more!!!!!
Last edited by CoolKatz; 02-17-2019 at 06:59 PM.
Sorry but where does it say that this opinion piece came from Katherine of the Marvelettes? This seems to come from Patricia, the admin of the Marvelettes fan group. Please double check your facts before posting and attaching someone's name to something. Also, instead of her going on and being offended by Smokey's words, maybe she needs to check herself before she goes on calling J Lo, "this chick". You're allowed to not like her, but I find that kind of label on any woman also disrespectful, especially when she is an accomplished artist in her own right. It's a diminishing choice of words. So before you go off on Smokey insulting 'you', maybe try taking a step back...
I agree with Stu. Everyone wants to be grossly offended by everything these days. I can't believe this is still going on, all these days later. People need to get over themselves. Everyone makes everything so personal. People feel this personal attachment to Motown, so it becomes, "How dare they give us this lackluster tribute!!" Who cares. I tend to wonder if it was Beyonce doing the tribute instead and shaking her booty...would the reaction be the same?
Marv, I see that midnightman wrote in his own post that it comes from Kat, but the screen shot he included, which comes from Facebook, does not say anything about "this comes from Kat". It's like me taking a screen shot of one of your posts from Soulful Detroit and saying it's written by Mary Wilson.
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