I have never been a supporter of the idea of buying black simply for the sake of it being black. As I look around however, and increasingly see us losing more and more control over the images and ideas that uniquely represent us, I'm compelled to adjust my original stance. It is important for us to support each other, and yes, just for the sake of being black. It's not a color thing. It's a culture thing. We often gripe about the way other communities stick together, but it is because we have literally given up our power to influence industries to do otherwise.
Intellectuals griped about the quality of Tyler Perry's plays when he begin to gain notoriety (I admit, I did too). But I also pitched and got him his first major national magazine coverage in a People magazine article back in 2004. I even go buy movie tickets to stuff I KNOW I don't want to see, because I think the diversity in voices are important and necessary. I don't dig "urban lit" in the base sense of the word, but if I have a platform to promote it I will, in most cases, because it is important to have ALL aspects of our experiences told.
You don't have to be interested in EVERYTHING, but sometimes we have to step out of ourselves and realize that it really isn't about us. There is a bigger picture here. Keep in mind that Tyler starting out on Chitlin' circuit allowed him to start a cultural revolution, resulting in him being the ONLY black studio owner in the WORLD. Oprah didn't even swing that.
Don't complain about the circumstances if you have done nothing to change them—even if it is a decade later (shout out to my big sis for FINALLY discovering Lauryn Hill!).
Posts
A cultural revolution? Tyler has achieved unimaginable success, I take nothing from him. But calling his achievements the catalyst for a cultural revolution is a gross exaggeration. He has a studio, good for him. Bob Johnson has BET. Good for him. How the negative imagery pushed by BET video culture and the two dimensional characters created by Mr. Perry, benefits the group is beyond me. It enriches them but doesn't change our lives materially. The only effect that I can see is that it places Mr. Perry in a position of enormous power. I have yet to see new directors, writers, and producers coming out of his studio.
ReplyDeleteThe success of companies like BET and Tyler Perry has only served to make them the go-to people in that industry. And it serves to make it extraordinarily difficult for other artists of color, especially black artists, even established artists, to find a platform for their work.
Thus a diversity of perspectives and aesthetics becomes that much more difficult to find. That's what we are up against and it is not good for us as a people.
@ A GA Peach: Interesting points, however I would propose the following. 1) Perry's studio just opened a year ago, so there really has not been enough time to see exactly what he will do in the way of offering opporunity to new writers/directors/etc. Based on his previous record of employing black actors who mainstream studios have largely written off or would never have employed in the first place and crew, I can't imagine he wouldn't bring that same community commitment to his studio projects. And the fact that he is the ONLY black man who can greenlight a film is a MAJOR cultural revolution. There are really only a handful of white men who can greenlight a film, so credit needs to be given where credit is due. And as a point of clarity, Bob Johnson doesn't have BET--he sold it to Viacom (the same corporation that owns MTV and VH-1).
ReplyDelete