Dead C
Well-Known Member
Except, it feels like we're working backwards here. It's like going to a "classic Italian" restaurant that starts loading the menu with low end cheesburgers and hard shell tacos and then saying, "well... we can agree that this shouldn't be advertised as an Italian restaurant, but..." The thing is that it IS advertised that way. Just because it doesn't hit the mark, doesn't mean we should accept and redefine that for them. "I ordered the baked ziti and got a quesadilla, but I like quesadillas. It's cool." These are supposed to be essentials. Just because there is a Rap & Hip Hop track and a Classics track full of jazz and blues, doesn't mean Essentials isn't still supppsed to be essentials. It's still advertised as albums they believe everyone needs to own.
With the logic that it won't appeal to everyone, we also have to consider the fact that rap isn't going to appeal to everyone and that jazz isn't going to appeal to everyone. Those genre specific tracks are being looked almost as a way to support the idea that it isn't as important for an Essentials pick to be all that essential, but it kind of makes the opposite case in my opinion. Not everyone is that eclectic. They know what RHH and Classics represent and don't subscribe to them. It is, however, accepted that titles from those genres will bleed into the main track, if they are deemed essential. That's how the curation works. On the other hand, we know rap just has to be rap. Nobody is gonna make the case that Honest is "essential;" it just gets a pass for technically falling within the category.
Now imagine if the side tracks weren't there and it was like things used to be with only the main track. Imagine no Sahara and no Prince Among Thieves. No swaps. And this month is just John Mayer. That's this month for this club. That's what represents them this month as a club. Continuum. You look to VMP this month and it's represented by this. It IS still like that for some people.
Of course we know we have these swaptions and now even the credit swap, available. But look at it as the choice just based on this being what they've determined was an Essential pick for everyone. They press more of Essentials for a reason. Everytime some shit goes wrong on drop day, people defend VMP by pointing out that a large portion -- perhaps even the majority -- of subscribers don't even fuck with swaps. They just subscribe to Essentials and let it ride.
Cases can be made for Stevie Nicks and for White Stripes, and definitely for Aretha, as "essentials," whether you are a fan or not. The other case often made is that people are in the club for their curation. John Mayer?
Does anyone remember when St Vincent or Moses Sumney were released and VMP addressed the choice to drop new albums as their essential ROTM by claiming they'd heard them in advance and determined they were just that good and deserved that status -- debatable, yes, but they still felt the need to fight for that case. Will they fight for that case here, or just say, "well... a lot of people will like it. It will sell"? Is it fair to still question if they missed the mark? Is this an Essential pick? I see a lot of people who are cool with this pick or fine with this pick. Is anyone in here really excited about it? But maybe the underlying question is really if we believe that they really believe in it.
I think this one is worse than Moby and I might be completely wrong about the significance, because it just sounded like derivative throw away material when it came out and I ignored it. Maybe there is some cultural significance or something innovative I have no awaremess of. The Moby selection might not be a great choice in a lot of minds -- I admit that I didn't get it -- but it's relevance was still there. It changed things in music for better or worse. It introduced folks to electronic music, or even largely instrumental music, that otherwise wouldn't entertain the idea at a time when MTV and corporate radio was still a primary source of music discovery.
That seems like a lot to type for a pick that I'm indifferent on and won't really affect me, but I am curious about if everyone believes that we should keep working to redefine VMP's product and service for them when they continue to sell and promote it another way only to fall short.
Who here is really excited about this and, if you are, would you make the case this is an essential own? I'm genuinely curious. I'm also interested to see the VMP write up arguing that case.
Right now doesn't really feel like the best time to try and sell a blues and soul influenced album by pop star who claimed his dick was a white supremacist and dropped the N word in an interview, claiming he had a "hood pass" simply based on the fact that he's an appropriater. That one is going to be more difficult to defend than just releasing an unexciting essentials pick. I wonder if they'll even acknowledge it.
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How have you been lately?
Not sure but, who knows! I mean, I like Kanye West and he likes Donald Trump 
, so it’s like “hmmmm 
”!
