12-PLAY
KEITH SWEAT
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The rise of this slow jam has led to a proliferation of male vocal groups such as Boyz II Men, Shai, Silk, and Jodeci–and a variety of distaff counterparts, like SWV, Jade, and Blackgirl–many of whom have gold or platinum discs to show for their efforts. But, as is often the case, the artistic accomplishment of these groups–particularly the guy groups–has lagged well behind their commercial success. The requisite “hardness” is often just a pose, but it’s hard to abandon. And the slow jams these groups have ridden to fame and fortune require a vulnerability that has not been on the usual pull-down menus of contemporary black masculinity. Without it a lot of the songs in this subgenre are loaded with empty gestures: at best they’re beggin’ for bootie when they mean to be beggin’ for love. When they should be putting their heart and soul on the line, these singers are trying to impress the girls with their machismo and good intentions. We don’t need Shere Hite to tell us that most women are going to find that pitch really tiresome.
Things got off track with Luther Campbell’s Miami vice; 2 Live Crew’s “Me So Horny” has started a sort of b-boy-at-the-Admiral-Theatre school with ribald offspring like Wreckx-N-Effect’s “Rump Shaker,” Hammer’s “Pumps and a Bump,” and Sir Mix-A-Lot’s “Put ‘Em on the Glass.” By comparison almost any indication that a woman just might be more than the sum of her genitals isn’t just refreshing, it’s cause for celebration.
