[FA Worldmusic] Angelique's Grammy

Steve Hochman shochman at pacbell.net
Tue Feb 12 22:40:22 AST 2008 

I want to make clear that I mean no disrespect to Evangeline, who has  
done wonderful reporting and promotion in this field, very valuable  
and passionate work.



Around the World
http://www.spinner.com/category/around-the-world/


On Feb 12, 2008, at 6:29 PM, Evangeline Kim wrote:

> Your reporting does little good to what is important.  Angelique is  
> a great artist.
>
> I'm not hoping to hear very much more from this thread.
>
> Angelique is a winner.
>
> Evangeline
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Steve Hochman
> To: Evangeline Kim
> Cc: fa-worldmusic at folk.org
> Sent: Tuesday, February 12, 2008 8:51 PM
> Subject: Re: [FA Worldmusic] Angelique's Grammy
>
> Evangeline, I get what you're saying, but remember the context. I'm  
> a journalist who was covering the Grammy Awards in the backstage  
> print press room, and Angelique came back to address us and made  
> those comments.... without even being asked a question. She just  
> started talking and after saying it was great to win a Grammy  
> questioned the category. How is reporting that mean and/or  
> insensitive?
>
>  I made no statement as to whether she did or did not deserve the  
> award, which is as already demonstrated in this email group open for  
> debate. There's no question that her recognition has a lot to do  
> with her crossover strides and the fact that this album is full of  
> relatively high-profile non-African performers. I'll admit I'm not a  
> huge fan of this record, which is a matter of taste and taste alone.  
> Many people love it and rightfully so.
>
> But the reason I thought her comments were worth printing was that I  
> admired her forthrightness and willingness to question the very  
> process that brought her honors that night. Ignoring what she said,  
> not giving her heartfelt statements exposure, would hardly be a way  
> to celebrate her spirit.
>
>
>
> Around the World
> http://www.spinner.com/category/around-the-world/
>
>
> On Feb 12, 2008, at 5:29 PM, Evangeline Kim wrote:
>
>> GUYS, I love you all,
>>
>> However, I found Hochman's entry about Angelique awful in the way  
>> that
>> journalists can be very mean and totally insensitive to what is the  
>> most
>> important:  THE. GREAT AFRICANS. WHO. INSPIRE. THE. WORLD. ARE NEVER
>> RECOGNIZED IN THEIR LIFETIME. YETL -- Some journalists are only after
>> 'sensationalist' issues and skew artistic greatness to puff up their
>> so-called 'authority.'
>>
>> If you look at Afropop.org and their magnificent  achievements as  
>> far as
>> honoring Africa's great artists, you'll understand deeper and  
>> better - how
>> Angelique has long deserved this Grammy honor...
>>
>> Honor Angelique: All of Africa does for her great work for the  
>> children and
>> mothers all over Africa as well as the depth and beauty of her  
>> great music--
>> Angelique is one of the greatest artists form Africa  today --   
>> that she
>> introduces from Benin, her country.  Listen to all of her great,  
>> great
>> music.
>>
>> Best,
>> Evangeline
>>
>> At 14:12 -0500 12/2/08, Robert Weisberg wrote:
>>> Ah, the old 'world music' semantic conundrum again.  Guess  
>>> Angelique is
>>> not afraid to bite the un-genre that feeds her!
>>>
>>> (Although maybe then it's somehow appropriate that she lives in  
>>> the US,
>>> where Grammies aside, 'world music' is somewhat less of a  
>>> recognized,
>>> organized, marketed concepted than in Europe.)
>>
>> You know, it would be really easy for these world music loathers to
>> turn the awards down but they never do, do they?
>>
>> In the UK, a musician called Nitin Sawhney is always banging on about
>> how he hates the term, that it's a restricting ghetto for musicians
>> blah blah blah, but he turned up the collect his BBC Radio 3 Award
>> for World Music and - not once, but twice - applied for and got a
>> showcase at Womex. I hesitate to use the word "hypocritical", but . .
>> .  if they turned it down, then one of the many artists who DO
>> appreciate what a boost this concept has given to their own careers
>> and often their culture too could receive it instead.
>>
>> And just think - no such thing as bad publicity - they could actually
>> cash in on gaining column centimetres by the very act of turning the
>> thing down. Good result all round!
>>
>>
>> -- 
>> Ian Anderson
>> Editor: fRoots Magazine
>>
>> Local Music From Out There
>>
>> email: ian at frootsmag.com
>> realmail: fRoots, PO Box 337, London N4 1TW, England
>> tel: (Int +44) (0)20 8340 9651
>> fax: (Int +44) (0)20 8348 5626
>> web: http://www.frootsmag.com
>> MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/frootsmag
>>
>> The first and foremost world music, roots and folk monthly
>> magazine celebrates its 300th issue in June 2008! Now
>> also presenting the latest music in fRoots Radio on the net,
>> and home to the interactive fRoots Forum, all to be found
>> at http://www.frootsmag.com
>>
>>
>> From Anglo trad to Zanzibar pop, via the great mixing
>> desk in the sky. (Pronounce it "eff-Roots").
>>
>> P please consider the environment - do you really need to print  
>> this email?
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Robert Weisberg" <robwv at panix.com>
>> To: "FA-Worldmusic ((((E-mail))))" <fa-worldmusic at folk.org>
>> Sent: Tuesday, February 12, 2008 2:35 PM
>> Subject: Re: [FA Worldmusic] Angelique's Grammy
>>
>>
>>> Actually I see that she won in the best 'contemporary' world music
>>> category; 'traditional' world music is a whole other category.  Now
>>> technically, if you consider pure African genre recordings  
>>> 'traditional',
>>> so that any soukous cd, any benga cd, any maskanda cd as belongs  
>>> to the
>>> traditional category - then Djin Djin winds up much higher up the  
>>> list.
>>> At least for African music.  So allow me to correct myself,  
>>> kinda.  Sorry
>>> for emailing without thinking...
>>>
>>>
>>> Rob W
>>>
>>> *********
>>>
>>> On Tue, 12 Feb 2008, Robert Weisberg wrote:
>>>
>>>> Ah, the old 'world music' semantic conundrum again.  Guess  
>>>> Angelique is
>>>> not afraid to bite the un-genre that feeds her!
>>>>
>>>> (Although maybe then it's somehow appropriate that she lives in  
>>>> the US,
>>>> where Grammies aside, 'world music' is somewhat less of a  
>>>> recognized,
>>>> organized, marketed concepted than in Europe.)
>>>>
>>>> Of course, if there really is a best 'world music' album, I'm not  
>>>> sure
>>>> that Djin Djin is it.  Nor would it be even the best African  
>>>> album, in my
>>>> opinion (and I doubt I'm alone there).  But that's ANOTHER story  
>>>> - the
>>>> Grammy conundrum...
>>>>
>>>> Rob W (WFMU)
>>>>
>>>> ***********
>>>>
>>>> On Tue, 12 Feb 2008, Steve Hochman wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Some sharp remarks from Kidjo on her Grammy win in my Around the  
>>>>> World
>>>>> column this week, as well as notes on fellow victors the Soweto  
>>>>> Gospel
>>>>> Choir and Little Joe y La Familia:
>>>>>
>>>>> Around the World
>>>>> http://www.spinner.com/category/around-the-world/
>>>>>
>>>>> as always, share and enjoy!
>>>>>
>>>>> Steve
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> FA-Worldmusic mailing list
>>>>> FA-Worldmusic at folk.org
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