Universal Music

Music should be a Universal.  Instead we have this conception of labeling things by "Genre".  A "Genre" is a way to classify songs accordingly.  It's similar to using "Black or White", "Gay or Straight" and "Catholic or Muslim".  How did I come to this correlation and is this true?

I see "Genre" as form of segregation/discrimination.  Any type of labeling system people use to classify a person, a persons works or a persons ideas/thinking is a form of labeling.  Labeling can have more cons than pros.  For instance, most view R&B (Rhythm & Blues) as a Black type of sound.  Most view Rock as a White type of sound.  When a person view Iggy Azalea, they view her as a wigger (a person trying to be Black or do a Black thing).  The same goes for artists like Lenny Kravitz.  His style of music is rock and most will view him as a Black artists trying to be White.

This endless classification can do more harm than good.  It also can create a phobia or dislike.  One artist that comes to mind is George Michaels.  After his forced coming out party...GM hasn't been able to produce a hit record.  The view of George Michaels is a Gay man faking to be straight.  These are some example of how an added stereotype of Age, Religion, Sex, Sexual Preference, Race or Origin can affect an artist.

While this has affected some artists, others have found growth.  A great example of this is RuPaul or Adam Lambert.  Neither artist lied about their sexuality, yet neither artist has been affected much.  RuPaul has aligned herself with a huge gay following, but RuPaul is also a Dance artist.  Adam Lambert doesn't rely on his gay sexual preference nor does he express that out loud.  Adam Lambert and his fans know.  His genre is an open genre (POP).  Because Adam Lambert's choice of genre is POP, he is in a genre that doesn't critic your sexual choice.

Now some will try to contradict this entire post with examples of Gay/Rap artist, Straight/Gay Music Artist and so on.   Just keep in mind, a Gay/Rap artist such as Frank Ocean, isn't as famous as Lil Wayne.  The same can be said about Barbra Streisand.  She is the worlds highest selling Female Artist and gays flock to her like a moth to a fame, yet you rarely her music in a gay club unless it's a drag performance.  Even Madonna has taken heat because of her age and her main genre Dance/Club doesn't care to view a grandma on stage. (oops)

Added stereotypes of Age, Religion, Sex, Sexual Preference, Race, Origin, personal attitudes, speech impairments, negative/positive word usage and dress attire have factored into the idea "Is this artist an artist I want to here or an artist I will never care to here".  To live life on a stereotype is to block yourself from learning and enjoying the fruits this life can offer.  The world is a diverse place why should anyone segregate it any further with the classification called a "Genre".

On a side note... there are other things that complication the thought:  Music should be Universal.  The debates of live Instruments vs. Computer Made VST/AU's, the Loops and Samples debate, the Performer and Ghost Performer, the Stage Performer and the Stay at Home Performer, The Bar Performer and the Club Performer, the Lip Sync Performer and the Actual Performer and on and on.

I thought Music was Universal, but it's not.  To N'joy a sound is to accept the sound for being what it is...a sound.