Janelle Monae in Tightrope

Since I'm on the subject of music videos of late, I thought I might discuss Janell Monae. She has just released her latest video, Tightrope, which is quite interesting.



It's a catchy song, with a great backbeat. It kind of takes you back to the old glory days of Big Bands, swing, and James Brown soul. Which part of the video is meant to be a tribute to - ala a modified Footloose.

Comparisons of Janelle Monae to James Brown are sure to be made. Unlike many entertainers today Monae moves, she provides showmanship along with her melodious voice. The difference is so stark and obvious that even in the video Big Boi looks out of place not only in his attire, but in his lack of presentation. So in a sense it's akin to James Brown on stage with just about anyone except Michael Jackson doing James Brown.

Still Janelle Monae is not Brown. She has some moves, but they just don't inspire the style and impressiveness of Brown. Though she does stand far taller over her peers than her 5' would seem to allow.

This video is impressive, and if the rest of the albulm, soon to be released, is as good she will be taking the charts. In a way I see her potentially like Alicia Keys, an artist and entertainer. Someone who is more of a throwback to the days where there was substance to an entertainer; as opposed to the majority today (in virtually every music genre) that are throwaways, with far too much flash and nothing to back it up with besides a massive marketing campaign.

If nothing else, Janelle Monae continues to impress and cement her status as class and substance that is as much of a pleasure to see as to hear.

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Do we need to see Who's Your Caddy? - 7.16.2007.1

I was in the movies recently (seeing Harry Potter) and I noticed a couple of movies coming up. One of them I had to double check and see other trailers. That movie was Who’s Your Caddy? The title makes you think golf, and perhaps a comedy. I’m sure that was what whoever wrote and directed this was intending. Sadly, they seemed to have missed the mark.

The fact is that Who’s Your Caddy? is apparently a cheap remake of Caddyshack. The fact that it’s a remake doesn’t mean that it’s bad. The storyline, as featured by the trailers says it is. All the elements are there, rich guy wants to play golf because he loves the game. Another rich guy that has an obnoxious attitude and is anal-retentive refuses to let him join. The first guy strives to join the exclusive membership and a golf match is setup to determine which of the 2 stay. That’s Caddyshack. The changes are that the protagonist is black, the humor has devolved to include large helpings of body humor, and there are gratuitous scenes of women gyrating. Oh, and a love story that sounds weak, and a hidden talent at playing golf. Help me.

Could they remake Caddyshack with African Americans and have it be a good movie? Sure they can, if they spent some money on the writing. They didn’t. Could it still be worth watching with a less than great script? Sure, if they had good directing. Seems like they missed on that too.

I have no problem that the film is based on a rapper that has done very well for himself. He has money, cool. He has an entourage that seems to be less than bright, not so cool. The one guy is so dumb that when someone asks to get Johnny Cochrane involved (which in itself was stupid) and they are told he is dead (Newsflash!) the black guy thinks that one of them killed him. Please. In another part we see that there is a music video, and the women of course are music video girls, and have to be in tops that are skimpy and clothes that are too tight. What could be the motivation for having Mr. Faizon Love fart like a foghorn? You must be kidding right? Oh, don’t forget the required ghettoized golf cart.

It’s a collection of juvenile jokes. That could still be good but they could have made it so much more. Yet I have to imagine that the executives involved in greenlighting this movie figured a couple of things. First, they have a rapper/entertainer in the movie (Big Boi of Outkast). That will attract the hip hop and rap music fans. It’s a pro-black, large African American cast which will ensure that a good percentage of Blacks will see it no matter what. Third the cost of the film is really low so there is no real risk.

It’s basically the same formula used in Soul Plane. Cheap film (about $5 million) featuring African Americans, with a low quality script, makes about $35 million in the movies even after the massive number of bootleg DVDs made on it. Then it gets to an official DVD and On Demand on cable. Maybe another $5 million there. The execs could care less how ghettofabulous or silly the African American culture is portrayed. They got their money and they are satisfied.

This movie looks to be beneath everyone involved from the look of it. I’d like to think I’m wrong, but considering trailers tend to be the best 30 seconds or so of a movie the outlook is bleak.

This is what I think, what do you think?