Best of R&B, Soul & Hip Hop 2010
Archandroid is an inspired and worthy addition to the rich cannon of Afrofuturistic music.
Best R&B-Hip Hop- Soul Album 2010: Archandroid by Janelle Monáe
Archandroid was the year's most completely original pop music album release and was head and shoulders above the critically acclaimed hip hop releases by Big Boi, Kanye West, B.o.B, Reflection Eternal, Freeway & Eminem.
Ms. Monáe's ambitious debut was a musical tour de force that was part old school soul music, part hip hop, part glitter rock, part electronic dance opus with elements of performance art. The album concept was based on a futuristic pop/rock opera story line. But it wasn't just the gimmicky theatrical elements of
Archandroid that worked, nearly every track on the album was worthwhile and there was very little in the way of outtake filler on
Archandroid. The album has been a true crossover success that appeals fans of hip hop, neo soul, and indie pop. Monáe's elaborately staged live tour shows of
Archandroid played to enthusiastic audiences in both urban black performance venues and at the mostly white college kid's summertime alt rock festivals.
Ms. Monelle has said that her musical influences run the gamut from Bowie to Roxy Music, early 80s new wave synthesizer rock, to performance art icons like Laurie Anderson as well as the contemporary R&B and Hip Hop music she grew up with in her native Kansas City.
The theme of
Archandroid draws heavily from Fritz Lang’s 1927 science-fiction film, Metropolis, which portrays a divided class system of workers and planners who coexist in the futuristic mega-city of Metropolis. Monáe’s trilogy focuses on an android by the name of Cindi Mayweather, a sort of saviour who is sent back in time to save the underclass of Metropolis from its oppressive class system. It’s a new take on an old theme, a theme that has always played a prominent role in African-American music.
Archandroid is second part of a trilogy of Metropolis themed albums which began in 2007 with the release of Janelle's five song extended play cd,
Metropolis, Suite I: The Chase. The final chapter in the Metropolis tale will be completed by late 2011 or early 2012.
Even if
Archandroid hasn't become a blockbuster multi-platinum album like Kanye West, Eminem and Big Boi releases, Ms. Monáe's album sold 21,000 copies it's first week of release last May, however album sales have only been moderately successful, since then.
Archandroid is a dark horse nominee for the
Best Contemporary R&B Album in the 2011 Grammy awards which could help
Archandroid find a larger audience but I doubt that chart sales are a big priority for Janelle Monáe. No amount of album sales or phony industry awards can buy the sort of independent critical acclaim that Janelle Monáe has earned with this groundbreaking album.
Archandroid is an inspired and worthy addition to the rich cannon of Afrofuturistic music.
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Honorable Mention for Best R&B, Hip Hop & Soul Albums of 2010
In No Particular Order
Freeway- Stimulus Package
Corrine Bailey Ray- The Sea
Drake - Thank Me Later
Reflection Eternal- Revolutions Per Minute
Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings- I Learned the Hard Way
B.o.B.- The Adventures of Bobby Ray
Big Boi- Sir Lucious Left Foot...the Son of Chico Dusty
Aloe Blacc- Good Things
Budos Band- Budos Band III
Erykah Badu- New Amerykah Part Two: Return Of The Ankh
Fantasia- Back To Me
Martina Topley Bird- Some Place Simple
Mavis Staples- Only For the Lonley
Nicki Minaj- Pink Friday
Seal- 6: Commitment
The Persuasions- The Persuasions Sing the Beatles
The-Dream- Love King
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Coming Tomorrow: Best of 2010 Electronica & Dance Music