![]() ![]() She doesn’t much care for Lovecraft’s work, but it’s clear she at least took the time to familiarize herself with it. I see you’re still unwilling to say the words: “No, I didn’t read the book before publicly dismissing it.” You put your byline on the statement and sent it out for the public to digest–doesn’t matter if it’s in the NYT or a comments section, if you’re a real scholar and not a clown play-acting as one that’s the point at which you have to be able to stand by them. Mediocre adult contemporary crooner Lionel Richie would win a Grammy for the album that gives the book its title, while “When Doves Cry” by Prince, the year’s biggest hit, didn’t get a nomination. MTV, which barely showed any videos from Black performers, initially balked at “Beat It.” Herbie Hancock deliberately kept a low profile in the video for “Rockit.” But no matter: “In the August 25 issue of Billboard, for the first time ever Black artists accounted for six of the top ten pop albums and singles.” Still, the man’s preferences ran square. ![]() ![]() White radio listeners freaked out when their stations changed formats. One reason it was a breakout year is that the music industry, having been through a rough slump-“Physical” was 1982’s year-end top single on Billboard-finally started taking more risks with Black artists. White male mediocrity is, however, a through line in Michelangelo Matos’s Can’t Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop’s Breakout Year. Oluo doesn’t explore the entertainment world in her book. ![]()
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