TOPLINE
Major record labels, radio stations, and even the Grammys are now distancing themselves from the category “urban” amid calls for racial equality in the U.S., signaling the downfall of an industry term that has been used to reinforce stereotypes and marginalize black musicians for decades.
NEW YORK – CIRCA 1977: WBLS Program Director Frankie Crocker (left) and guest are pictured with … [+] singer Billy Eckstine at an event in circa 1977 in New York, New York. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
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KEY FACTS
The original meaning of urban, from the Latin urbanas, dates back to the 1610s, referring to cities or city life and in its noun form “city dweller”
It began to shift in the late 20th century, gradually acquiring a suggested reference to African Americans.
Federal clean-up projects like the Housing Act’s urban renewal program, established in 1949 and extending through to the early ‘60s, fundamentally targeted slums where poor people and people of color were concentrated, deepening the interchangeability of “urban” and “black” in the public vocabulary.
By the mid-1970s, the term “urban” was making its debut in the music world live on air as the black New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker described the diverse music he was playing as “what’s happening in the city” or “urban contemporary.”
Before it was named by Crocker, “urban radio” played a key role in the civil rights movements of the 1960s, rallying audiences to attend protests and introducing budding black musicians to a larger audience.
Over time, “urban” began to be used in reference to nearly all black artists and black radio, but despite its rapid antiquation as musicians expanded into new genres and styles, some black radio executives were reluctant to eliminate the word because it was easier to sell advertising spots to companies using the term “urban” rather than black.
Though the music industry has debated the changing meaning of “urban” for decades, the issue has become particularly heated recently with top industry executives and artists questioning why it is still in use.
key quote
“I hate and despise the word urban,” Sam Taylor, an executive at Kobalt Music Group, said in 2018. “It means low-income, not safe, etc. So when you say urban music, to me, it’s letting me know that you think it needs to be rebuilt.”
news peg
Warner Music Group, one of the three major U.S. record companies, and IHeartMedia, the country’s largest radio broadcaster, announced on Wednesday that they will both stop using “urban” to categorize music made by black artists and will use “hip-hop” or R&B instead. Republic Records got the ball rolling last week, banning the verbiage in describing departments, employee titles, and music genres in a June 5 Instagram post that stated: “We encourage the rest of the music industry to follow suit.” These actions follow two weeks of protests and increased pushes for equality sparked by the death of George Floyd.
key background
Artists have complained in recent years that the Grammy Awards categories, which include a number that use the term “urban,” are racist and prevent black artists from being considered for bigger categories like Best Album. After taking home the award for Best Rap Album in the 2020 Grammys, Tyler, the Creator described his win as a “backhanded compliment,” telling the press: “On the one side, I’m very grateful that what I make can be acknowledged in a world like this, but also it sucks that whenever we—and I mean guys that look like me—do anything that’s genre-bending, they always put it in the rap or urban category.”
further reading
“The Racist Roots Of ‘Urban Renewal’ And How It Made Cities Less Equal” (Fast Company)
“Grammys, Record Labels Ditch The Term ‘Urban,’ Finally Hear Calls From Black Artists” (Forbes)