Nia Robertson's Student Critique
I think the author, Kali Harris, took a unique approach to analyzing Brent Faiyaz's music and sound. She begins her article by describing what makes Brent such an outstanding artist. What I found most notable is her description of Brent's "unique space notes in the music industry," which he gained through his exploration of "love and self-discovery" in his music. Harris then goes on to note important facts about his place of origin (Columbia, MD) and his musical inspirations, like Lauryn Hill. She also maps the different stages of Brent's career, which I found to be insightful. My biggest takeaway from this article was the mention of Brent's societal contributions at the end. Harris notes how Brent hosts an annual charity concert for his local community, which I found to be inspiring.
The author opens the article by mentioning some brief facts, such as Flo Milli's real name, place of origin, and musical inspirations. She then notes Flo Milli's big break song, "Beef," which made #2 on Spotify’s charts. Overall, the article was very brief and not very detailed. I appreciated how the author included Flo Milli’s discography with pictures because it added a nice visual element. One critique of the article is that it could include more information about Flo Milli and delve deeper into her music.
This article by Issys Russell provides a brief introduction to Negro spirituals and their significance. The author outlines how Negro spirituals originated during slavery but are derived from West African culture and spirituality. West African influence can be seen in Negro spirituals through call and response, certain rhythms, and specific beats. Russell also describes how Negro spirituals hold great significance for the Black community, inspiring hope, courage, and resilience. Overall, I found that this article taught me a lot about Negro spirituals in a very concise manner, and I appreciated the information I learned.
The article titled "This is Andre 3000" provides an in-depth analysis of Andre 3000's professional career and development. The author begins with his early career, highlights key milestones, discusses his participation in OutKast, and covers his acting and producing work, before finally addressing his solo career. The author outlines how Andre 3000 was born and raised in Atlanta, GA, where he started his career with fellow Atlanta rapper Big Boi. The duo, known as OutKast, used their music to critique current socio-political issues through their lyrics. OutKast quickly grew in popularity and "put the South on the map" with their cultural influence.
