A controversial term for several years but frequently used within the music industry, the qualifier “urban” – which includes rap and its derived genres – was strongly criticized by Gims on Instagram on Wednesday.
After a look at the Spotify Top 50, the interpreter of Beautiful he explains, in a long video story, that he is tired of using this name, which he considers too “simplistic”.
“We have to stop this”
The term “urban,” particularly used during award ceremonies like the Victorias de la Música, poses a problem, according to Gims. “They put us in categories. When we talk about urban album of the year it’s like saying ‘it’s the sub-album of the year’, it’s pejorative. We have to stop with that,” he declares.
And to add: “There are different styles of music, pop, rock, rap… but when there are contests like this you can’t win the album of the year on the one hand and the urban album of the year. You have to give a victory to the best seller. […] It is not normal that this category of “urban” is left aside and that there are people from nowhere who are record of the year”.
“These guys must be at the Victoires de la Musique”
In his remarks, Gims also points out the excessive contrast that persists between the rankings on streaming platforms and the representation of rap in the industry.
“I don’t necessarily speak for myself, they sound to me on all the radios and all the TVs and I’m very happy about that. But that’s not the case for everyone. When you see the Gazo, Naps who are in the process of crushing everything now myself, these guys should be at the Victoires de la Musique,” he says.
The lack of rap at the Victoires de la Musique has been the subject of criticism for years. As Damso had been able to do before, SCH had underlined, last February, during the ceremony, the absence of his fellow rappers, who “deserved” their place in this award ceremony.
And rightly so, in addition to Orelsan, grand winner of this edition 2022 With three trophies, SCH was the only rapper present among the nominees.
To overcome this lack of prominence of rappers, Gims proposes to launch his own musical ceremony in the future. “I want to organize my Victoires de la Musique. I make a live call for tenders, I address the French billionaires. For culture,” he concludes on Instagram.
Source: BFM TV
