Featuring India Arie, Akon, D’Angelo, Erykah Badu, Ben Harper, Alicia Keys, Brandi Carlile, Robert Glasper, and…
Before the days of the self-made, Black, female millionaire, Madame C.J. Walker (the inventor of popular hair products) and the hardest working man in show business, James Brown exclaiming “Say It Loud, I’m Black and I’m Proud” while quieting would be riots in Boston after Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination, the struggle for Black beauty has always been real.
In addition to overseeing Beautytap’s digital operations, Cliff Beach is also an award-winning musician.
As a Black musician/radio DJ and a beauty industry veteran now at Beautytap, bridging the worlds of Black and Beauty for this spotlight during February’s all too short Black History Month is sweet music to my ears.
This year, I am taking the opportunity to highlight six songs by Black musical artists that help redefine Black beauty for a new generation of listeners.
1. India Arie – “I Am Not My Hair (Featuring Akon)”
Grammy award-winning artist, India Arie and Motown have pioneered countless songs promoting Black beauty including Arie’s song, “Brown Skin” that precedes “I Am Not My Hair.” I really enjoy her personal explanation of her journey on this track, highlighting the internal struggles in the Black community about what defines “good hair” versus “bad hair,” while also underscoring White America’s misconceptions of Black, ethnocentric hairstyle stereotypes.
These lyrics from the song are poignant:
“Then I couldn't get no job
'Cause corporate wouldn't hire no dreadlocks…
I hate to say it, but it seems so flawed
'Cause success didn't come till I cut it all off”
I have my own personal experience here. After receiving my MBA from Pepperdine, where I was the only Black student in my cohort, I was told by career counselors and coaches that I had to cut off all of my hair in order to rise in corporate America. When The CROWN Act (Create A Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair) passed, I was very encouraged as it protects people of color against hair discrimination in schools and the workplace, but it has only been enacted in 12 of the 50 states, so there are still many miles to go with this movement, but progress is being made.
Arie echoes Martin Luther King, Jr. in her song when she protests “it's not what's on your head, it's what's underneath.” I concur.
2. D’Angelo - “Africa”
On the highly critically acclaimed sophomore album, Voodoo, by R&B crooner D’Angelo, songs like “Untitled (How Does It Feel)” showcases a different type of Black beauty in that unforgettable video. And D’Angelo closes the album talking about his son, Michael Archer, Jr., (with fellow R&B songstress Angie Stone), which ended up as a dedication to history, Africa, and God.
D’Angelo begins the song with:
“Africa is my descent
And here I am far from home
I dwell within a land that is meant
For many men not my tone”
I feel that no matter how affluent or successful you become, especially for a Black man in America now raising a son, those fears never completely go away, especially after George Floyd and the BLM movement. Often times, “This land is YOUR land” really rings true, and “This land is MY land” may sound good in a soundbite, but is it true for everyone? In Africa we were “kings and princes” and in America we were slaves.
We cannot sweep history under the rug. We must understand and acknowledge previous atrocities while celebrating the many obstacles we have overcome.
3. Robert Glasper Experiment featuring Erykah Badu - “Afro Blue”
An amazing retelling of the classic “Afro Blue” by several revered artists including Brown/Santamaria, The Robert Glasper Experiment and another soul icon - Grammy-winning Motown artist, Erykah Badu.
The song begins with:
“Dream of a land my soul is from
I hear a hand stroke on the drum
Shades of delight
Cocoa hue
Rich as the night
Afro blue
Elegant boy
Beautiful girl”
When I was a child, I was taught at an early age that Black was every shade of brown and beige from “high yella to deep mahogany,” that we were all God’s “rainbow children” and “red and yellow, black and white, they’re all precious in his sight.” This song reminds us, and the next generation of cocoa hued elegant boys and beautiful girls, that we all radiate Black beauty from within us.
4. Ben Harper - "Black Beauty"
Grammy-winning Black Folk/Soul artist, Ben Harper created his single “Black Beauty” on ANTI-Records for the Peacock film, Black Boys (an examination of gender and systemic racism from the perspective of young Black males in America by Sonia Lowman.) Performing it recently at President Biden’s We the People concert, Harper also spoke to Forbes and shared that he was brought into the project late, and in meeting with the director had “three hours of dialogue around the film, around culture and around what progress means in the name of race, and all things really, but race in particular for Black boys” along with the director.
Growing up there were a lot of Black women beauty movements, but not many Black men movements. Seeing us in droves at the Black Panther premiere helped me realize we need to show more Black men doing well and succeeding, versus other negative stereotypes that are typically depicted – this will help younger generations grow up recognizing and revering their own power and beauty.
5. Alicia Keys featuring Brandi Carlile - “A Beautiful Noise”
At Beautytap, we have been very fortunate to partner with Alicia Keys and her Keys Soulcare skin and body care line, which “goes beyond skincare to truly care for the whole self - body, mind, and spirit.”
KEYS SOULCARE Nourishing Cleansing Balm
Seeing all of our diverse Beauty Experts reviewing this transformative line, while sharing beautiful imagery on all of their different skin types and emphasizing their belief “in the power of serious skincare and soul-nurturing rituals” is something to behold. Keys is no stranger to skincare movements, from her days as a Proactiv spokeswoman to her iconic #NoMakeup movement. She also joined fellow Grammy winner Brandi Carlile on a very moving piece, “A Beautiful Noise,” they performed for Every Vote Counts: A Celebration of Democracy - to inspire more people, especially people of color, to vote in the 2020 election.
Our ancestors fought and died for our right as Black people, women, and LGBTQ+ to vote. And these two mighty women, Keys and Carlile, chant “we have a choice, 'cause I have a voice,” and have spawned both palpable inspiration and motivation, and yet another Grammy nomination for “Song of the Year” in the process. How apropos.
6. Cliff Beach - “Black Moses (P Edition)”
Shameless plug here. I’m rounding out this list by including one of my own tracks that speaks to my personal experience of politics and BLM. “Black Moses” was originally released on my 2021 EP, W.A.J.A.K.F.S. (We’re All Just A Kid From Somewhere) with the remix, Four on The Floor dropping in March. The song pays homage to Harriet Tubman, the abolitionist freedom fighter and soul music legend Isaac Hayes inspired the album title. Taking a vocal cue from another R&B superstar, the falsetto-crooning Curtis Mayfield, the lyrics tackling the former administration, the Black Lives Matter movement, and more:
“Now if you don’t stand up for truth
Whole world keeps on getting evil
They will disrespect your culture
And enslave your people”
The song ends with a haunting quotation from the old spiritual, “Go Down Moses,” urging oppressors to “let my, let my, let my people go!”
The beauty of Black Americans and all Americans is celebrating our rich tapestry of diversity and those huddled masses yearning to be free by continuing the work of Martin Luther King. Jr. and having open dialogues that will spur social change and Justice For All. As a music enthusiast and curator for LA radio show on 88.5FM Deeper Grooves, I hope this curation of six songs by Black musical artists that redefine Black beauty, transcends race and allows you to see yourself in the lyrics.
Cheers to honoring beauty through song and celebrating an uplifting Black History Month together.
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