Let's give credit where it's due.
Thank Black Women for the Best Bops on Your Playlist
Nija Charles is one of the brilliant co-writers behind Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga's smash hit “Rain on Me," and she opened up to Glamour last year about navigating the pop world as a Black woman.
“Because we are Black and because they see us working with rappers or R&B singers, they do try to pigeonhole us,” she said. “You'll go into a pop room, and let's say the people are working with someone like Justin Bieber or Gaga or an artist like that—the poppiest of the pop—and then they'll say, ‘I want to work on 21 Savage. I want to make a 21 Savage song today.’ It's like, well, why all of a sudden do you want to work on this today? You didn't want to work on that yesterday when you were with another writer who's not Black. That's the constant struggle that we go through every day as Black creatives.”
The fact this struggle exists is infuriating—because Black women have helped create so many pop hits by non-Black artists. Like, so many. Want proof? Look no further than to this non-exhaustive list.
“Rain on Me” by Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande, Co-Written by Nija CharlesCharles is one of music's brightest young artists, with credits on all your faves' tracks—from Beyoncé to Cardi B to Chloe x Halle. On her own personal ambitions, she told Glamour, “I'm going to start my own artistry, start putting out my own music. I don't want to be looked at as just a writer. I want to become a mogul, so I'm starting my own production company. I want to sign artists and producers and writers and also give them the platform—to be in the position that I am in one day. I want to become a household name.”
Renea is a music veteran with more than a decade of writing credits under her belt. She's released two albums herself that span genres: electropop, country, soul, R&B. You name it, Priscilla Renea's done it. (My personal recs from her: Her 2009 song “Dollhouse” and Madonna's 2012 track “Love Spent,” which she co-wrote.) See just a few of her most popular hits, below.
Monét is another top 40 staple and a longtime collaborator with Ariana Grande. But you really should check out her own music, including the 2020 EP, Jaguar. “Experience” with Khalid and SG Lewis is so good.
Meanwhile, Nao is an accomplished artist who earned a 2020 Grammy nomination for her album, Saturn. She opened up about her experience in the music industry to MusicWeek.com.
“The pool for Black women is usually really tiny,” she said. "As an artist, it’s like you’re doing Black music but you’re having to do it in a white space. Navigating that is very tricky because some people can perceive Black women as being too outspoken or angry if they want to push a particular idea. It’s been really difficult, but the one beautiful blessing is to see how diverse the audience is, to see Black people, people of color, and white people come together and show love, that’s personally what I find most rewarding.”
In short: We have Black women to thank for some of the best songs by Ariana Grande, Selena Gomez, Lady Gaga, and more popular artists. Why there's still a barrier to entry when it comes to Black creatives and pop music is beyond confusing. Artists like Nija Charles talking about this issue is a step toward fixing it—but, remember, it's not her job to do that. I hope record executives are listening.
This story originally appeared on: Glamour - Author:Christopher Rosa
