The super-pop producer Jermaine Dupri, possibly the last person you'd expect to tout the artistic integrity of the album format, has done just that in an op-ed for The Huffington Post, possibly the last place you'd expect to read anything by Jermaine Dupri.
In yesterday's piece, Dupri defends Jay-Z's decision to not sell his album "American Gangster" through iTunes, which would have made the songs available as stand-alone singles.
"Creating each album as a body of work that means something gives the consumer something better to listen to," writes Dupri, who worked on the Jay-Z disc. "Otherwise all anyone would care about is making a bunch of ringtones."
That's pretty lofty talk from the man behind Kriss Kross and Dem Franchize Boyz. But Dupri make some salient points. He argues that musicians, and the music industry, need to take back control from the consumer.
That's a seemingly backwards attitude in an era driven by consumer control, freedom of choice and on-demand entertainment. But Dupri's logic is sound: By choosing which singles to release -- and not to release -- artists historically were able to sustain excitement among audiences, keep albums alive longer and perhaps even coax the casual listnener into buying not just the fleeting hits but the whole package. In Dupri's view, that's how fans were made; that's how careers were built; that's how music will stay alive even today.
Is this a timeless truism or a sigh of nostalgia? Read the whole essay here.
PHOTO: www.jermainedupri.com