Linus Lester-Hodges, Austin Brown, and John Brown are Hablot Brown
The unfortunate thing about discovering new music is longing for the sounds to arrive from Black musicians to prove that Black music is still a powerful tool for love, life and change. Soul music has always been the essence of Black culture, but as the ease of music creation becomes push button and fame arises from beat machines and a hook that is TikTok ready, it seems the more I seek out R&B, the more I find there are fewer Masegos and Tank and The Bangas and more Mayer Hawthorne’s, Tom Misch and Marie Dahlstrom’s (if you don’t know those names, look them up and add them to your playlists).
And… it shouldn’t really be about the race of the musician. If the music is good enjoy it and share it. This post isn’t fair to Hablot Brown. The three-man crew is delivering music that resonates with me and I really like it, but I always feel like I’m letting the culture down when I share a post about soul music and the artist is not Black.
Many of my emotions stem from a history of Whitewashing soul music to make it more palatable for non-Black folks. The historical precedence of Black artists not placing their face on album covers or stories of songs rooted in Black culture turning White artists into multi-millionaires creates a conflict.
However, there is always a discussion of inviting White people to the bar-b-que. Bobby Caldwell, Ambrosia and Hall and Oates are invited to the bar-b-que, meaning they have music which is indistinguishable from classic soul music by Black artists. Today, Moonchild and Hiatus Koyote might get the invite, but the reality is their audiences in live performances tend to be White and there is the paradox.
In many ways young Black artists have given away the soul. Our most popular artists don’t play instruments. There aren’t any bands or singing groups. This post should be about an amazing band. Here is a group you should add to your playlist. It doesn’t matter they are White and isn’t that the way we should approach music and life? It’s hard to escape our lives, but in music we have a safe haven to simply ride and enjoy the moment. Listen to “Go” first and then watch the studio session above.