As the music industry mourns this unexpected loss, a refrain keeps echoing: Andre Harrell's impact on music and culture was never properly celebrated
Uptown’s -- and by extension Harrell’s -- impact spanned beyond making music to creating culture; and Harrell gave the world more than Heavy D., Jodeci, Mary J. Blige and Puffy. Uptown Records was often dubbed the new iteration of Motown; a label where Black artists were seen and nurtured, and Harrell the heir apparent to Berry Gordy.
in 1993. “I’m an inner-city kid who knows the reality of being poor. I’m looking for escapism. Fun music. Good-time music.”interview, Harrell broke down his four echelons of Black consumers -- he wasn’t concerned about crossover, at least not yet -- based on class and lifestyle. His target audience for the aesthetic he alternatively called “ghetto fabulous,” “high Negro style,” and “ghetto glamor,” superseded self-identifying boxes.
Andre had an understanding of who his artists were, where they came from, what they were facing as new stars, and what they needed to navigate pitfalls and succeed. When Mary J. Blige abruptly cut a 1995Andre explained Andre also let Puff walk away with newly discovered Biggie Smalls, because the rapper didn’t fit with Uptown’s party brand.
The $50M dollar Uptown Entertainment partnership was widely viewed as a bust in the industry, but those in the know said the fault wasn’t with Andre, but with MCA, who wouldn’t give him real autonomy or put the support Harrell felt was needed behind his projects for them to thrive. In 1995, driven by conflicts both with parent company MCA and inside the label -- Mary J. Blige and Jodeci, now the label’s most prominent acts, took on Suge Knight as management; and with Andre putting increasing focus on TV and film, new releases weren’t coming quickly enough for MCA -- Harrell left Uptown to become the new CEO of Motown.
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