![]() MTV, which barely showed any videos from Black performers, initially balked at “Beat It.” Herbie Hancock deliberately kept a low profile in the video for “Rockit.” But no matter: “In the August 25 issue of Billboard, for the first time ever Black artists accounted for six of the top ten pop albums and singles.” Still, the man’s preferences ran square. ![]() White radio listeners freaked out when their stations changed formats. One reason it was a breakout year is that the music industry, having been through a rough slump-“Physical” was 1982’s year-end top single on Billboard-finally started taking more risks with Black artists. ![]() White male mediocrity is, however, a through line in Michelangelo Matos’s Can’t Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop’s Breakout Year. ![]() Oluo doesn’t explore the entertainment world in her book. ![]()
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