This past week, amidst getting everything prepared for a heavy month of business traveling, I managed to catch “The Art of Organized Noise” on Netflix. I have always been more interested in the music side of the industry because I’m a musician first even before radio and it’s more exciting, there are more possibilities to earn revenue and its more creative. Artist who understand their value, contracts, leverage, connections AND embrace diversifying have a huge opportunity to amass great success, influence, wealth and longevity, unlike radio which is very limited and where talent is often overshadowed by corporate politics.
I have to admit, usually music industry documentaries are boring because they are a return to the glory days of a group and that’s pretty much it. They talk about how great the group was and how they changed the industry but they fail to address the bad deals and bad decisions by the artist SPECIFICALLY and the struggle of no longer being respected or successful. The Art of Organized Noise will not disappoint in this way.
I had heard of the group and I was very familiar with Rico Wade and what they did with Outkast, Goodie Mob, tlc and others but I was not aware of the bad deals and all the things that happened in the background. Nevertheless, I was not surprised. This brutally honest documentary should literealy be an educational tool and required watching for all young people entering the music industry especially black kids because it details all the horror stories that we have all seen and heard before.
The most important lesson in this movie is what any vet knows who has worked in the industry for a decade or more. It’s a BUSINESS, not a playground, family reunion or fun stop and people respond to TODAY’s success and what you can do TODAY and in the future. I greatly admire Flava Unit’s in-your-face honest upfront production with as many details as possible without kissing industry a#s.
Most music industry documentaries are way too cautious about offending people who are often already overrated. Rico Wade and the other members of Organized Noise had to learn the hard way how temporary success can be. After literally being obsessed with producing and even living in a smelly clay filled basement of a small house in Atlanta, there is no question it’s a great rags to riches story.
One of not only hard work but damn near an OBSESSION and an addiction to produce great music. The passion these guys had is unmatched. Unfortunately, it’s rarely enough.
It would appear few people worked harder for their success than Rico did. Rico Wade should have been a bigger star but he admittedly made a huge mistake by signing with Interscope and Jimmy Iovine who he stated wanted more songs like Waterfalls, produced by Wade and performed by TLC, a monster hit that made Organized Noise more popular than they ever imagined. The group, without question made a huge mistake when they incorporated Hollywood into the scheme of things because a their core branding was in Atlanta and in the south.
Even today, there should be more record labels in Atlanta specifically as LaFace’s exit, Organized Noise’s initial affiliate, had greatly affected what comes out of the city musically. Wade confessed that he was dealing with industry people who didn’t understand black culture and it inevitably destroyed his brand, his relationships, the group and his connection with Outkast. Rico is in the process of reinventing himself but admits the industry and production has drastically changed since the early days of Organized Noise.
I don’t want to give too many details because I think you will get much more out of it by watching. I’d love to know what you think. #ricowade #organizednoise