Where are the artists?

Wow, this is a total evisceration of the reaction of black artists, and all artists really, in America six months (and actually, 2 1/2 years of relative fame) under the first black president. Where's the reaction, culture? Don't tell me nothing's changed? If so, that's an even bigger story. If all's the same long after Obama's injection into the American conscience, that has amazing consequences on the power structure in America.

"Dave Chappelle remains in hiding. Tyler Perry's oeuvre is, essentially, one long-running, feel good "yo momma" joke. The kind of monumentally new, staggeringly fresh hip-hop album the Obama Event seems to cry out for has not emerged. The Wire proved that virtually all the best actors in America are African-American. Why is Idris Elba not doing Othello on Broadway right now?"

I'll hand it to Stephen Marche writing for Esquire in this powerful essay.

"... last November, the world called their bluff, and the color of Obama's skin doesn't make a damn bit of difference in the daily business of running the world."

That could take a minute to digest fully. Now chew on this classic, maybe THE classic:

Chappelle's Show
Black Bush
www.comedycentral.com
Buy Chappelle's Show DVDs Black Comedy True Hollywood Story