First, allow me to preface my comment by saying that this is my first comment on ThatGrapeJuice since like, 2011 since the Caribbean boy and Sam fell out and TGJ's content slumped and became all about click-baiting users, demeaning musical opinions in favor of what's popular and igniting Stan wars under the comment section. I generally try to exercise restraint these days and use wisdom to know the difference.

Fifth Harmony's rise to stardom is like a Cinderella story. 5 ordinary girls with ordinary vocal capabilities were constructed together to pursue their musical endeavors as a unit. Their stint on the X-Factor from what I remember was like an uphill battle as they were bombarded with critiques from LA Reid and Demi Lovato in terms of vocality, production, and gelling as a group. However, they were the underdogs of the season and a clear fan favorite. After finishing the semi-finals in 3rd Place, Simon Cowell and LA Reid immediately signed the ladies. Fast forward to 2016, with vocal point Camila Cabello's departure now a thing of the past in the turn of the new year, we have new members flexing their solo vocal exertion.

Granted the history of the creation of this group, it is indeed something mechanically manufactured, so each individual creating solo material to feed their internal desires seems reasonable. Here we have Normani Kordei, light voice glimmering with rhythmatic roots in contemporary soul. Though her voice is very sweet and light, there's a vocal frondescence in her overall sound---she has access to the whistler register and compliment songs with the dark part of her vocal range. She doesn't shout, her sound isn't harsh or too belty, she runs along the same lines of Jhene Aiko, Amerie, Ashanti, and all those other thin voiced girls who sweetly coo with great material.

As far as racism within the music industry as it relates to her pending success as an artist, I think that whenever Black bodies deviates from Caucasian beauty standards, it becomes glossed over and relegated. We cannot pretend that this is not real. Mind you, this is the same young lady who was VICIOUSLY attacked by pubescent teens (and adults alike) with racial slurs and photoshopped images of her face on a lynched body because she didn't use a more dynamic set of words to describe a fellow group member. Majority of the music companies that are in existence are ran by white executives, but music is supposed to be an art form that is meant to break down barriers rather than building them up, but once you have people who continue to speculate, doubt, or question your existence as an overall being, there's a disconnect in the humanity that music has. Music is subjective for sure, but what matters most is when you are able to touch the hearts of those who are readily listening.