I never talk color on this blog, it's just not what I'm here for, but unfortunate it just comes into play! Black successful music artists simply aren't celebrated in the same way that a lot of their Caucasian counterparts are! I'll explain in the speediest way I possibly can:

Janet and Madonna

Both are Pop pioneers with many #1 albums and top ten singles, but Janet's career was altered after the Superbowl over such a minute mishap! It practically crippled her career/legacy for over a decade! Madonna has had so many outrageous, racy moments that she wasn't held accountable for! Matter of fact, it seemed to be welcomed! These two cases pretty much spell out how extremely polarizing the treatment is towards white and black artist! Where one is privileged and praised for rebellious behavior, another is punished and devalued for similar acts.

Justin/Usher

Justin was also apart of the Superbowl fiasco and yet his career reached new heights afterwards! Usher is without debate still the most successful male artist following the year 2000 and he doesn't get half the recognition or praise JT does! His protege, Justin Bieber, even went on to get the royal treatment that he doesn't receive now!

Britney/Beyonce

Although Britney was a hell of a force to be reckoned with between 1999 and 2004, she's been basically out of commission ever since! Her resume is impressive (like Usher's), but although he's been somewhat forgotten, Britney seems to be placed on a pedestal and her status as a Pop princess has been unwavering! After falling off somewhat; however, Britney still received the MTV Vanguard award in 2011! During that time Usher was still very relevant and arguably more deserving (this was a year after we got "OMG Usher")! It just seemed as if Brit shouldn't have been first in line for this accolade (if artists debuting/ flourishing after 2000 were to start being considered)! Usher was 16 years in, compared to Britney's 13! Unfortunately Usher's tribute never happened!

Beyonce (who has shown great consistency for over 3 times as long as Spears has), seems to be often sharing a crown (sort of speak) with Britney, instead of being regarded as the lone female leader of the pack following the 80/90's diva! Throughout Bey's career, she's always seemed to be lumped together with every rising star (she's surpassed over time) or present fad: JLO, Pink, Kelly Clarkson, Gaga, Adele (who in all fairness would justifiable be the ruler of this current decade)! It almost appears to hurt people to credit Beyonce the way that someone else in her shoes would have been (if they weren't of the same race she is)!

MJ & Prince / Beatles, Bruce Springsteen,
Elton John, Billy Joel

... This is getting lengthy, but I'm going to keep doing bullet points just to bring this home a little quicker.

> After MJ became the biggest pop star in the world (since his first blockbuster album, 'Off The Wall' in '79), his solo career was stalled by the early 90's! Of course this ensued after alleged molestation charges that he was never found guilty of! Like his sister, Janet, he was blacklisted and banned from radio (after being one of the main artists often in heavy rotation).

> Prince publicly was at war with his music label, Warner Bros when he asked for ownership of his masters! He went as far as writing slave on his face to make a bold statement! His early 80's dominance didn't push pass much of the 90's!

Bruce, Elton and Billy Joel enjoyed careers clear of obstacles (from at least the 70's into the early 00s)!

Same can be said for Tina/Cher & Barbara Streisand
Tina made a great comeback at 45, but how many enjoy one at 53 like Cher did... I know, Madonna! She snagged her last top 10 single at 54!

Whitney & Mariah /Adele
These women are the vocal standard (along with Dion) and they haven't received half the Grammy accolades Adele has in such a short period! Adele won 15 in 9 years (and along with Taylor Swift, won the major categories twice). Adele's great, but we've all seen AMAZING not get rewarded this much!

That last example is really what I'm hitting at with all of this! In this music industry, many mainstream, cross over musical acts appear to run into a wall of limitation and restriction! Sure they have things that may have tarnished their images, but it's often used as a tool/excuse to bring them down! When you pay close attention, you'll find that these individuals usually have this AMAZING 15 year run that seems to outdo artists that get the red carpet treatment for twice as long!

They have to work twice as hard to be awarded for their work, while others seem to automatically relish in being able to be handed advantages! Huge blacks artists are often used to bring in huge ratings for these award shows and often suffer from missed opportunities to be awarded! It's not just in music, it's in film as well! It's great that Cher and Barbra Streisand won Oscars, but Diana Ross should be an Oscar winner too for 'Lady Sings the Blues'! I can go on and on (from Bob Marley to the 'Color Purple')!

I don't know if this comes across as offensive, but this is my observation! I've seen so many grave injustices taking place, time after time and it's puzzling why it causes such fury when discussed! ... and not everyone wants to lie down and just accept prejudice! It shouldn't have to be that way!