This is a version of the newsletter Weeding with Chris Black, In which the columnist throws light on the burning topics of culture. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox every Thursday.
My timeline has been particularly cursed this week, with people I know and love constantly complaining about the Parisian heat wave while attending fashion shows. maybe you have seen The clip of Charli. Or maybe your part in Paris Fashion Week is the guy who hosts watch parties for fashion shows at the bar who is angry that 424 sent the clavicular down the runway, a move that, although not offensive to me, is stupid, late, and not doing anyone any favors. Meanwhile, back in America, Lizzo is angry that her crappy album didn’t chart And she’s looking to blame someone other than herself and the music. Olivia Rodrigo announces Daisy Chain Fields, her version of Lilith Fair, which is brilliant and overdue. Wow Vicki reads poetry in Manhattan, Future and Rick Rubin are in a Polymarket TV commercial, and Jordyn Woods’ lucky Knicks purse… is at the Guggenheim.
However, what caught my attention most this week was James Blake’s sharp comment. Blake is a talented and respected musician who has won a Mercury Prize Got higher. His breakthrough single “Retrograde” is an emotional, slow-burning, falsetto indie classic that led to collaborations with Kanye West, Frank Ocean and Bon Iver. He’s had a lot of success since then, but he feels like he’s an artist who’s appreciated more for his skills than what he listens to in the car. He sells a lot of tickets and his live show is remarkable. He is married to Jameela Jamil, an actress who is now better known for her penchant for dramatic fights on social media. Strange, tall tales about near-death experiences.
Blake’s inaccurate statement took aim at his biggest opposition: the music business. In an Instagram Story post, Blake highlighted comment sections filled with bots and the rise of “AI slop” as evidence of the entire system being “fake.” Blake also suggested that you “can’t trust reviews” anymore because “journalists now get paid by labels.” (He has since clarified that “not all journalists” are on tech, but those practicing unethically “have cheapened the craft for everyone (whom I respect).”)
Of course, there is some truth to all of this, but this kind of conspiracy-based thinking is ruining our world, and makes Blake, a rich, successful musician, seem like a child. Payola is as old as time, but in all my years, I have never heard of an actual publication getting paid for a review. The music writers I know are scraping, and they do it because they love it. Artists need to understand that two things may be true at once: the system may be faulty, and your new record may be worthless. Some “manufacturers” may be considering this, but that’s not what we’re discussing today. Do we really think a record label assistant is going to take a chauffeured Escalade from his corner office in Midtown to Ridgewood to give a bag of cash to someone with three roommates to positively review an album in 2026? Or perhaps transferring digital currency while communicating over a signal?
If you’re worrying about this stuff, looking for excuses is draining your energy and keeping you from looking inward and recalibrating, which can lead to real motivation and results. The system isn’t perfect, artists are harassed for myriad reasons, and AI (as AI’s biggest proponents keep telling us) really is “coming for our jobs”, but constant complaining and pointing fingers is just loser behavior. Halsey spoke to YouTube music critic Anthony Fantano this week to review the two-year-old album and called her “picked up by 4chan adlord bullies.” For the record, this is ridiculous, but she should stay above ranting on social media about feeling humiliated. Contacted for comment by Variety, Fantano called himself “the most relevant and influential music critic of my and any generation” (LOL.)
Where has the shame gone? We all have massive failures in life, especially if you are facing them publicly, it never feels good to blame everyone except yourself for your lack of success or even critical praise. When I fail in any of my endeavors, I know to blame myself and suppress it. If you need sympathy from strangers so much, you may have chosen the wrong career.
