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Plan B going to America - what do you rate his chances of success?


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Old 31-12-2010, 13:55
Shadow2009
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Rapper-turned-soul artist Plan B is preparing for the March release of his U.S. debut, "The Defamation of Strickland Banks." The album reached No. 1 in his home country in April, but the English artist isn't worried about replicating his triple-platinum U.K. success in America.

"We were lucky in terms of timing over here," Plan B told SoundSpike, via telephone from late-night England. "The record came out at the right time. There wasn't much competition.

"[In the U.S.], it might be different. The timing might be wrong. The way we promote it might be wrong. We might make the wrong decision. The people we really want to get this album may not get to hear it and it may not be successful. It would be rather big headed of me to say, 'Yeah, it's going to happen.' I need to stay focused and make sure we don't patronize the American audience or music-buying public into thinking that we can do what we've done here in a similar way."

Plan B, who was born Benjamin Paul "Ben" Drew, said there are certain things that have to change in the U.S. First, Americans -- including his record label reps -- have to understand the story behind "The Defamation of Strickland Banks," which follows the life of Plan B's alter ego, Banks, a sharp-suited British soul singer who rises to fame through his carefully crafted, bittersweet love songs, and is charged for a crime he didn't commit.

"It's very important for me that the story get told," Plan B said. "That's the selling point everywhere in the world, even in the nonspeaking parts. Every time I meet a new label boss in a different country, a different territory, I always say to them, 'One way we can really sell this is by really conveying there's a story there.'

"People love stories. People read books. They watch films. They watch 'The Wire.' They watch stuff like that. That's why I'm really adamant that I want to make a film around Strickland Banks that links all the music videos together. We've shot them all on film. We've got really great actors, really strong actors. I want people in America to know this isn't just a collection of songs. It's more than that."

Plan B said the segue from rapper to soul artist came about naturally. Although his bio says he was "influenced highly by his love of classic Motown and his appreciation of Eminem," Plan B himself differed: "Not so much."

"I don't own any Motown records," he said. "The only kind of time I ever got to listen to Motown or soul music was in films like "My Girl" with Macaulay Culkin or "Stand By Me" with River Phoenix. When I wrote this record, I was like, "What do I think this music is?" I guess that's all I really knew.

"So, like, I guess this record is a soul record presented by a rapper. That's why I called it "Plan B Presents The Defamation of Strickland Banks." I guess I came out first as a rapper here. It's a rapper's interpretation of what he thinks soul music is. I wrote these songs in my bedroom on my acoustic guitar. And they didn't really come to life and start sounding like proper Motown records until me and my band got together and listened back to the recordings I had done on my acoustic guitar. That is the only time we started listening to Marvin Gaye or Curtis Mayfield or any of them people. It was like a new adventure for me."

Plan B said the songs were written from his heart and soul. His goal is to let the music speak for itself.

"I've never held back creatively," he said. "If I start writing a rock song, I won't stop halfway through and say, "This doesn't sound right." I'll finish it, and it will be a rock song or a folk song or a reggae song. After the first record [2006's "Who Needs Actions When You Got Words"], I just needed a vacation from the kind of conscious, uncensored rap I was doing. Before I did that, I was making contemporary R&B kind of soul music, Usher style.

"The only reason I call myself Plan B is because I switched my style so much. I made my career from being Plan B. But after that record I just wanted a break. I went into the studio and just ****ed around. There was one soul song I wrote that was kind of a nod to what I started off doing, but it was a lot more mature and a lot more classic. That was "Love Goes Down," which is the first song on the record. That song was knocking about for a long time. Me and the band just felt it was a shame that nobody was ever going to get to hear it. I always knew I wanted to make a concept album for the second record, but I didn't have a story. I didn't know what it was going to be about. I decided to incorporate "Love Goes Down" and a few of the other soul songs I've made into that album because we just loved them so much and we thought they were great music."

There is a song on his record called "Hard Times" that he did say was influenced by the production of Al Green's material.

"We listened to a lot of Al Green and listened to the production and how simple it was and how it would be with just a guitar with a string quartet," he said. "That was the only time I was into Motown. I guess it was kind of a conscious decision. I understood that soul music came from a very pure place which was hardship and struggle. I knew that if I was going to make a soul record it had to come from my hardship and struggle. Even though this is a fictional story about a fictitious character, I had to put myself in his shoes and imagine what it was like when he was going through the injustice that happened to him. I didn't want to dilute or infect that process by listening to somebody else's record."

Plan B explained, however, that he'd like to work with "some big American singers and have them featured on remixes of my songs." However, it's important for him to maintain the small element of U.K. hip hop in his album.

"It's ironic that my soul music is my strongest chance of selling future records in the U.S.," he said. "The U.S. have this have this stigma of any kind of rapper outside of the U.S. [making it in America]. [Canadian rapper] Drake recently smashed that. Before Drake, I feel like it wasn't OK for a Canadian rapper or anyone outside the U.S. to break it. Before Eminem it wasn't OK for a white rapper. The next taboo we have to break is a U.K. rapper.

"Hopefully, people will love the soul music in this record so much they'll be more open minded to hearing the way I rhyme and my accent when I do it. If it doesn't work, then there's no point in me ever trying to sell records in the America again."

After promotion cycle of "The Defamation of Strickland Banks" is finished, he plans to release another hip-hop record. That collection was meant to be a double album, half rap, half soul. The rap portion will come out in 2011 in the U.K.

"If the U.S. buying public are not open to [a U.K. rapper/soul artist], then it's cool," Plan B said. "Hopefully I'm set up for life over here in the U.K. now. It doesn't have to be the end of the world. I think this is the one opportunity -- not just for me, but for all of the U.K. -- to have people outside of the U.K. across the pond in America listening to us.

"If it doesn't happen, the reason I won't be bitter about it is because we're guilty of the same thing in the U.K. Down South, we talk with London accents. Up North, they talk with a Northern accent. When Manchester rappers come down to London, we dismiss them. We won't listen to them. We won't give them a chance. So I understand that. I understand what's against me. If it doesn't happen, I'm not bitter about it. But I think this is my one opportunity to do that."
http://www.soundspike.com/news/tour/...mation_of.html
(and various other news sites)

I'd love him to be huge in America. I definately think the fact he's a white male soul/rap artist could work in his favour, however the US charts are so dominated with urban that he might not even chart in the singles charts, however I can see him maybe being a big albums artist like in the UK?
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Old 31-12-2010, 14:07
markmc2k5
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Chance of success? - No chance.
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Old 31-12-2010, 14:14
Paparazzo
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Don't know but good luck either way.
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Old 31-12-2010, 14:27
Lushness
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The fact that his style is slightly different to other R&B artists will hopefully be in his favour. It's still going to be a very difficult task though.

I wish him the best of luck!
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Old 31-12-2010, 14:33
rickyjune
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another great white hope off to america (Cher/Roc Nation)

there are perfectly good black singer out there doing the same thing

but the novelty of him being a white soul will get him notice, but success doubtful
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Old 31-12-2010, 15:04
CRM
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And he's a crap singer.
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Old 31-12-2010, 15:10
Citoig
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I love his album (and his other stuff too), but I can't see him being all that successful over there. They never really went for the nu-soul sound, and his rapping style doesn't really fit with what's big there. I think he'd be better off working on following it up in the UK right now, cement himself here first off.
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Old 31-12-2010, 15:47
Star_Bright
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And he's a crap singer.
Yeah, I don't see what's so great about him.
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Old 31-12-2010, 15:48
Shadow2009
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And he's a crap singer.
Hasn't stopped Taylor Swift and she's the biggest artist in America.
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Old 31-12-2010, 16:03
SpaceToilets
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Fair play and good luck to him. There's far better UK rappers and singers out there who won't even get the chance at trying to crack America like he is but I hope he gains some success anyhow
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Old 31-12-2010, 16:19
ijly
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Hasn't stopped Taylor Swift and she's the biggest artist in America.
I think two of the many reasons why Taylor Swift is huge in America are her image and those brilliant marketing/promotion strategies by her team.

Plan B has a good chance of success in America if his singles (such as 'She Said') have the support of the radio stations there.
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Old 31-12-2010, 16:23
Mr. Fahrenheit
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Hasn't stopped Taylor Swift and she's the biggest artist in America.
She's different. Plan B doesn't have an army of teenage girls.
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Old 31-12-2010, 19:47
freetee
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I think no success for plan b, america doesn't seem to be in to that kind of music at the minute. I mean his style is kind of blues/R&b/soul and the US ditched that sound a long time ago.
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Old 01-01-2011, 01:54
performingmonk
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No chance unless collaborations with big US stars.
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Old 01-01-2011, 02:18
Chardonnay-Anne
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Looking at the Hot 100, not really
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Old 01-01-2011, 11:13
RobBlob
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She's different. Plan B doesn't have an army of teenage girls.
Lets be honest. That isn't her main demographic. And the same for him. Why are we even comparing these?

Anyway I think he could do very well. Just all depends on the radio I think personally. And how much time/effort he puts in. I think he's got a really good chance though.
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Old 01-01-2011, 11:14
irishguy
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Heh might cause some confusion. Plan B is the name of a well known and popular brand of morning after pill
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Old 01-01-2011, 11:19
Mr. Fahrenheit
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Lets be honest. That isn't her main demographic. And the same for him. Why are we even comparing these?

Anyway I think he could do very well. Just all depends on the radio I think personally. And how much time/effort he puts in. I think he's got a really good chance though.
That really is her main demographic, and I am being honest.
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Old 01-01-2011, 12:20
Paparazzo
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That really is her main demographic, and I am being honest.
He is.
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Old 01-01-2011, 16:52
chuck_wippl
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Erm...not a lot. But only because he seems pretty highly strung and takes himself (and his 'craft') a bit toooo seriously and they just won't get it

He's like a white Kanye imo, in terms of personality, not music.
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Old 01-01-2011, 17:11
haim100
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Very little chance, besides it is WAY too early in his career to be thinking about America!!!
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Old 01-01-2011, 17:18
redlight79
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I think he'll be a one hit wonder with 'She Said', then that'll be it. I'll probably appear in the hot #100, but definitely won't get in the top 20.

I've always liked Plan B, but I think 'She Said' is probably all he'll be known for over here. Someone in Corrie was singing it the other day? You can't get any more generic than that. AND the fact Heart play it, but then remove the most crucial part of the song - the rap - out of it, pisses me off beyond belief!
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Old 02-01-2011, 17:46
israel01
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Very little chance, besides it is WAY too early in his career to be thinking about America!!!
Ermm hardly early , he has been making music for 10 years and this is his second album and he has also done a couple of mixtapes.

Ben is a real talent and it will be America's loss if they don't snap him up.
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