MTV, which barely showed any videos from Black performers, initially balked at “Beat It.” Herbie Hancock deliberately kept a low profile in the video for “Rockit.” But no matter: “In the August 25 issue of Billboard, for the first time ever Black artists accounted for six of the top ten pop albums and singles.” Still, the man’s preferences ran square. White radio listeners freaked out when their stations changed formats. One reason it was a breakout year is that the music industry, having been through a rough slump-“Physical” was 1982’s year-end top single on Billboard-finally started taking more risks with Black artists. White male mediocrity is, however, a through line in Michelangelo Matos’s Can’t Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop’s Breakout Year. Oluo doesn’t explore the entertainment world in her book.
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