Black British singers are going to the U.S. because the U.K. industry is “failing them.” 

Black British singers are going to the U.S. because the U.K. industry is “failing them.” According to BBC 1Xtra’s R&B radio radio host DJ Ace, “R&B is seen as an American genre, the music industry [in the U.K.] doesn’t necessarily know how to promote it.” For example, rapper Kadeem just sold out his U.S. tour, yet he’s still not that well known or appreciated in the U.K where he’s from. Plus R&B singer Tyrell (who racked up 10M Spotify streams for his self-released songs) is being pined after by several U.S. labels. DJ Ace’s solution to keep more talent in the U.K. involves having U.K. labels “who are invested and passionate about R&B.” But he says the reality is that “there’s a pressure to sign someone who has a hot song on TikTok to get a quick hit.” YPulse’s Music report data shows that young people of color are listening to R&B music more than their White/non-Hispanic peers and 73% of young POC agree with the statement: “I enjoy music from other countries.” (inews)