BTG: April 2025 Discussion Thread

[DemetriKane]

Dani and this huge grin while doing her oohs & aahs are taking me OUT.

[BetterForgotten]

What’s with this lame/generic BBD/new jack swing backing track, lol. Anita was not singing that type of music in her heyday. 

[Liberty City]

M.E. Warner, you mean?

[Faulkner]

Agreed. Ambyr in particular is this show’s Michael J. Fox. You can’t take your eyes off them when they’re on. Hopefully they’re pivoting a bit and looking to build around them. 

[DemetriKane]

Yeah, I believe so; it was much better than I expected.

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[Cheap21]

that was the point. She hadnt performed live in years. She was supposed to be stiff

[Vanguardian53]

No thank you to the American Idol "cliffhanger". Come on show. Time is of the essence.

[MontyB]

How do you know. Did they ever say? 

[BetterForgotten]

Was’t Anita’s prime in the 70’s and early 80’s? If Vernon met her in the 70’s and she left her career behind a few years after, she wasn’t singing New Jack Swing, lol. 

[MontyB]

NJS started almost 40 years ago. Not that much of a stretch to me, but okay. 

[BetterForgotten]

From what’s been described about her, it always felt like Anita mirrored Diana Ross and her career. From the girl group to the solo diva stardom. It always felt like she made her naming sing breezy pop/r&b tunes, and maybe some disco in the 70s and adult contemporary in the early 80s for good measure. But totally fair that we can necessarily align real-world trends with soap opera timelines. 

[Vee]

I don't remember any direct mention of when Anita's career ended. It is not a stretch for me to buy she dabbled in new jack swing like Aretha, Diana Ross, etc. as her music stardom wound down in the '80s or even early '90s.

Edited April 21 by Vee

[kalbir]

Not to derail the thread but I consider New Jack Swing era 1987-1992.

[MontyB]

I enjoyed their performance. 

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[Chris B]

It was lovely seeing Anita perform with her girls! I actually loved the new Jack Swing track and that they actually referenced a specific genre that was recognizable to Black viewers. That was clever and another unique element this show can bring. Looking at her age, it 100% makes sense that this is the type of music Anita would've sung in the 90s. I thought it was more interesting than just jumping to the obvious Supremes reference and doing a 60s number.