India.Arie Ranks These 5 Male Vocalists
India.Arie is starting off the new year with a lighthearted opinion after a question was posed about male vocalists.
In the spirit of internet debates, someone asked who the strongest and weakest is vocally among the contenders: Usher, Tevin Campbell, Joe, Mario, and Jamie Foxx.
The “Video” singer felt from strongest to weakest that Joe is the most superior. He was followed Tevin Campbell—”in his hey day,” Arie noted. The current King of R&B, Usher, landed in the middle. Then, the 48-year-old ranked Mario fourth and Jamie Foxx was ranked last. Arie added that it was “zero shade, just a technical answer.”
Arie’s ranking sparked mixed reactions. Tank commented, “Joe is top tier! One of the greatest!” A fan chimed in, “I think because Jamie is more of an actor ppl sleep on his vocals that unpredictable album was no skips. Joe def has the strongest voice seen him live.”
However, another replied, “I’m not mad a Joe being first… But Jamie being last is CRAZY!!!!”
Back in October, Mario included himself in his own R&B Mount Rushmore. His ranking of artists also included Ursher, Chris Brown, Beyoncé, Whitney Houston, and Michael Jackson.
Yet, this is far from the most controversial opinion that’s come to light recently. Arie penned an open letter about pay discrepancy following her 2022 Spotify boycott and Taraji P. Henson’s emotional reaction to her lack of pay as a veteran actress.
The “Brown Skin” singer wrote, “I stand with you (and always have) and ALL of the Black actresses and musicians who struggle to feel inspired BECAUSE we work twice [as] hard and get paid half as much. Add being a woman to that — and now you have that ‘Black Tax’ AND the ‘PAY GAP’ and we still STILLLL out here trying to do what we love. THE S**T IS REAL AND HURTS … LIKE HELL.”
Arie continued, “People are always asking me ‘when I’m going back out on tour’ [or] ‘when I’m releasing another album?’ I’ve released eight by the way […] I’m tired and I’m trying because music is the love of my life.” She then urged fans to support her by buying and streaming her music, adding, “It’s not MUCH but it’s something.”
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