Episode 2: Beyond the Label

We honor 100 years since Negro History Week began and trace how labels, laws, and headlines shape what we remember and what we hear. From the Neo-Soul naming debate to a high‑profile music lawsuit and a personal live-music high, we tie culture to care.

• origins of Black History Month and why it matters 
• how Neo Soul emerged from live, organic roots 
• the industry label debate and artist marketing 
• Miley Cyrus Flowers lawsuit context and stakes 
• media moments with The Breakfast Club and accountability 
• global tension after Operation Epic Fury and human impact 
• first‑quarter wins and the joy of live performance 
• spotlight on Aaron Marcellus and recommended sets 
• a curated playlist linking themes and artists

Check out Aaron Marcellus’ new music and the YouTube sets we mention, then find the episode playlist to explore every song we reference

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6vS1CpFIQC3w6VFxot3EWZ?si=6cf953384a5a481c

Yore on Smith Street is a weekly culture and commentary podcast hosted by Smith Street. Blending current events, pop culture, and storytelling, each episode connects today’s headlines to the deeper narratives behind them — because every moment has a backstory.

https://www.smithstreetsounds.com/

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Alright, I should be able to hear myself. Good morning. It's the second episode of Your One Smith Mystery. Yes, you are welcome. Oh shucks. I have a special show today. Every show is gonna be special. First up, we know that it's women's history month, right? And we're not gonna take anything away from the women, but I learned that it is the 100th anniversary of Black History Month. 2026 marks 100 years. So it started not as a month, but as Negro History Week, created in 1926 by historian Carter G. Woodson. He and the Association for the Study of

Opening And Setup

SPEAKER_00 0:58

Negro Life and History wanted to make sure that black Americans weren't erased from the story of America, because black contributions were being left out of the textbooks and classrooms entirely. Woodson picked February because it held the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick

100 Years Of Black History

SPEAKER_00 1:19

Douglass, dates already celebrated in the black communities. Over time, that we grew into what we now call Black History Month, with the first full celebration happening on college campuses around 1970. And in 1976, President Gerald Ford officially recognized it nationwide, urging Americans to honor the accomplishments of black Americans throughout history and across all fields. And that's why I think it's a big deal. It's a hundred years. Come on, let's go. Every month is Black History Month, every day is Black History Day because Black History is being made every single day. Alright, shout out to Black people and Black History. Speaking of Black History, let's talk about some Neo Soul. Okay? Because that happened around the time that I was a young whippersnapper out here in these streets. I remember when Neo Soul emerged. We was like, What is this? What does that mean? Musically, what we call Neo Soul grew out of a desire to bring soul music back into a more organic, live, expressive space, blending 70s soul with jazz, funk, hip-hop, and RB influences. Artists like D'Angelo, Erica Badu, Maxwell, Lauren Hill, to name a few, took those vibes in the 90s and made them feel fresh and relevant to the time. Here's where nuance comes. The term Neo Soul wasn't created by any of those

How Neo Soul Took Shape

SPEAKER_00 3:08

artists. It was coined in the late 90s by a record executive by the name of Kidar Massenberg. Legendary musician Rafael Sadiq recently called out the term Neo Soul, saying it's not really about the sound of the music, but industry shorthand used so labels could decide which artists wouldn't need crossover marketing budgets or receive crossover marketing budgets. Sadiq says the term was solely created to categorize and not for artistry, and wasn't even meant to describe the actual creative essence of the music itself. So when we hear artists like D'Angelo and Maxwell called Neo Soul, Raphael Sadiq's point is that their music

The Neo Soul Label Debate

SPEAKER_00 4:01

goes way beyond any marketing tag, which is interesting because I remember you know coming up and it being a big deal, like everybody always asking me what genre is that? I don't know. I'm just making stuff, you know, like it feels good, doesn't it? Like um, but you know, that whole has to be put in a place in order to be for it to be marketed. Uh that's a big deal, that's a real deal. Also, what I'm hearing is almost like redlining. This term is code so that you know that this artist isn't meant to cross over. Now, I wouldn't say it's because they were black, it's just what they wanted or what they expected from them. Usher wasn't put in that category, but D'Angelo was. Interesting. Okay, music law drama. In 2024, a company called Tempo Music Investments sued Miley Cyrus over her hit song Flowers. It claims that elements of Flowers allegedly copy parts of Bruno Marr's 2013 hit song When I Was Your Man. Tempo alleges that the song shares similarities in melody, harmony, and chord progression and sections of the chorus. Also, that Cyrus and her co-writers did not have authorization to do that. The lawsuit also named Sony Music Publishing and Apple as defendants. Bruno Mars himself is not a plaintiff. The company suing owns a share of the rights through one of the co-writers, not Bruno personally. Miley Cyrus and her team has tried to have this case dismissed,

Marketing, Crossover, And Boundaries

SPEAKER_00 6:15

but a judge said the lawsuit can proceed. So yeah, that's what's going on with flowers. Yikes. That's all I gotta say about that. Miley can buy herself flowers. We don't know for how long, because she that's not funny. I don't even um I don't hear it, but you know, like there's some songs where you can hear it. Like Give It Up and by um Damn it. Got to give it up by Marvin Gay and the guy, um, the blue-eyed soul man. Oh my Robin Thick with with Pharrell Blur Lines, that was the name of the song. That those similarities were there in your face. You could not deny that. Uh, but whatever. Moving right on along, let's switch gears to the Breakfast Club for a second. The crew gave Bill Clinton, former president Bill Clinton, Donkey of the Day. Hee ha. Oh boy, yeah. Now, why did Bill Clinton get Donkey the other day? Well, apparently, Charlamagne feels away. Let's get into it. So, initially, the deal was that Bill Clinton was on the stand. I think that they were showing him some pictures from the Epstein Files, and he was giggling, having a reminiscent moment, and his lawyer had to take the pictures from him. But that's not the reason why he got donked yet today. The reason why he got donkey today was because of his response to the question, does he believe that Trump should be test should have to testify, I believe. And he was like, That's up to y'all, or something like that. And Hillary gave a straight

Lawsuit Over Miley Cyrus’ Flowers

SPEAKER_00 8:10

answer, but Bill kind of President Clinton, or former President Clinton, kind of well, he didn't dance around it, he just gave he just dodged it a little bit, like, listen, leave me alone. I think I would have gave him more of a donkey of the day for laughing at them damn photos, like what is wrong with you? But I mean Charlemagne gave him donkey for his response, which in an in an annoyed moment I could see that response coming out of someone's mouth. Like, listen, that's up to you, leave me the hell alone. Then the Breakfast Club also was talking about experiences with ghosts and spirits, which is something that I usually don't touch on a lot, but I have had some interesting experiences with spirit world. I'm not going to say ghost, but we will say spirit. I don't know if I'm ready to share my story just yet, but I I you know my stomach, my gut says hold on for right now. So that's what I'm gonna do. But I d I have had an experience that I don't talk about a lot. Um yeah, when I'm ready to, I will. Now the big one. The ongoing conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran. At the end of February 2026, a major joint military offensive, also called Operation Epic Fury, was launched by the US and Israel forces against Iran. The operation included airstrikes that killed Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Hamanai and other high-ranking officials. That escalated into broader military actions with Iran retaliating against US bases

Comparing Musical Similarities

SPEAKER_00 10:25

and regional allies. This conflict has sparked debate over legality, regional security, civilian casualties, and international law. You do not have to be an expert to know that this is serious, widespread, and affecting people's lives across the Middle East and the world. We have people from the US that are stuck in places like Dubai and other parts of the Middle East, sending them prayers, peace, and praying that they are safe and they're able to get back to the state safely. This is craziness. Okay, so let's pivot back to some personal positives. In the first quarter, my first quarter wins. So, apart from renovating my space and doing some painting and building some panels that I still haven't finished yet. No, I have I finished the painting, I have been tiptoeing out to some

Breakfast Club’s Donkey Of The Day

SPEAKER_00 11:25

live events here and there. One of the events that I went to more than once was Aaron Marcellus at the groove. And boy, let me tell you, was that a treat? Oh my lord, did I enjoy myself? That man can sing sing. And it's not, it's like it's like the singing is there, but uh the arrangement, he had a looper that he was using, you know, and he was stacking his own vocals, doing ad-libs, I mean taking you to church, uh soulfulness. The band was amazing, but it was something to witness, and I have a clip because I didn't really, I was so engulfed, I didn't really pull out my phone too much. But there was one part that I got, and I'm gonna play you 15 seconds of it because that's all I can play legally.

Ghosts, Spirits, And Gut Checks

SPEAKER_00 12:55

But yes, if you can get your tail to see Aaron Marcellus the next time he's live somewhere, wherever he is, because his residency has stopped at the groove. He was there almost the whole winter, I want to say, and I went twice. I wish I went more because I I thought he was gonna be there longer, but he's not.

Operation Epic Fury And Escalation

SPEAKER_00 13:21

He's doing other things now. Shout out to Aaron Marcellus, great spirit. He said hi, and I said hello back. Uh, and I had an amazing time, and uh I would advise you to check out Aaron Marcellus, he's got some new music out too. Stay is one of the songs that he has out, uh, and he's got a lot of or a few live sets on YouTube that I would suggest you go check out. There's one that I enjoy where he's doing a Mother's Day show a few years ago. That was amazing. Really enjoyed that, and there's another one I'm not sure or what the purpose was, but I feel like he was in a studio setting and he had different people coming through singing with him. Sometimes they were ladies, I believe most of the time they were ladies, and they were doing duets and things. Was that the or was that the Mother's Day show? No, that was the Mother's Day show. But there's another show on YouTube where it's mostly just him and he has some background singers, and he's killing it. I watched the I watched those two things a lot. So shout out to Aaron Marcellus, man. Um so there's a playlist that I put together that uh is gonna go with this episode here. I don't know what I'm gonna name the playlist yet. But there will be some sounds from the people that we talked about. You know, a little Maxwell, a little

Human Impact And Safety Concerns

SPEAKER_00 15:06

Dange, a little Miley, a little Bruno, huh? A little me, I'ma throw one of our jones on there. And then, you know, some Aaron Marcellus, and then some other people that I'm inspired by. So, check it out. Thanks for tuning in to your Insmooth Street. This is episode two. We'll be back next week with episode three. And uh for season one. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

SPEAKER_01 15:36

Top teas two I'm waiting for all this, I think, all this way What will you do? Don't be dumping time to keep my head up, dumping line wasn't dumb,

Q1 Wins And Live Music Joy

SPEAKER_01 16:40

but I need to get up with the right button like that.