These songs were underplayed!

Written By Kensedeobong Okosun

Many songs have gone under the radar because they received little to no airplay. They remain unknown due to a segregational playlist enhanced by sectarian traditions inherent in Radio. To know a song, a music enthusiast either has to purchase it or be in a social setting like a dance club where DeeJays function as agents of subversion unlike their Radio counterparts, and entertain the audience with a rich musical tapestry.

Music Labels also play a role in this anomaly often through their oversight and underpromotion of whole albums like Barry and Glodean White’s 1981 duo album which never received an iota of publicity. And in other cases, the restriction of certain singles release to a particular country or continent like Japan or Europe, respectively, to the musical detriment or ignorance of other nations. Some times, a song is a leftover and excluded from the final album production like Whitney Houston’s “Moment of Truth” excluded from Whitney (1987). In addition, music journalists are lackadaisical and indifferent in their service to the listening public. They would rather keep the popular singles in rotation than intentionally assess an album to determine valuable songs worthy of public listenership and awareness.

I once attended a music journalism training where we were assigned the task of curating a music playlist. Mine contained a song by Aretha Franklin which other participants admitted was unfamiliar to them, apart from “Think” and “Respect” which were the only Aretha Franklin songs widely known in Germany, despite her huge Catalogue.

I was shocked and it dawned on me that many songs would go unknown, except the listeners actively participate in self-information and personal curation of their music playlist. Consequently, in this post, I share 21 songs which you probably never heard because they received little to no promotion and attention.

  1. Anthony Hamilton. “Pray for Me” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6kKCmaEbvs Back to Love (2011).

  2. Babyface. “ I Hope That You’re Ok” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QEi22M60rs Love, Marriage & Divorce (2014).

  3. Barbara Weathers. “The Master Key” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFBXyOYLKZQ Barbara Weathers (1990).

  4. Barry & Glodean White. Barry & Glodean Album https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECb1A0ERagE&list=PLG5N_SVtxEZ0rfyGmJ4Zl3nQbBvv_UHwp (1981).

  5. Chaka Khan. “This Is My Night” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGx2AjwPVxg I Feel For You (1984).

  6. Cyndi Lauper. “Unconditional Love” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljrgF55gTWc A Night To Remember (1989).

  7. Dionne Warwick. “Whisper in the Dark” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=us3cB8Abfgc Friends (1985).

  8. Earth, Wind & Fire. “Victim of the Modern Heart” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOHzvrWqlbw Touch the World (1987).

  9. George Michael. “Cowboys and Angels” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ve-rxwKuqtI Listen Without Prejudice, Vol.1 (1990).

  10. Janelle Monae. “What an Experience” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuQjzPfxACE Electric Lady (2013).

  11. Jody Watley. “Commitment of Love” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQaa1TRLivQ Affairs of the Heart (1991).

  12. Kevon Edmonds. “Sensitive Mood” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkczHrgkWwM 24/7 (1999).

  13. Luther Vandross. “What the World Needs Now” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F738WmKey_A Songs (1994).

  14. Mariah Carey. “All in your Mind” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STA2zy-hqRM Mariah Carey (1990).

  15. Michael Jackson. “Keep the Faith” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIEiP7kzGjI Dangerous (1991).

  16. ……………………………… “Just Good Friends” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kt27N-_3Hjs Bad (1987).

  17. (The) O’ Jays. “Emotionally Yours” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cx5L2mWFwOk Emotionally Yours (1991).

  18. Patti LaBelle. “Too Good to Be Through” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1Os_657rdg Gems (1994)

  19. Phyllis Hyman. “When I Give My Love” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jppGqb4JZRA Prime Of My Life (1991).

  20. Prince. “Gold” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybjMwAxwgf8 The Gold Experience (1995).

  21. Whitney Houston. “Moment of Truth” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O59f0xi0B_4 Whitney? (1987).

    Kindly share in the comment section the songs you feel are kept under the radar.

Kensedeobong Okosun

Kensedeobong Okosun (M.A Bielefeld University) is a music enthusiast, music researcher, music journalist, vocalist and an author. Her academic article “Sisterhood and Soul Music as expressions of Black Power” is featured in the edited volume, Black Power in Hemispheric Perspective (Raussert & Steinitz, eds, 2022). She has reviewed Dorothea Gail’s Weird American Music (2019). Her articles on Nigerian music have been published on Nigerian news platforms like “Nigerians and their music” (Sun News Online) and “Remembering Victor Uwaifo, “Guitar Boy” and the quest to meet Mami Wata” (The Nigerian Observer).

Kensedeobong’s blog highlights music’s interconnectivity with society and comprises personal music experiences, researched information, concept playlists for multiple themes, etc.

A hard-core 90s R&B fan, she utilises the vehicle of memory, to position long forgotten music of yesteryears on the front-burner.

She is persuaded that music is a core conduit of collective harmony, equanimity, vitality and healing. And as such requires criticality in the filtration process, in order to disseminate meaning. Her blog promotes music equality and diversity.

She resides in Germany.

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