You don t want to re-create the past. You want to carry a tradition forward. In the 1960s and 70s, Stax was synonymous with gritty, earthy soul music. Its roster included the late Otis Redding, Sam David, Isaac Hayes and Carla Thomas, among others - all singers whose work has a lingering presence in contemporary R B, either through direct influence or through use of samples by savvy producers such as Kanye West.

So it s no coincidence that the revived Stax has already released new albums by such contemporary acts as Soulive and singer Angie Stone, with a much-anticipated album by singer Lala Hathaway scheduled for release next year. We are looking for singers who make music that is a bit funkier, a bit rawer, a bit more honest, for lack of a better word, Smith said. I think what we are seeing is part of the cyclical nature of how people react and listen to music.

Anytime that any form of music gets overexposed, a new generation is going to go with music that is new and fresh. Right now, it seems that it is the singer and the song that is a concept that people are interested in hearing. Urban music is looking back, but it is doing it slyly. Creativity is all well and good - it should be tantamount - but the reality of the music business is that an act, no matter how acclaimed, has to bring those Benjamins to the box office.

Scott Johnson, the booking manager for Greensboro Coliseum, said that R B and hip-hop acts draw consistently large crowds to his room. Greensboro is at the top of the national circuit for R B and hip-hop shows, he said. We ve done extremely well this year with shows by R. Kelly, Lil Wayne, the 102-Jamz Super Jam. Greensboro has always done well with soul and R B acts.