Ungrateful

by Kenya Nelson

Inspired by Me Too and its international impact, “Ungrateful” is a coming-of-age tale of a young woman’s fight against abuse, drugs, demonic influences, and the sex trafficking of minors in the music industry.

Alimah Kebede is unhappy with her father’s management, despite his hard work that made her debut album go platinum. He pushes her as an R&B star—but Alimah’s heart is set on breaking barriers as a Black woman in alternative rock. Elliot Hunter, the CEO of Aten Records, lures Alimah with promises of giving her the rock career she desires—if she fires her father. Desperate for creative freedom and independence from her dysfunctional family, Alimah fires her dad and starts a relationship with Elliot. How deep is Alimah willing to slip into Elliot’s dark world to reach rock stardom? Will she risk her soul—and possibly her life—and make the most of it? Or return to her family and face being blackballed?

326 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 30, 2020

Reviews

[Sikivu Hutchinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

At the heart of Kenya Nelson’s poignantly searing new novel "Ungrateful" is a saga about control—control over power, image, money, and, most importantly, selfhood and artistic creativity. When the novel opens, gifted guitarist Alimah Kebede is on the precipice of several major life transitions. Navigating R&B stardom towards new vistas in the rock world, her career has always been controlled and molded by powerful men who want to pigeonhole her talents. After her turbulent relationship with her domineering manager-father blows up, she falls into the clutches of Elliot, a Svengali label exec and violent predator (ala Suge Knight) who exploits Alimah’s love and trust. Nelson deftly evokes the nightmarish web of addiction, sexual abuse, intimate partner violence, and graft that ensnares Alimah after she parts ways with her father and skyrockets to fame and fortune under Elliot’s tutelage. Coming from a dysfunctional Black “show biz family” steeped in a history of emotional abuse and silence around familial rape, Alimah is desperate for affirmation. The most devastating theme in the novel is Black complicity with normalized sexual violence and the sexual carte blanche given to exalted Black male power brokers. Alimah’s codependent relationship with Elliot is a classic example of how Black entertainment industry icons like R. Kelly, Bill Cosby, Michael Jackson and Russell Simmons continued to garner respect, adulation, and blind allegiance long after their transgressions were exposed. Nelson is especially adept at conveying Alimah’s inner turmoil over and ambivalence about the rarefied world of music industry glitz and glam replete with parasites and “frenemies” who shuttle from one drug-fueled party-orgy to another. Some of the most interesting aspects of the novel center on Alimah’s musicianship, composing, and studio time as she crafts alternative rock songs that defy the racist, sexist conventions of the genre. Yet, after she achieves hard fought validation on the rock charts, she must choose between maintaining her integrity or looking the other way as her “benefactor” is implicated in horrific crimes. Fortunately for the reader, Alimah is a strong, discerning protagonist whose decency, sense of justice, and self-respect win out in the end. "Ungrateful" successfully provides an inside glimpse into the creative struggles of Black women artists betwixt and between white supremacy and Black respectability.

[Jasmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Based on the book description, this story seems like it has a unique perspective on the #metoo movement. After binge reading it, I can say it was SO MUCH MORE in all the best ways possible! This novel dives into the Black perspective in the music industry that has been underrepresented from the movement’s narrative. Before the #metoo movement gained momentum, moguls in the music industry had been accused of sexual harassment and assault, yet acquitted. These men were all protected by their even more powerful connections who were all wrapped up in the “deeds.” “Ungrateful” shines a light on this issue of how some Black men in the industry secure and maintain power, all while abusing that power to hurt their own.

This story goes behind the scenes of a talented young black artist, Alimah, her rise to fame, and all the power structures and dynamics that exist behind the scenes to control artists and pump out money at their expense. You could tell the book was well researched, and it made me feel like I was in Alimah’s entanglement in the web of control and glamour. I couldn’t put the book down because I was so concerned for her well being and in shock of what goes on behind the fame! I won’t give it away, but I will say that it ended in a manner paralleling reality. The story is graphic, but I feel it was necessary to unveil the truth of the ugly part of fame that the media often silences. It makes me wonder why so many novels gloss over real issues rather than tackling them head-on.