It used to be about the music, but now it's about filling pocketbooks.Why did these ladies conform to the suits instead of change the world, and what does this mean for the younger generation of music lovers.
Katy Perry:
I remember when Katy Perry came out in 2008 with her breakout hit "I Kissed A Girl" I automatically wrote her off as just another cheesy pop tart who was looking to cash in on the sex sells route.So I was shocked to ind out my older sister actually liked her a lot and re-assured me that she can actually write good songs and that she is more then what her pop songs portray. So after years of going "yeah right, uh huh suuure." I was stunned to see a video on you tube of Katy Perry singing an acoustic version of what I guess was one of the first songs she ever wrote that went on to be used on her album One of the Boys:
Thinking Of You
For the first time I was blown away; by not only the beautiful lyrics but also her sincere honesty she had when she sang it.It got me thinking; was I wrong this whole time?
Is there more to this Katy Perry chick?
Is she a real singer songwriter underneath that whip cream bra? Actually....Yes but my bigger question to Miss Katy Perry would be this:
You have this gift of writing songs, you can sing, your beautiful, and you used to write christian music...why did you sell out? What happened? Did you sell out in order to get your voice heard by the industry so you could go on to write better more meaningful songs one day, or after five plus years of struggling you said "Fuck it" and just caved in to the bullshit world of pop music.I would love to know the real answer to this, since it just saddens me to know that the girl who can write songs like this:
Trust in Me (off her christian album titled Katy Hudson)
To writing bullshit like this:
California Gurls
What the fuck happened?
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Ke$ha:
Ke$ha is another pop artist I would like to talk about and one who truly confuses the hell out of me.Is she a corporate hack or is she just a parodist in the sense that she is making fun of the ridiculousness of the industry and pop music in general and using that to cash in?
I would like to believe the answer is the the last one and here's why; When I first heard the utter ridiculousness that is "Tik Tok" The first thought I had was "She has to be joking, Nobody could really be this fucked up!" and upon doing some research of her background here are some interesting facts:
1.Like Katy Perry she writes or co-writes all of her own songs and has actually written songs for other famous pop artists (like Katy Perry Has).
2.Ke$ha learned songwriting from her mother who was a successful country songwriter who wrote such hits as "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle To You."
3.Dr. Luke (who went on to sign her) described her demo like this:"A gorgeously sung, self-penned country ballad" and the second "a gobsmackingly awful trip-hop track, when you're listening to 100 CDs, that kind of bravado and chutzpah stand out."
I know making it as a singer songwriter is hard in this industry, but how can someone who wrote this:
GoodBye
To write this cluster fuck:
We R Who We R
What the fuck happened?
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Lady Gaga:
I probably don't need to go into detail about this last artist, but unless you live in a cave Lady Gaga is a pop singer who got her start performing in small club venues in new york as part of the defunct band "The Stefani Germonatta Band" aptly named after her real name Stefani. Now anybody who knows me knows that unlike the other two ladies above in this post, I personally cannot stand Lady Gaga and her shitty music. But before all the little monsters get their panties in a bunch let me explain:
I like Stefani G's songs, the ones she wrote when she was still "struggling"
but not the trite bullshit that she now sells as Lady Gaga.
I can deal with this:
But not this shit:
Judas
What the fuck Happened?
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My big point is this:
Obviously all these women are talented in their own right, so how come the industry have made them into these corporate idiot pop stars?
And why does Katy Perry, Kesha and Lady Gaga let them get away with this?
More importantly: Why do WE as the consumer buy this bullshit?
Why don't we expect more from the industry at this point, they have talented artists so why are they making them write trivial pop shit?
Instead of shaking their titties why don't they wake the fuck up and realize from the success of Adele that normal people want normal deep music,I know it's a shocker!
The road was already paved by brilliant songwriters like Joni Mitchell,Carly Simon and Carole King, now why don't they pick up where these women left off? Pop music originally was supposed to be the pulse of what the common people were listening to that was popular. So technically, pop music could be about anything, It didn't have to be stupid dance club tracks, it could be about love, redemption, war and sadness, which are all common experiences in the human collective.
Carole King's 1971 album Tapestry is considered one of the most successful pop albums by a female artist with over 25 million sold worldwide, 4 Grammy's (including album of the year.) and is ranked #36 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. She is also inducted into the rock and roll hall of fame for songwriting with credits spanning back to the 1960's.
This is what pop songs can be without having to conform to industry standards:
I feel the earth move
It's too late
Joni Mitchell is another wonderful songwriter who not only has written many hits for other people but has written some of the most iconic songs or herself as well, with her album Blue being considered one of the most prolific albums ever.
Big Yellow Taxi has been covered by many different artists, but I think it keeps a fine balance of fun but with a message. Even if it is not your cup of tea, you can't deny that she is talking about real issues like the environment (1st song) and love (2nd song) are issues that still resonate to this day:
Big Yellow Taxi
Both sides now
Katy,Kesha, and Gaga:
There is no reason why you can't write good music that means something without having to sell your souls and without having to lose your identities.It is our mission as women to tell the sexist industry that we don't have to flash our tits to get noticed, we are all valid and deserve a real voice, we deserve more then double meanings and getting drunk, we are powerful,smart,funny,deep individuals who need to strive for more then just the next dubstep nightmare of a song. I don't want my daughter growing up thinking that boys,shopping,sex, drugs and drinking till they puke are the only things that matter in this world.
Popular music doesn't have to be shallow and repetitive, it can be deep and thought provoking as well, real music doesn't have guidelines, it can be whatever we want it to be.
And for me, I deserve something better, society deserves better and our future generations deserve better.
I cannot wait for the day you ladies stop with the bullshit songs and write an album that actually means something and changes the world for the better instead of make it worse.
Until then, I'll be listening to Joni, Carole and Carly.
xoxox
