I love you too.

It’s zero dark thirty in the AM so I’ll not address the whole post (which was thoughtful and salient) – I can’t even explain why I’m up this late …. But I should point out that i never said she was overpaid… I said she was overexposed…

Also… I know its all subjective opinion, but its my subjective opinion… and if I believe it, I should treat it like fact…

Competent singers are a dime a dozen. Look at American Idol.
Good musicians are somewhat rarer. Look at American Idol.

That crowd pleasing panderfest has yet to produce a single worthwhile contribution to the pop music scene. Simon couldn’t find talent if Elvis Costello kicked him in the balls.

Oh and Mmmmmm… Neko Case

You mixed economics and subjective opinion.

IThe high pay of entertainers and sports figures reflects our screw-up priorities of a society — but within those priorities, it’s hard to say she’s overpaid.

She’s paid as much as her agent could negotiate from people willing to pay. That’s free market, baby!

Her “Baby One..” album went 14X Platnum and generated millions of dollars, no doubt. It’s not overpaid to get a hefty slice of that.

Her main “talent” is making pop music — and she obviously is very talented at that as the hard numbers prove.

As for her looking good in a bikini — I can’t say since I havent’ seen, but I’ll take your word for it!
As for you list — you’ve got good taste. At one-time-or-the-other I’ve been a little obsessed with most of those! I absolutely ADORE Nina Simone — RIP. I’m seeing Crissy Hynde live in a couple weeks here in Dubai. Yeah!

These days I’m listening a lot to Neko Case’s “Blacklisted.” … what a voice!

But I have a very different take on pop music — I believe it is HARDER to make a good pop song than, let’s say, a singer-songwriter ballad or a jazz song.

And yes it’s almost always a major collaboration to create a pop hit: from the singer to the producers to the promoters… but to dismiss the singer in a pop song is like dismissing the quarter back on a pro football team. Neither could do it on their own but both roles are essential to success.

My favorite female pop artists these days is Shakira .

Wendy O is one of those artists who defy conventional wisdom about music, but to deny the Plasmatics their rightful place in the Kingdom of Punk would be a shame.

#15 said: “I like Spears and I’m honest enough to admit it. I think her pop songs are fun and she looks great.”

I agree with you, but only with the second part of it.
” I’m no groupie and I don’t own any of her music but I know talent when I hear it. And she is alented.”

You see? I totally agree with you here. She’s alented

Comment by curmudgen — 1/31/2007 @ 8:24 pm

Bwahahahaha – WOW – You actually knew that

#15 – I like Spears and I’m honest enough to admit it. I think her pop songs are fun and she looks great.

Don’t get me wrong … I’m no groupie and I don’t own any of her music but I know talent when I hear it. And she is alented.

Subjective debates are pretty damn stupid, BUT how do you know talent? Because I know talent and she is most assuredly not any more talented than the lead in the “Insert small midwestern town here” High School version of Guys and Dolls.

She’s an over exposed mousekateer who sometimes looks good in a bikini.

There are hundred of musicians with talent. In the realm of female vocalist, there is…

Hope Sandoval
Kate Bush
Aretha Franklin
Martha David
Ani DiFranco
Liz Phair
Lauryn Hill
Wendy O. Williams
Joan Osborne
Nina Simone
Annie Lennox
Kim Gordon
Kim Deal
Joni Mitchell
Fiona Apple
Chrissie Hynde
Patti Smith
Melissa Etheridge
Bjork
Nico

It’s all subjective, and you might not think (for example) that say Wendy O Williams is particularly talented, but she had a powerful stage pressence and made not only a lasting impact on the punk genre but also influenced the artistic direction of future musicians.

Brittney, on the other hand is a puppet for producers, choreographers, and executives. She has no particular vision, no style of her own, and much of her early work was penned by Max Martin.

Maybe I am a snob, but a musician creates music and a pop singer is just a voice to be used by others in the creation of forgettable, lackluster, candy pop to be sold to teen girls.

Brittney is nothing but a face, but since this is a mysogenistic site, her image ends up here far too often. I imagine that someone here has a thing for her image as a nubile sex tart – but in reality she’s just airbrushed better than the the average Girl Gone Wild model.

I like Spears and I’m honest enough to admit it. I think her pop songs are fun and she looks great.

Don’t get me wrong … I’m no groupie and I don’t own any of her music but I know talent when I hear it. And she is alented.

As for the “outrage” at her up-skirt shots — that is all fake.

Nobody was really scandalized or even bothered — not after all the other crap we’ve all seen by now. Furthermore, no guys mind seeing that sort of thing.