JPF Home Page Forums General Messages General Message Forum Bigger than the Beatles and Elvis?

I kinda expected folks to rag on both Madonna and Mariah. Why is pop success so loathed?

You only see what your eyes want to see
How can life be what you want it to be
You're frozen
When your hearts not open

You're so consumed with how much you get
You waste your time with hate and regret
You're broken
When your hearts not open

Those are from Madonna's lyrics "Frozen" - they seemed appropos.

Personally, I think Madonna's career is impressive. She has shown an incredible ability to continuously reinvent herself and stay current on the charts for 26 years. I doubt she's done at this point. Her tunes are simple and danceable. She uses sex and controversy. She's a better performer than a vocalist. Are those all negative? To write her off and say she "sucks" may mean you just don't get it, not her.

As for Mariah - she is an incredible vocal talent. Yes she had the Columbia records marketing machine to thank for exposing her to the public in 1990, but it's her voice that made (and still makes) people listen.

And despite the comments about how hard it was for Elvis and the Beatles in the media of their day, is it harder to be Number One when its easier for any artist to reach the market? Doesn't this represent greater competition in the market rather than less?

So go ahead and complain about the success both have had if it makes you feel good - anyone care to address the point I thought more important: Each of these artists and their labels have figured out how to SELL 200,000+ digital downloads of a single immediately upon release. Seems there is money to be made in the digital realm.