Around a year ago, we published our annual post for “Veteran artists to look out for in 2014”. There was a lot of excitement around that post. Some of that excitement was warranted. Some clearly was not. Some artists delivered on expectations (e.g. Take That) while some disappointed (i.e. Kylie Minogue) and there were others that simply delayed on “commitments” (e.g. Duran Duran, Tears For Fears) – and we’re referring to “commitments” in the loosest sense of the word. That being said, 2015 just might be shaping up to into an eventful for year for pop music with several returns from pop/rock powerhouses. Here is our list of acts to watch out for in 2015:
Madonna: Age does not seem to be an impediment to the world’s undisputed “Queen of pop” from wanting to conquer the pop music world over and over again. Her work ethic is as grounded as it ever has been and like many veteran acts, she does not rest on her laurels or take satisfaction in her stellar and enduring musical legacy. It has been almost three years since Madonna released her last album “MDNA” – an album that had the most polarizing effect on her global fanbase. Singles such as “Give me all your luvin” made it seem like Madonna was having either a mid-life crisis or a musical identity crisis. While her ardent fanbase still hails “MDNA” as an artistic victory, skeptics and casual fans perceive the album as the sign of a downward trend in Madonna’s artistry. Now, in her mid-50s, Madonna probably has more to prove than she ever did to “turn the ship around”. There are some signs that she just might be doing this. Official sources claim that she is working with producers Diplo and Avicii on an album due for release next year. Two tracks (in a somewhat embryonic form) have surfaced online – “Washed Over Me” and “Rebel Heart“. The latter is the track that shows a lot of promise. Sonically, it is quite reminiscent of “The Days” (Avicii’s collaboration with Robbie Williams). Like on “The Days“, Avicii marries acoustic guitar embellishments with an electronic sound forming a great soundscape for Madonna’s impeccable vocals to drift in. If “Rebel Heart” is representative of the album’s material, Madonna fans and skeptics are bound to be impressed.
Adele: British songstress Adele just might be one of the few artists in the music industry that still sells records. She does so without fitting most of the confining moulds that modern pop stars have to work within to earn a livelihood in the music industry. She is without a doubt an incredible vocalist that typically stimulates a sense of consensus whenever her merits as an artist are discussed. We take pride in being one of the few stations in America that played her music before she became known in the mainstream. She is credible if not the most interesting. Some of her widespread appeal might stem from her “safe and wholesome” positioning in the pop music business. Her first two albums were named after her age at the time of their release. Possibly “26” is the album slated for release in 2015.
Ne-Yo: In the mid-2000s, the tired generic sound that had dominated R&B for close to a decade was starting to see some rejuvenation in the form of Ne-Yo – a songwriter turned solo artist that drew influences from artists such as Michael Jackson and late 80s R&B stars. His ballads were often better than the up-tempo tracks. He brought something unique to the table and his distinct vocals set him apart from scores of R&B/Urban artists that sounded almost identical. His new album “Non-Fiction” will see the light of day in January 2015. While we don’t find him nearly as exciting as we did on his first two albums of late, we can hope for at least one or two killer songs off the new album – and for a radio station like us, that is NOT a bad thing.
Duran Duran: We had the opportunity of briefly meeting Nile Rodgers (one of two producers on the new Duran Duran album) during the Advertising Week events in New York City in October 2014. Rodgers indicated that the new Duran Duran album is “sounding great”. The pioneers of the location-based music video shoots, and posterboys of the 80s and early 90s have continued to deliver fantastic music for years after their so-called commercial prime. Age has not slowed them down. They sound and look amazing in their live shows. Their recent performance at “Fashion Rocks” in California is proof of that. They still have the same spark that they did when they first emerged in 1981 as a potent force to be reckoned with. Lead singer Simon LeBon’s voice ages better than a bottle of great wine. Their 2010 album “All You Need Is Now” has been described by its producer Mark Ronson as the sequel to their landmark album “Rio” (released in the early 80s). That album had the distinguishing feature of sounding both retro and modern at the same time. It also succeeded in getting rid of the bitter after-taste that many Duran Duran fans were left with after listening to the Timbaland-produced “Red Carpet Massacre” album. There are fairly strong indications that a new album by the band will see the light of day in 2015. On this album, the band is working with Nile Rodgers and Mark Ronson – two producers that brought out a side of Duran Duran that people had never heard. They were the sonic architects of a sound that Duran Duran could own and shine with. The new material cannot release soon enough.
Natalie Imbruglia: Natalie Imbruglia is one of those artists whose songwriting competencies have become sharper with time and yet she is constantly anchored to her signature track “Torn” – a song that was NOT written by her. Sadly, for those that have not looked beyond “Torn” with regard to Natalie Imbruglia, they have truly missed out on her artistic brilliance. It was only on her sophomore album “White Lilies Island” (which spawned the hit single “Wrong Impression“) that Natalie Imbruglia start to hone her songwriting skills as opposed to being a puppet for songwriters. It was on her fourth album “Come To Life” (which spawned the addictive “Lukas“) that Natalie Imbruglia hit her artistic peak. Sadly, the album was very poorly promoted and tanked even before it could truly see the light of day. Most music listeners (besides Natalie’s ardent fans) had no idea she was back with her best music. The album definitely became a victim of obscurity. For the longest time, there were rumors that Natalie was set to quit the business after the commercial failure of “Come to Life“. She recently indicated that she is slated to release a “covers” album in 2015. The covers include songs by Neil Young and Daft Punk. While new material from Ms Imbruglia is always welcome, we are a little disappointed that the album won’t feature newly written material.
Will Young: We have never fancied artists that rise to stardom through reality television shows such as the X Factor, and American Idol. We strongly believe that these artists are not groomed for long-lasting careers and that any commercial success that they do enjoy is because of the halo around their time in the limelight on these television shows. We had a similar feeling about Will Young. He has a beautiful voice but we never found him particularly exciting. He was your average-joe balladeer until he took a stylistic departure for the better on his album “Echoes” – a collaboration with dance music producer Richard X (known for his collaborations with Saint Etienne). Gone were the MOR ballads, and instead we got a collection of mid to uptempo “feel-good” tracks. The ones that were particularly delectable were “Runaway” and “I just want a lover“. This is a sound that absolutely works for him and it took “Echoes” to #1 on the UK album charts. We really hope he explores this sound further on his next album to be released in 2015.
Tears For Fears: The new Tears For Fears album was slated for release in 2014 and based on an interview in April 2014, it seemed like the album had been recorded (but not mixed). Rarely does an act from yesteryear sign a major record label deal but it looks like Tears For Fears has against all odds. They recently signed an album deal with Warner Music – and the specifics of the deal have caused the album to be delayed but there is enough evidence that points to a 2015 release. The duo first reunited in 2002. The result of these recording sessions manifested itself in the form of “Everybody loves a happy ending” – an album that was Beatles-esque at its very core and a radical departure from the sophisticated sonic template that dominated the two landmark Tears For Fears albums (i.e. “Songs from the big chair” and “Seeds of love“). This album polarized the band’s fanbase. The reunion tour was a successful one. The duo split again and it seemed unlikely that they would ever record again when Curt Smith once said in an interview that making music as Tears For Fears was a “money losing proposition” due to the rampant phenomenon of ageism in the musical mainstream. In view of this statement, the news of a new Tears For Fears album is very welcome. Roland Orzabal has described the new music to be dark and dramatic. We can barely wait!
Garbage: When people think of bands that defined the sound of the 90s, Garbage is definitely one of the names that come to mind. Their heavy-sounding pop seemed to fuse different types of genres from across the music spectrum made them stand out. Shirley Manson was undoubtedly one of the leading lead singers of any band of that era. After a moderately successful reunion album “Not your Kind Of People” (released in 2012 on their own label), the band is back in the studio working on new material which will hopefully see the light of day next year.
Shayne Ward: If we were skeptical of Will Young, our skepticism of Shayne Ward ran even deeper. He is yet another X Factor alumnus that milked the show’s halo on his first album. He lost the momentum on his second album “Breathless” – which actually had a some great tracks despite being lyrically a little cringe-worthy. Noteworthy highlights include the guilty pleasure “No U Hang up“, “Damaged“, and “U Got Me So“. Shayne Ward’s third album “Obsession” did not do much to reignite his career in any way but he has not thrown in the towel. In fact, he has worked with Mike Stock (from the late 80s/ early 90s songwriting and production powerhouse Stock Aitken and Waterman) on a new album titled “Closer” – slated for release in April 2015. This album, is available for pre-order via Pledgemusic. CLICK HERE to pre-order. We are definitely intrigued and cannot wait to see the results of this collaboration.
Culture Club: 2013 was supposed to be the year that marked Culture Club’s glorious return and a celebration of 30 years since they stormed the global pop landscape with their first hit single “Do You Really Want To Hurt Me“. The band previewed a new track called “Universal Love” at live gigs in Dubai and Sydney in 2012. The song is brilliant and without a doubt a Culture Club essential. But then it seemed like things went quiet. Boy George’s release of “This is What I Do” in October 2013 intensified speculation that the Culture Club project might have been shelved permanently. Fortunately, the new album “Tribes” has been announced and is slated for release in April 2015. Recently, the band’s touring plans were canceled because of medical treatment that Boy George requires for his vocal cords. The spectrum of music on this album appears to be quite eclectic – ranging from the U2-esque lead single “More than silence” to the funk-fueled “Like I used to“. More importantly, Culture Club sounds more like a band than they ever did. The album can be pre-ordered via PledgeMusic. Click HERE to PREORDER.
Brandon Flowers: In an interview with British television host Jonathan Ross, The Killers‘ frontman Brandon Flowers was asked how the songwriting responsibilities were distributed across the band. Flowers responded by saying that all 4 members write the music but he writes the lyrics. Jonathan Ross’ response was “so basically, you could go solo if you wanted to”. Flowers did not respond but the question probably did plant a thought in his head. We have strongly believed that to make the transition to a successful solo career, there needs to be a stylistic shift in the music and potentially the image of the artist. Flowers did neither on his first solo album “Flamingo“. The album yet topped the UK albums chart and cracked the US top 10 but it was not enough for him to move on from The Killers. Now, he is working on a new album being produced by Ariel Rechtshaid. It is slated for release in 2015.
Kim Wilde: Being a female pop singer in the 80s must have been difficult – unless you had a unique positioning like Sade did. Back in that decade, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that every female singer was destined to live in the shadow of Madonna. That conclusion was in fact quite an accurate reality. There appeared to be no place for two pop queens in a single decade. Kim Wilde, like many other great female pop artists lived in Madonna’s shadow. Madonna always stole the spotlight in the 80s – and it appeared like that happened again the late 90s and early 2000s during which her ability to reinvent herself musically was applauded – even if at times, the music was not nearly as enduring as the material that elevated her to the title of pop queen. One of the most stunning and overlooked reinventions was that of Kim Wilde. After an almost 10-year hiatus from the music industry (during which she got married and took on gardening as a full-time career), she returned as a reinvented rock chick. The idea of a rock chick is great but the implementation of that stylistic approach doesn’t always translate well to a good record. Kim Wilde pulled it off – not once but twice with the fiercely sexy “Never say never” (2006) and “Come out and play” (2010) albums. These high-energy songs were rock-tinged pop songs with fantastic sing-along choruses. Kim returned once again with a covers album titled “Snapshots” which featured the amazing East 17 cover “It’s alright“. In 2013, she returned once again with a token Christmas album titled “Wilde Winter Songbook“. Needless to say, Kim Wilde’s new music is far better than anything Madonna has recorded in the past decade. In March 2014, she announced that she was working on new material which will probably see the light of day in 2015. We can only hope that the new album is a sonic sequel to the utterly brilliant “Come out and play” album.
Tom Chaplin: One of the most disappointment announcements in the music industry in 2013 was that of melodic rock band Keane’s. They had announced an indefinite hiatus and NOT a break-up. Lead singer Tom Chaplin’s solo career might have a lot to do with Keane’s prospects in the near or distant future. It is not clear where Tom Chaplin is headed stylistically but he did give us a sneak preview of what a solo effort by him sounds like.Here is a link to a snippet of it. It is likely (although we have no confirmation) that his first solo endeavor might surface at some point in 2015.
Def Leppard: They hated being lumped in with the “big hair” rock bands of the 80s – and said that theirs was just naturally big. But the thing is, they were more than just a “big hair” stadium-rock band. They were one of the few from that era whose music has endured and continues to enthrall new generations of music listeners. They were the pioneers of a pop-metal sound of the 80s characterized by glossy production, harmonic vocals, and fantastic melodic guitar riffs. Rumors suggest that they have been working on a new album this year that is slated for release in 2015. The prospect of new material by Def Leppard is exciting even though the band has not put out a great album in over two decades. That being said, every album since then has spawned or two good songs.
Samantha James: Samantha James might be one of the few female pop stars (if not the only one) today that embodies the winning combination of style and substance – making her the seminal modern pop star. Her biggest enemy is the mis-categorization of her music as “dance music”. As soon as one hears that term, we assume 7-minute tracks with sparse vocals that can only be listened to in dance clubs and absolutely nowhere else. This could not be further from the truth. Samantha James’ music can be described as a soundscape of musical elements that blend dance, soul, electronica, and Bossa Nova. It is almost like Sade meeting post-1995 Everything But The Girl. Samantha won audiences over with her debut album “Rise“. Many believe she would not be able to move forward from that high musically. She proved listeners wrong with her sophomore album “Subconscious” – an album so superior in quality that it makes its predecessor pale in comparison. It has been over 2 years since the release of “Subconscious”. In 2011, Samantha released an instantly lovable track called “Wings of Faith” as a charity single for the earthquake victims in Japan. Rarely are charity singles THAT good. One can only hope that “Wings of Faith” is representative of the material that Samantha will release in 2015. Recently, on her Facebook fanpage, she indicated that she had recorded a new single that was supposed to be released this year. But things have been quiet at her end, and hence we think it is only safe to assume the new material will surface in 2015.
New Order: New Order has continued to be a potent force in the live circuit in North America and Europe – even after the departure of their talented bass player Peter Hook. But it has been a while since they have had a great single or a great album. Their last album “Waiting for the Siren’s Call” spawned the uptempo single “Jetstream” (featuring Ana Matronic from Scissor Sisters). In terms of a great New Order album, the world has not heard one since “Republic” (1993). In 2013, New Order released “Lost Sirens” -a group of tracks that did NOT make it on to their last album “Waiting for the Sirens call“. The band recently announced a new record deal with Mute Records and is slated to release a new album in 2015. Here is a full-length clip of one of the new tracks titled “Singularity“:
Pet Shop Boys: This duo never seems to want to stop. Their tenacity and prolific songwriting is exemplary. They were one of the most memorable acts of the 1980s. They also made a reasonably good transition to the 90s outside North America. Their career saw yet another resurgence in the mid-2000s with their album “Fundamentalism” – which spawned the UK top 10 single “I’m with stupid” and the insanely brilliant “Minimal“. We were not particularly excited by their last couple of musical offerings but we are always curious as to what they might release next. Rumor has it that they are back in the recording studio working on new material slated for release next year.
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Great overview of veteran artists returning. I am especially looking forward to a new album from Garbage. I’m a huge fan but their reunion album Not My KInd of People really didn’t do much for me. Maybe my expectations were too high, but I found it a bit disappointing. It’s really the only album by them I don’t like. I hope a new album from them will be better.
Also a new album is coming out from Juliana Hatfield. This album is the first she’s done since the 90’s with the same lineup as her hit album Become What You Are which had the 90’s alternative pop hits My Sister and Spin the Bottle. Here is the first single from the album called If I Could. It has the 90’s jangly indie pop sound.
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/juliana-hatfield-three-reunite-new-album-whatever-my-love-20141211
What some people may not know is Juliana does in concert a cover of Gone by Madonna from her album Music. It is actually really great. I’m a Madonna and an indie/alternative fan and the two don’t always seem to go together but it’s cool to see that intersection. Juliana is very underrated live performer and songwriter and I hope the new album puts her back in the spotlight. There seems to be quite an interest in 90’s music right now.
As far as Culture Club, I’m a big fan or I used to be, but this constant delays and cancellations are really annoying to me and really are making me lose all interest in the whole thing. George on his Facebook page that he had been having problems with his throat for months and ignored it and only went to a throat doctor right before the tour was supposed to start. That to me is just the height of unprofessionalism. I would think if you are planning a major tour in larger venues making sure your voice was good should be the #1 thing you are thinking about. It just seems odd how he’s always lecturing people about eating raw vegan food and being healthy in that way, but totally ignoring the health of his voice.
There’s a feature on CC in the new UK magazine Q. It doesn’t give much information on the new album but unfortunately focuses a lot on their past disagreements and not the music. That is their problem in promotion. It just seemed like there’s still a lot of awkwardness between them and conflict. George says that if he falls out with one of them it will probably be Roy because apparently they still have disagreements about music.
George in this article to me comes off as very demanding and controlling of the others. Jon comes off the best in the article as someone who is very funny, open, honest and down to earth. I do wonder from this article how long they will stay together. Not long, I’m guessing, but hopefully long enough to release the album and do a short tour.
I do hope doctors can do something to improve George’s voice because it’s become pretty bad to me in recent years and so different from the older recordings. I find it odd that for someone who is such a critically acclaimed vocalist he gives a large number of bad vocal performances. People always seem to make excuses for him, whereas they rip into other artists like Mariah Carey, Madonna and George Michael if they have one off day.
It was rather comical but hypocritical to read on a Boy George site people ripping into Mariah’s recent performance of All I Want for Christmas is You with no mercy, but on the other hand excusing George’s horrific recent live performances. I often feel people give George too easy a ride.
Radiocremebrulee are generally really cool but this obsession with the pointless Madonna-worst person in the world and so NOT a musical artist AT ALL is just befuddling, maddening and utterly unecessary. Can’t you give it up?! You big up 80s artists generally, though the continued ignoring of German singer Sandra-who’s material is actually nearest the REAL Queen of Pop Kim Wilde’s equal, which you’d all know if you bothered playing her stuff-is not pleasing at all. But hark to comparing, as usual, hagdonna to Kim, yes, ridiculous it has to be so, but that’s the world we live in, and while I applaud making the point that Kim’s been better than that cretin’s stuff for at least 10 years, the reality is she’s ALWAYS been better! In fact, how can you even compare Gucci to garbage bags which is exactly what someone said on facebook in 2008 and how right they were. Kim is without doubt THE best albums act there is, and more than any other-and they were many great ones around: Bangles, Duran Duran, Sandra, Alphaville, OMD, Abba, Fleetwood Mac, Stevie Nicks, Berlin, A-ha, Crowded House, Sade, every album she released within her first 10 years were as groundbreakingly and effortlessly dissimilar to each other, apart from them all being high quality. There’s very little flattering to her when you pick out the odd move Hagdonna makes and fail it, because not only do you act like she’ll always come back good, when she never will, and never has, she was NEVER good in the 80s anyway, and comparing to Kim, who admittedly struck her golden pinnacle best with albums 2, 3 and 4 in an amazing 3 year consecutive strike, still easily manages between 9/10 to 10/10 albums on most occasions (her career best to me are 20/10 and music which of the like we will never hear or see again from anybody.
It’s continually as boring as Madonna actually is-including her nauseatingly stolen, embarrassing, predictable, tired and utterly DULL attempts at song making and says it ALL about the world’s state and values that an old gold-digging oversexed slapper with a need for attention and all-encompassing glorification for very little in the way of style, substance, talent or even likeability that it should be the one “crowned” queen of pop (try flop). Kim in her shadow?! Please, Kim was out and ruling the world, four fine albums under her belt (including all her career-best threesome) before that vile being’s first attempt at a record came out, and Kim continued to, and still does, outstrip her (so to speak) but then so does Sandra, Bangles, Duran, anybody. Kim always was a rock chick, but when her new material finally does come out, whilst I insist her “Come Out And Play” presence should continue up to a point, it needs to have far more synth-orientated, perhaps revisiting the few dance tracks she made here and there throughout her fallow early 00’s period, plus the songs need to be of a decent length, not sounding like she can’t wait to be finished with them, and a few more fading out than having abrupt stops would be great.
Boo to Spandau Ballet for having the nerve to come back-one of the silliest groups ever of the 80s, and just like Kim, how typical a great group like Duran should get compared to those clowns. Nothing alike, Duran are serious, they are a joke. Alphaville need a new album out too, following their last classic “Catching Rays On Giant” from 2010 but they have to keep waiting for record deals, whereas the likes of the weak ones-Eurythmics, George Michael, Minogue etc. get it all handed on a plate. Hope Sandra does another one-her last album was “Stay In Touch” and full of excellent 80s style music and synth galore and one of her career best, yet typically not even championed here. That really has to change, it’s bad enough the US ignored her anyway throughout, apart from when she was part of Enigma records as the chanting voice.
Regarding what you say here, Frannie, yes George Michael does get excuses for him, but then so does bloody Madona ALWAYS-the fact she’s still being talked of here as artist rather than the desperate old saddo a million years past her never fresh sell-by-date is evidence the old bat can’t do anything wrong, despite it all being wrong. And you’re clearly living somewhere else-I never heard ANYONE EVER insult that nasty plastic self-loving tone-deaf howling harridan Carey-purveyor of THE worst Christmas song ever (some feat) and person I want to drill through the face with a chainsaw every time I hear it. Hypocritical my arse, Boy George is talent, Carey is not and WAY too many oldies compliment the trashy likes of today’s bull acts like None Direction, Diarrhianna, that Perry idiot, Minaj loser and the rest when they should be killing them! None of those people you mention ever got ANYWHERE NEAR the mauling, or deliberate disregarding of being taken seriously as artist as Duran and Kim have, despite their every single, album and even b-side (certainly for Kim anyway) proving the complete OPPOSITE of that. Critics have no taste, and the public remain as clueless as the djs who made all these boxes for people for whom they want and don’t want. If Spamhead Ballet come back now to a welcome and an actual critical appreciation, then we really are as screwed as Madonna has done to the world all these years. Well done 90% of the world’s non-listening population, take a bath in a wax and keep your head down till you eyes and ears and mouth are utterly cemented shut and then maybe I, and those artists worth sticking with, yet always pushed aside for the rubbish listed here and the overrated and underwhelming likes of the critically adored Depeche Mode, U2, Annie Lennox and Simple Minds who barely hold a candle to them with one song every five years! Tsk! Go Kim, get your new album out! Trust you to be doing the same year as that evil bint Madogga, convenient, and we know were all the attention is boringly going to go as usual. Never mind the fact it’ll all be as bad, unwanted and pointless as everything she usually does, the world just continue to tell themselves the Hitler of music is a luxury of greed they need. Down with them-and her too. Kim and Sandra and Duran forever, and there was nothing wrong with their “Red Carpet Massacre” album whatsoever-when they leave the “Astronaut” safeness behind for the likes of brill experimentation, they almost always pull it off. They’ve always been adventurous and trail-blazers in a way Depeche Mode, despite all the yawn-inducing fanfare sounded around their every move, never have been or will be. And “Rec Carpet” is one of their best, and truly woeful is the so-called fan or anyone who thinks their peak will always be the first half of the 80s. Bull, that 3rd album is actually their weakest, a cute but daft little thing that means little outside its weird bubble. But come 1986 with their first career-best record “Notorious” (yes, not “Rio”-deal!) their lyrics and music became utterly relevant to any decade, contemporary to a fine point and they’ve been so ever since.
I’m glad Culture Club and Tears For Fears are back to, and Blancmange may do another, I know Visage have just done another, but Pet Shop Boys will never stop, but they ought to be careful not to spread themselves too thin. George Michael has a great voice, but HIS problem is it’s usually much better than the ordinary material he deals out-too overlong, average, unexciting, just not for me, but the Wham! stuff was all right in a basic Bananarama kind of way, but nothing important, but he can sing bad when he chooses to. People hardly talk about Boy George, don’t feel it’s a personal attack. Personally I think singers like Adele overdo the vocals to a hundred faults, and their songs aren’t up to much anyway. The 80s live long and ever-give me a Kim Wilde ‘Carry Me Home’, ‘House Of Salome’ & ‘I’ve Got So Much Love’ and a Sandra ‘Midnight Man’, ‘Motivation’ and ‘Sand Heart’ any day and every day!
What a horrible hateful comment about Madonna. She has had many hits and many people enjoy her music although you may not. And it’s not like the owner of this blog talks about noone but Madonna. He gives us a wide range of artists from all time periods. The hate that Madonna inspires in certain people is truly horrifying. Madonna does what she does and she is not stopping any other female artist from having success. I find it very sexist how people feel set female artists against one another. Why can’t you like more than one blonde female singer at the same time. Makes no sense to me.
You must not look online much because there were many attacks against Mariah. I”m not a fan of hers at all but the attacks were way over the top. Her recent vocals aren’t the best but to say she has no talent is very unfair.
I’m all for discussing music logically and reasonably, but your attacks against Madonna are very personal and dripping with ageism and sexism. I actually like a few of Kim Wilde’s songs and have nothing against her. It baffles me why you feel the need to tear down Madonna to build Kim up. Madonna has zero to do with Kim’s success or lack thereof. Kim herself has said she felt burned out by the music business at certain times and for years wanted to take a step back and just relax with her children and a quiet life. She didn’t want to be under the pressure and constant spotlight that Madonna is. That is her right. I find people are often jealous of Madonna’s success and fame, but they aren’t’ willing to make the sacrifices and put with the constant abuse that she does. There are tradeoffs in life. You can live a quiet peaceful life out of the spotlight and have less success or you can put yourself in the spotlight and stress and have more success. It’s up to everyone to decide how to live their life and their career in a way that suits them best.
I like Duran Duran more than Spandau Ballet but there is no reason to insult Spandau to build up Duran Duran. I don’t feel that artists are in competition with one another. You can like another artist without tearing someone else down.
Madonna has a special message for people like Mark.
http://instagram.com/p/xUoKmEGEQA/?modal=true
I think that is what drives people crazy about Madonna and makes fans love her. She for the most part does what she says she is going to do at a certain time. She doesn’t cancel or delay releases or tours at the last moment . People may not like what she does but she generally delivers on time for her fans. Maybe fans of other artists who have a problem with her maybe should ask their favorite artist to try harder and deliver on time and more often. It’s not Madonna’s fault if they don’t.
Madonna’s fans are considered obsessed sometimes, but we are loyal to her because she is loyal to us by giving us releases and tours on a regular basis. It’s a basic rule of treat others like you want to be treated. There is a contract between fans and an artist. If you want your fans to be loyal to you and continue to support you in the lifestyle you are accustomed to, give them albums and tours on a regular basis and don’t endlessly delay and cancel projects. Madonna has always understood that. An artist isn’t required to release anything, but if you choose not to do things on a regular basis, don’t expect your fans to stay loyal to you and just sit waiting forever for you to do something.
Can you leave some notations or hyperlinks for the Tears for Fears quotes? Couple of fans curious about when and where Curt and Roland made those comments. We archive many things and are searching for the quotes. Huge thanks! 🙂 Great read!
@Andye: I will add the hyper-link. Meanwhile, here is a link to the article in which Curt made the statement about a new TFF record being a money-losing proposition: http://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/aug/16/tears-for-fears-record-label