I'm a huge Gaga fan and I honestly think she'll be around for a long long time. I think she could even be the next Queen of Pop, the heir to Madonna/Michael Jackson.
Is Lady Gaga a hero?
- Thread starter scottydog
- Start date
Loved this post.Maybe it makes us sound like fogies, but I'm with you, Digits. I think it's all kind of calculated.
IMO she's no 'hero'...nor is she a 'flash in the pan'. She's just another manufactured star of the digital age, where it's more about theatrics (both on and off stage) than music. If American Idol taught this country nothing else, it taught us that the music industry is becoming less and less about the actual music every day.
Emphasis mine.
Is she any more manufactured than David Bowie was in the 1970s? She, like Bowie, is doing the manufacturing, unlike many of the Motown artists, as mentioned above, or the Spice Girls.
I give her a lot of credit, she is doing her own thing, doing the music she likes, and doing it all out. It doesn't seem like she's compromising. Now, whether one likes the music or not...
Who said anything about stars not being manufactured in the 1970's? Of course David Bowie was manufactured. But you have to admit that it was a LOT less frequent back then than it is now. Back when I was a kid (but really before I had any money to spend on music) Bowie was considered out-of-this-universe bizarre. Now? He is barely a blip on the bizarro radar.
As for the Spice Girls, from where I sit, they are closer to this generation's music than to mine. So they fall into the same category as Lady Gaga as far as I'm concerned.
In the 80's (my generation - I consider 'my music' to be the 80's and early 90's for the most part) we had more manufactured stars than in the 70's - Madonna, Boy George, Cindi Lauper, etc. But with the exception of Madonna, none of them are still 1st tier stars today.
Which is exactly my point. "Stars" who make it by having a cool gimmick rarely leave any sort of real legacy. A few do (I would argue that Bowie has a very strong legacy, for example, but the list is very short, I believe), but my personal definition of a 'hero' (and ONLY my personal definition - your mileage may vary) requires someone's work to endure longer than a few years. And gimmicks rarely endure that long.
I have no argument whatever with you considering Lady Gaga to be a 'hero'. Knock yourself out, I say (and said in my original post, BTW)! But for me, although I think she is reasonably talented, I also believe that at this point, the gimmick is well in the forefront of what she is about. And until she is able to endure more on her talent than on the gimmick, I will personally hold back on declaring any sort of 'hero' status.
I'm old enough to remember back well before latecomers like Bowie and Elton John, and I think Gaga's absolutely great. Dunno about "hero..."
Gaga is no hero. As far as I know she hasn't saved anyone's life or took a courageous stand against an injustice.
Some of her music is catchy but superficial. I appreciate that in this day and age she actually writes her own songs even if they don't have a lot to say--she is far cry from great singer songwriters like Carole King, Stevie Nicks, Sarah McLachlan etc who pretty much let the music speak for itself and didn't require elaborate stage shows.
I also think the whole Gaga persona is just that--an act--surely no one thinks that Stephanie behaves that way behind closed doors.
I'm not sure how much staying power she has though so it is wise of her to push out album after album as fast as she can before people grow tired of her.
Some of her music is catchy but superficial. I appreciate that in this day and age she actually writes her own songs even if they don't have a lot to say--she is far cry from great singer songwriters like Carole King, Stevie Nicks, Sarah McLachlan etc who pretty much let the music speak for itself and didn't require elaborate stage shows.
I also think the whole Gaga persona is just that--an act--surely no one thinks that Stephanie behaves that way behind closed doors.
I'm not sure how much staying power she has though so it is wise of her to push out album after album as fast as she can before people grow tired of her.
I'll agree with the majority here: she has some catchy songs, but she is in no way a hero.
We're in a sad state in the entertainment industry when even if someone stands up for a certain group, like Gaga for the gay community, it seems like they are simply pandering.
We're in a sad state in the entertainment industry when even if someone stands up for a certain group, like Gaga for the gay community, it seems like they are simply pandering.
Yeah if she was a real hero she'd use the money she wastes on all those elaborate outfits and donate that money to a charity.
Rii
Rear Admiral
Fortunately it's not yours to trade.
Rii
Rear Admiral
I fail to see how "hubris" applies. "Hyperbole", perhaps but there is no element of overwhelming pride, arrogance, presumption or unwarranted self-confidence in the statement I made. It was a purely subjective opinion I offered, over-stated for dramatic effect in order to reflect the intensity of my commitment to my position but "hubris"?-- I think not.
I'm not so sure. I'm kind of finding myself wishing I could make JUST such an arrangement right about now.
Rii
Rear Admiral
You don't see arrogant presumption in, err, presuming the right to dictate the fate of another in accordance with your whims?
You and me both mate.
You don't see arrogant presumption in, err, presuming the right to dictate the fate of another in accordance with your whims?
Dude, I CAN'T dictate the fate of another in accordance with my whims. And NO ONE has authority to raise another from the Dead. If you're aware of those facts (and you'd have to be stupid NOT to be) then you PROCEED from a blatantly false and POINTLESSLY argumentative premise.
1. It's NOT a right I have to "dictate the fate of another".
2. I make NO presumption that I do have such a right.
3. I NEVER stated belief that I could, should, would, DID or WILL have such a right.
4. I CAN NOT raise the dead.
5. I used hyperbole and exaggeration to DEMONSTRATE an OPINION
6. YOU are an argumentative, pedantic curmudgeon.
Now, if you disagree with my OPINION you are entitled to say so and offer any argument or debate you wish on behalf of your own position. What you are NOT entitled to do is to attempt to RE-CHARACTERIZE my opinion as some hubristic statement of divine authority over life and death and a claim to have power to dictate the fates of others and raise the dead that a mad-man wouldn't make.
In short, you're being an overly literal idiot about this.
Now, tell us whether you think Lady Gaga is a "hero" or not and why?
Meanwhile, I'll HOLD your lil'hand and WALK you through what my original statement said, albeit ILLUSTRATED through hyperbole rather than dictated via literalistic testimony.
See, my simple statement maintains that, while I enjoy Lady Gaga's music well enough, I think her entire contribution to date and likely throughout her career pales to insignificance when compared to a FRACTION of the work that John Lennon did. Hence, I do NOT feel she is a "hero" (though I DO enjoy her work).
Understand now? Is that simple enough for you? No intuitive leaps need be made on your part. No complex imagery or confusing illustrations. And you don't need to fear that I'm REALLY sitting here contemplating whether I have the power to swap one life for another. Ease BACK on the throttle, dude. You're gonna crack your teeth, grimacing so hard.
Now, do YOU think Lady Gaga is a hero?
A simple Yes or No will suffice.
Rii
Rear Admiral
Only when circumstances warrant it. I find disrespectful comments disrespectful. You could've easily - more easily, in fact - have expressed the same sentiment without such arrogant presumption. That you chose to do so anyway is revealing.
Of course it helps (or doesn't help, depending on your POV) that I don't like you in the first place.
See post #8 in this thread.
Indeed, what your manufactured sense of being "offended" demonstrates is that you are a trolling, self-important, would-be pedagogue with delusions of relevance. Your pedantic and curmudgeonly attitude and eagerness to assume offense where obviously none is intended is demonstrative of a severely humorless personality with both ego and self-esteem issues.
You "find disrespectful comments disrespectful", do you? Do you ALSO find lemon flavors more LEMONY and blue skies Bluey? Can you find sarcastic comments to be "sarcastic"?
Allow me to respond thus:
Now, I'll assume you know where the "Ignore" button is. Why not see your way to use it if my posts bother you so much. Otherwise, it's fair to assume you are merely an harassing troll (an opinion I've held of you for a LONG time BTW.)
Last edited:
....and speaking of Lady Gaga, in just 24 hours, my blog on her is setting records for most visits. What is it about her that people find so fascinating?
She isn't the most talented artist in the world, nor is she the most attractive. Yet I have to admit, there is a fascination.
She isn't the most talented artist in the world, nor is she the most attractive. Yet I have to admit, there is a fascination.
Partly it's the outrageous costumes she wears and her songs are quite catchy. Bad Romance played in my head for days.
She's kind of weird too. She's oddly sexy too though she isn't all that attractive. I'm not sure how that works but sometimes it just does.
She's kind of weird too. She's oddly sexy too though she isn't all that attractive. I'm not sure how that works but sometimes it just does.
Rii
Rear Admiral
It's not at all manufactured. I am, perhaps, unusually sensitive to douchebaggery, particularly when it comes to abuses of power.
I like how you're cool with taking others' lives for emphasis, but are evidently unfamiliar with the rather more prosaic approach of using repetition to convey same.
S'good idea.
I'm glad we understand each other.
