So, I hear Kanye has been making the headlines back West? What a lot of silly bother. Sadly, the way I heard of this event was through facebook status' - "So-and-so thinks Kanye West is a DICK", "Such-and-such can't believe Kanye West could be so RUDE" and so on and so on. For those of you that don't know what happened, let me explain.
During the acceptance speech for her Best Female Video award, the beautifully boring Taylor Swift was interrupted by a certain Mr West who took her mike, apologised for the interruption, and promptly informed the audience that Swift was undeserving of the award since Beyonce (his boss' wife and fellow nominee) had made "one of the best video's ever". This was greeted by a chorus of boos and heckling (and some cheers, by the way) before Kanye made his way off the stage and into the entertainment pages of newspapers the world over.
Now, seriously, what is all the fuss about?
Let's break it down - a multi-millionaire, egomaniac pop star, drunk at an awards show, bum-rushed the stage and said something mildly inappropriate. That is all that happened! Isn't that what we want from our pop stars? A bit of unpredictability and artistic flair? Stupid haircuts, crazy outfits and uncontrollable egos? Kanye West is one of a dwindling number of artists who is refusing to conform to what the music business wants him to be and I completely understand his frustration with puppets like Taylor Swift. I don't care about Taylor Swift. She has nothing interesting to say. She is an MTV poster-child who they are jumping all over because she is not only a good enough country singer to buy into the huge market of that genre in the States, but she is also good-looking enough to cross over into the mainstream and add a poppier-charting side to her success. She makes bank, and that is the only reason she won that 'award'.
MTV awards ceremonies used to mean something and they no longer do. A quick YouTube of the two videos in question would prove that Beyonce should have won the award. It was a record company decision that she didn't. The whole show was corporate White America's wet dream and the sterile, passionless background to the sickening Michael Jackson 'tribute' was made even more farcicle by the Smooth Criminal dancer fucking up the signature dance-move he's probably been practicing for the last few months. And Russell Brand was shit.
But Kanye West, take a bow. At least you got people talking. At least you have clearly got a passion for music and craft and a desire to see brilliance rewarded. At least you are different. At least you stand up for what you believe in, even if you do look like a bit of an arse when you do it.
Let's have a rap album this time as well, eh?
Love, Smithy x
5 comments:
'infinitely fuckable'? You can do better than that!
but didnt beyonce win 'best music video' anyway? Plus it was all contrived in any event to get it in the news because no-one watches that crap anymore
Exactly Nathan. Remember the Bruno's arse in Eminem's face thing from the other awards? I wouldn't be surprised if there was an MTV producer helping Kanye up on to the stage.
And Billy, I'm changing it. But only because Kendra told me she's only 19 and it looks a bit weird.
A didactic and well-written breakdown, my friend. Well done, that cleared up a lot of things for me. (I, too, heard about this debacle on Facebook.)
I would like to point out that I am no fan of Taylor Swift. (But I would like to proudly point out that I am one of Kanye West's detractors. Egomaniacal doesn't begin to describe it.) Having said that, I would venture to guess that the reason there's been so much fuss is...well, because it's Taylor Swift. She's young, reputed to be cute, and buoyed up by MTV. Nobody would have given a damn if it had been Cher or Barbara Streisand.
I don't even care who deserved an award and who didn't. Like you said, they may once have meant something, but now their only function is to boost ratings, profits,and egos. That's neither here nor there. What matters is that decorum is going out the window. Meaningless as an award ceremony may be, it is still a ceremony, and no matter how drunk or egonmaniacal or opinionated a person is (insert significant look here), that still doesn't give people the right to leap up on stage, yank a microphone out of somebody's hand, and bloviate. Sit down, shut up, and keep your opinions to yourself, Kanye. Or save it for the after-party at least.
And if it WAS contrived, which I am still too naive to believe, then my argument stands. Observe decorum, people. It was invented for a reason.
I get your point Mr Post, but my main point was - why do our rock stars need to observe decorum? Isn't that why we love them, because they don't? You love the Stones don't you? You think Keith Richards observed decorum in the 60's?
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