What ever happened to "Spice up ya life" ?

I may sound like an old lady...but I am a bit concerned at who exactly our pop idols are today. Better technology has somehow given more room for untalented pop stars. I've never been a huge fan of pop music and I consider myself to be a bit of an "indie boy", but I do make sure that I know everything that's going on in pop culture. Why? Well...quite simply...there are reasons things become popular, and it's important to recognize and understand what people are drawn to when working in this industry...

But how do you even begin to understand someone like Paris Hilton and her new album? Honestly, I think she may be the closest thing to Milli Vanilli in years! There has to be at least 4 girls singing over her even on her most "intimate" track, and there is literally a chorus of voices singing over her on the rest. If Brittany Spears needed 13 girls to sing over her on "Toxic", imagine how many extra little voices are needed for someone like Paris Hilton. At least Paris has the money to hire such an incredible production team...but her only draw is her sex and social status. And yet she's one of the top ten downloaded albums on iTunes.

Oh well, I guess there will always be Paris Hiltons (or Hilary Duffs) out there...but what about our other idols right now? For instance, the strippers-gone-girl-group, The Pussy Cat Dolls. 13-year-old girls are buying this album. As my best friend Beth put it; while she used to hum a love ballad like Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You,” her little sister now goes around singing about "riding it dirty." When Beth and I were kids, the Spice Girls were huge. Has anyone seen the pussycat dolls perform? Intense doesn't even begin to describe it. Watching a 13 year old mimicking those moves though...is beyond disturbing.

But then again...I guess my mom was just as disturbed when she watched my older sister roll across the kitchen floor pretending to be Madonna singing "Like a Virgin." But Madonna was a revolutionary...she couldn't help who her audience was. And her muic was broad. For every "Like a Virgin," there was a "Like a Prayer."

I don't think the Pussy Cat Dolls really fit into the catagory of revolutionists. However, I do think that the producers of the Pussy Cat Dolls know exactly who their target audience is...the TRL watching 13-16 year old girl. Maybe that's what makes their image throw me off so much. It's like 6 Brittany Spears at once. But less catholic school girl...more...stripper.

Oh well, "Buttons" is pretty damn catchy. (But you didn't hear that from me)