Quote:
Originally posted by Rihinvention
No.
A better question is "Is Beyonce not generic enough?"
In which case, the answer would be yes, because she hasn't been having that much singles success with 4 and BEYONCE. "Genericness" is seen as a bad thing on ATRL, because we're obsessed stans discussing pop culture on the internet for hours on end. But for 99% of the GP who consume pop music, generic is good. Generic is what they want. Generic is following pop trends and making what's currently popular, as opposed to trying out new sounds and different lyrical content.
Beyonce's problem isn't that she's generic - it's that she's not generic enough.
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uuuuuuuuuuuuuh… I agree she is not generic enough to be getting smash hits, but I disagree completely that she needs to be generic.
For people who don't stan for #1s, or people who expect their faves making millions to be artists, not generic products, this is a crazy statement to read. The GP only wants generic music because they don't know any better. Once they hear a new sound that really is amazing, they will gravitate to it, even if it is not generic. (Example: Crazy in Love sounded nothing like what was going on in pop yet was a HUGE hit and is one of the most respected songs of our time. Another example is Crazy by Gnarles Barkley).
An artist at Beyoncé's stature SHOULD be trying out new sounds and different lyrical content. She should not be looking at the top ten for inspiration, she should be doing what she wants. And that's why artists like J.Lo who cater to whatever is hot does not command the intense respect as someone like Beyoncé. Yes, 4 was a big underperformance but it gave her more than she lost.
Just look at the VMAs - the audience was really reacting to hearing songs like Partition, Flawless, Bow Down, XO and Blow, although they were not hits. That is more powerful and more important - connecting with people on their own terms instead of forcing it into the GP's mind through radio catchiness. These are organic hits. You can't really chart them because they happen behind the scenes, but the impact is still there.
