Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do - Music - The NME Awards, 'Worst Bands' and Why It Doesn't Make You Cooler to Drag Others Down.

Hi!!!



Aloha. I'm feeling so inspired to write this post, which will hopefully make it a good one. This is a few parts music, a few parts social commentary and I am so passionate about this particular topic. I hope that you find this an interesting read.

I was reading NME online on my break the other day and I stumbled across the list of nominees for this year's NME Awards which are sponsored by VO5. I was scrolling through the lists for Best Band, Best Female Solo Artist and so on and then I hit upon the following,
 

a worst band category.

I was shocked. A Worst Band Category - are you kidding? And it got me thinking.

 

Most of the nominees in this category are hugely successful and widely loved - I think Clean Bandit's 6 Top Ten hits and The (Grammy Nominated) Chainsmokers 5 Top Forty hits are evidence of this. It seems so odd to try and downplay these significant achievements in this way.

Aside from the numbers is the point I feel I am always going back to - music is subjective. What you love, I may not and my favourite song might not be yours. It doesn't mean that what I like is the worst or that you are wrong, it means that we have different likes and dislikes.

Some of these groups, like Five Seconds of Summer, have a predominantly teenage fan base. It can be difficult when you're thirteen or fourteen to feel like your opinions are appreciated or respected, and by shoving the groups that teens love into this category, it may make them feel as though they aren't cool enough, or don't have mature enough opinions, or don't know enough - the last things most teenagers want to feel.

 

In my eyes, this whole thing seems like an attempt to be more controversial, more edgy and therefore, somehow, more cool. Maybe, in writing this, I'm buying into a notion that this might stir up conversation or maintain relevance. But I don't want to stand by quietly, watching hard working musicians and performers with a passion for what they do having their reputations damaged by somebody's idea of 'banter'.

Having done a bit of research for this post, I've discovered this is nothing new at the NME awards, and if anything, only having one 'worst' category might be progress for them. That's a shame. I don't closely follow award shows and so I hadn't realised how normal this was.

I don't have a problem with awarding the acts that the majority of people on a panel or participating in a poll like most - these people have made their decisions about their preferences in a subjective field, and rewarding success is good. But I don't think it's necessary to add into that an option to 'award' people that they dislike because it doesn't make sense. What purpose doesn't it serve? For a winning act of a positive category - Best Solo Male, for example - new opportunities and positive press arise.
So, following this idea, doesn't that mean that the 'winning' act of a negative category will lose out on opportunities and get caught up in negative press? Who does that help? I don't think it does the real winners any more favours than winning already gives them. It just seems pointless and unkind.

When it comes to subjective things, like music, I think it is definitely more than alright to celebrate what you and others like, and award shows are a means of doing that. But I personally think it's unnecessary to publicly make a scene of what people dislike in the same way.

We do not need to add any more condescension and frankly hate into this world. It is ridiculous. Tearing other people down does not make you seem cooler. I think it makes you seem idiotic. I don't want to be told by somebody else what I should or shouldn't like, be that in relation to people, music or beliefs. And I won't stand by and watch others spread negativity about certain people or things to this effect.
 

Ultimately, I think it comes down to this. You have a right to an opinion. Of course you do, you're human. But that does not mean that you have the right to be nasty.

Thanks so much for reading.

What do you think of all this? I'd love to hear your thoughts, so do leave a comment.

Hope you enjoyed the post.

I hope your day is amazing!

GingerSnaps xxx

Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do - Music - Let's Discuss People's Obession With Owning Music (And Bands And Singers).

Hi!!!

How are things, guys? I hope you're all having a nice week. I've had the idea to write a post like this one for ages but today I found a little spark of inspiration to sit down and type this (always a nice feeling). So, without further ado, let's talk about people, music and their ideas of ownership.

 



The little spark of inspiration came from scrolling through the comments on a YouTube video. I like to consume my music in various ways - I like listening to CDs and I like watching music videos, sometimes on MTV, and sometimes, when I want to listen to something particular or new, I like using YouTube. The majority of the videos in my YouTube history and recomendations are music related.

 

Today I clicked onto Sam Tsui's channel - if you're not subscribed then oh my goodness, go and listen to his amazing mashups please - and saw a cover of 'Stressed Out' by Twenty One Pilots. I decided to watch it because I really like Twenty One Pilots and I love Sam's covers. And, as I often do, I had a little scroll through the comments while I was listening.

 

It was in the comments sections that I saw things like, and I am paraphrasing here, "It's weird that this song has become mainstream" and "I miss when I could say Twenty One Pilots and no one knew who they were". This kind of thing bothers me.

I understand it, I really do. As someone who listens to and loves indie music and as someone who likes to hunt out new bands and music, I understand that sense of "wait, what?" when you first hear some of those acts being played on the radio. But my "wait, what?" is out of excitement. I want the bands and singers that I love to be able to continue making music and that is made a whole lot easier by more radio play. When I listen to things, especially new bands, its likely that I'll share their songs with at least one person, but if it don't then that isn't because I want to hold an exclusive listening right to them. It's because I listen to a lot of music and I might forget or I mightn't know anyone that I think would particularly love it.

 

However, it isn't necessarily those people or those comments that bother me, so much as the comments such as, and I quote, "...they're not ours anymore...". Excuse me, what? They were never yours. But I find this happens all the time. People think that because they own the albums, know the words to the songs, maybe because they've seen a gig or two, that the music and the artist is theirs. What people seem to fail to grasp, is that they own the songs and the CDs and the gig tickets and the merchandise. They don't own the people. They might feel connected to their favourite musicians - I certainly do - but that doesn't mean that they are yours and yours alone to keep in a little bubble of 'lesser-known-ness'.

These people are ultimately trying to make a living. They love what they do and they love the people that support them and they are lucky to have such great opportunities but they have bills to pay. They want to be able, as I think many of us do, to be able to make a career out of what they love doing and you can't make a career if your fans are trapping you inside a little bubble of 'lesser-known-ness'.

 

I remember when The Arctic Monkeys released 'AM' a few years ago and people kept telling me how long they'd been listening to The Arctic Monkeys and how they had specifically been the ones to get me into their music and so on and so forth. Some people treated the new album and the band like a book they were letting me borrow - like it was theirs and they'd want it back when I was done, like they'd have bought the sequel before me. Here's the thing though, I'm a huge Arctics fan, I like so many of their songs. I'm an Alex Turner fan, for that matter - his soundtrack for Submarine was just incredible. But they are not 'my' band as they are not anyone's band, no matter how they feel about it, and I wouldn't want it to be like that.

 

A song by Circa Waves was featured in a TV advert last year. I think it was 'My Love' but I only saw it a few times so I couldn't be sure. And when I first saw it, I was a felt a little bit weird - but not because 'my music' was going to end up in the 'mainstream', just because I wanted more for them than advert music. That's a different thing.

 

I love feeling like I'm in on the start of something great or I'm in a little club of people who also own all three albums and dance around their house to the songs I like best. But at the same time, I like to see artists grow. I like the micro-communities that bands and singers are capable of forming. And most of all, I'm in it for the music. It doesn't matter to me whether things are cool or mainstream or new or old. It matters to me that I enjoy the songs, that the guitars are played well, that the violins are in tune and that whoever is singing has a voice I love.

 

And with that, I'm off to listen to some Van Morrison. And you can too, if you so wish, I don't mind sharing.

 

Thank you for reading this post, I know its a bit different but hopefully you enjoyed it.

What are your thoughts on this? Do you agree with me or do you think I'm way off base? Do you have any music recomendations for me? Lets all discuss this stuff in the comments below.

Speak soon, my lovelies.

 

Go forth and listen to your favourite songs!

 

GingerSnaps xxx