Yesterday on Yahoo, I came across an article about Lady Gaga’s latest album (which will be released in February) “Born This Way.” It described hr tears as she deduced that people nowadays think it’s “trendy to be free.” She spoke about how Born This Way isn’t about being “trendy.” It addresses the fear and insecurities that bisexuals, gays, and lesbians feel when either coming out of the closet, or feeling forced to stay in.
As she puts it: “The funny thing is that some people reduce freedom to a brand. They think that it’s trendy now to be free. They think it’s trendy to be excited about your identity. When in truth, there is nothing trendy about ‘Born This Way.’ ‘Born This Way’ is a spirit, and it is this connection that we all share. It is something so much deeper than a wig or a lipstick or an outfit or a meat dress. ‘Born This Way’ is about us, ‘Born This Way’ is about what keeps us up at night and makes us afraid.”
To read the actual Yahoo article, click here.
BUT THIS ISN’T ABOUT LADY GAGA. I have a habit of reading the comments people leave on an article. The posts were split between those who loved her and those who didn’t. But I saw TONS of comments that blatantly deduced that performing artists are supposed to do their job and perform, and not have opinions. A great portion of the comments said that she needed to “shut up and just keep singing,” and that “no one cares what a singer thinks about, she’s just supposed to sing and perform! That’s her job!”
And that got me thinking… performing artists can have their opinions right? Well, technically speaking, we’re all allowed to have opinions, no matter what occupation we hold. But singers and musicians, these people have a great influence on many others, whether we want to admit that or not. They have the money to give to charities (as demonstrated in that article above, many popular performing artists like to dedicate themselves to a cause) and they have the songs to influence their fans. And they have their fans to help spread their messages. We see and hear about these famous singers and musicians all the time- what better people to have opinions (hopefully good ones) and influence everyone else’s mindset?
So yeah, I just want to know if the other 19 people in my Seminar feel that performing artists shouldn’t state their opinions and act on them. I think that next to politicians and children (politicians have the money and political power, little kids have the innocence and uncorrupted intentions beyond getting candy for dinner), performing artists are the best people to flaunt their opinions, especially if they are positive and can move society forward. Because they too have money, influence and power. Of course, I’m saying this with the assumption that supporting causes that they believe in won’t lead to the apocalypse.
Here is a somewhat recent article from the New York Times which depicts immensely popular singers fighting for gay rights.
Music is a very powerful and effective method of communication. If delivered in a particular way, the message can travel globally as a catchy rhyme with a simple beat and harmony. Art is about expressing yourself, and that is exactly what brave pop-artists such as Ke$ha, Lady Gaga, and Katy Perry are doing. When critics slander against what the musicians believe in and blurt out “just sing already,” they are either incapable of deciphering the message or they simply do not want to acknowledge it. The gay rights movement is a common topic in today’s music for a reason – the more music there is about it and the catchier it is, the more recognized the situation will be. Hopefully, along with rising awareness, respect for the “belittled” orientation will increase.
If singers and musicians didn’t have opinions, their music would be boring. Music and all arts are forms of expression. Expressing feelings and opinions through notes or colors. To say that performers shouldn’t have opinions and just sing diminishes the value of their performance. We all listen to songs and say “hey that’s exactly how I feel right now”, and in a lot of cases that’s why we love it. Taylor Swift is known for singing everything that goes on in her life, and her songs are popular because people can relate. They can remember the feeling of their first break up or their freshmen year in high school.
Although I’m not a huge fan of Lady Gaga, I can appreciate her trying to make such a big statement through her music. Since she’s so popular, maybe she can actually make a different and help some people.
When an artists steps out of his/her typical role it can be very unsettling for the audience. Once you get to know a particular artist for a particular thing, it can be disorienting to hear them express opinions on new and unusual topics. There was just an article in the Times about a talk by Steve Martin (comedian, actor, banjo player, writer) who was giving a talk at the 92nd St. Y that blew up in his face!
click here for an article about the debacle.
click here for Steve Martin’s response in the Op-ed page!