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[MUSIC] THE SAVAGE ANIMAL
"Why Justin Bieber?" |
02.08.12 |
BY MIKEY MIGO
It’s not that I hate the kid. I’m sure he’s a nice guy and has a good heart. I don’t know him personally. Then again, his fans don’t either. They’re being privy to what his people allow and create themselves. It’s not like Justin Bieber is hanging out at the mall talking to young girls about what kind of music will make them go crazy. It’s not like he’s rebelling against his “team”. He’s going with the flow of riding out this huge and insane wave of fame and success. He’s smart for that. He’s not getting caught up into drugs, partying, and doing anything too horrible. He is sticking with the “mom-friendly” smirks, Fresh Prince sitcom-like “antics”, and being the poster boy for… well… poster boys.
I think that’s what gets people so worked up. It’s really easy to hate on what Justin Bieber represents. I’m not talking about his push for anti-bullying or any of the positive “believe” stuff. Like I said, as a public persona Justin Bieber is an angel. What people have such a distain for is the status he has. When I was in high school (Class of 2001), TRL was still going strong and the boy bands and pop divas were the ones at the top of the charts and all over. I’ve lived through obsessive teeny popper fans being crazy over these acts. I’m sure it was the same with others too. Young girls and just young people in general put celebrities in almost a God-like level. The passion they have for anything and everything in the person’s existence is irrational and a little scary. Leif Garrett, The Osmond Family, and other wholesome pop stars all came before. Hell, in even more recent years the Jonas Brothers and Hannah Montana could be talking about in the same manner. It’s a cycle. The more the kids love them, the more the pop stars are put out there and down the non-fan’s throats. The aggravation builds until the non-fan’s attitude towards the pop star grows to an equally crazy passion… just on the other side of the spectrum. Then the battle ensues and feelings get hurt.
The reasons someone could become a fan of Justin Bieber are painfully obvious. To write this piece I took to some reason about the different sides of the Bieber spectrum. The sad part is that no matter who is defending Bieber, they’re still not providing any solid stance as to why he’s on this current “level”. It’s teenage girl sounding text talk. Lots of it. Lots of “OMGs”. Lots of cap locks. Lots of people claiming haters only hate because they’re “jealous”. Lots of “cuz he’z talented!”. Lots of “I LOVE HIM!!!!!” It’s rough. I’m not kidding here. I seriously sought out some sort of answer to this. I just couldn’t come to anything rational. People bought on to his image. His “team” has crafted and molded him into being exactly what is wanted. He’s McDonalds. He’s Apple Pie. He’s a brand.
I’m not deaf or blind. I don’t shut myself off from the world. Even without being a fan or supporter of Justin Bieber, I’m still exposed to him. I know his voice. I’ll see his name in music news. I see him on talk shows and award shows. It’s not like I’m jumping into this topic not knowing what I’m talking about.
I don’t see the “talent” people speak of. Not at all. Granted I’m NOT the aimed demographic for his music. I’m a lifelong music lover that’s in my late 20’s. I’m a little over ten years older than the dude. My musical tastes ARE varied. I like A LOT of stuff. That doesn’t include Justin Bieber. I’m always going to think of his voice in the song “Baby”. That’s his main hit, right? What the hell is this? It’s a song where the chorus is whining the words “Baby! Baby! Baby! Oooh!” Come on. It’s catchy because it’s so simple and repetitive. It’s easy on the brain and easy to remember.
There is no challenge in Justin Bieber’s work. To me a good artist makes art that can no only be enjoyed, but it invokes thoughts and emotion. How can you get that from “Baby! Baby! Baby! Oooh!”? I know they made that movie. I caught some of it and have seen the trailers. I’ve heard grown adults talk about how inspirational it was. I’m not sure if it’s clear to anyone, but that was a two hour commercial and YOU PAID to see it. It was made like a Lifetime movie to manipulate the emotions in a sappy manner. I think this is my personal biggest gripe with the kid. Just because he’s a youngster doesn’t mean he can’t have some substance and depth in his work. Teenagers have written some great songs and music over the history of music. Youth rules this form of art. The problem is that Justin Bieber doesn’t seem to have any genuine reason to express himself. What problems does he face? What hurdles does he overcome? Rock bands, LL Cool J, Michael Jackson, and others have been proving for years that younger musicians can come on the scene and fill the world with something real. Justin Timberlake, Michael, Madonna, Usher, Christina, Mariah, and others have proven that pop music CAN have substance. The problem here is that I have a hard time calling Justin Bieber an “artist”. To me, it feels more like he’s an “entertainer”. He’s kicking ass at it and making crazy success for himself, but if you can seriously tell me there is any “art” involved with “Baby! Baby! Baby! Oooh!” I’ll gladly listen.
Bieber’s not from money or anything. He was raised by a single mother in low-income housing. His mom was 18 when she had him and had the obvious struggles one would have with that. It seems like the guy still have a decent childhood and was well looked after. When he was 12 he started singing along to popular music and entered some talent shows. His mom posted his video on youtube for family to see and the site’s popular caught on. Before they knew it, they were being courted by the biggest pop stars and the biggest music labels in the world. That story, fabricated or not, is a good one. You can’t hate on that. It’s one of those one in a million discovery type of things. It’s the “American Dream” despite them being in Ontario Canada.
In my research I came across the real star here. I keep saying Justin Bieber’s “team”, but it’s mainly one guy… Scooter Braun. That’s his name. He was an over achiever in school and had early success making a documentary. He went to Emory University in Atlanta. He pulled a “Van Wilder”. He started throwing parties. These parties would feature the likes of Ludacris and even Britney Spears. I can only imagine it as being like when Snoop gets on stage at the party during “Old School”. This guy got hooked up with the hip hop community in 2002 and started booking and planning after parties and big events. This would lead to him getting a marketing gig working for Jermaine Dupri’s record label. I don’t know his full story or anything, but from what I’ve read I have nothing but respect for him. He’s a self made guy. Like him or not, you don’t see that too often.
Scooter Braun was on youtube looking for a different artist. He came across Justin Bieber’s talent show videos by accident. He saw something in the kid and tracked him down. For some reason Bieber’s mom was reluctant to let her son work with Scooter Braun because he’s Jewish and they’re Christian. Seriously. At first I saw this on Wikipedia. I know wiki has a tendency to have some bullshit on it’s page, but it’s out there in other places too. I don’t know why this is relevant to ANYTHING. It just makes Bieber’s mom sound a little racist. Look this one up for yourself. I know it’s probably meant to sound innocent, but c’mon!
Braun worked with the kid. They recorded demo tapes and shopped him around to the major labels. After a bidding war, Usher won. Bieber was signed to a label made up by Usher and Scooter Braun. Braun was all about Bieber honing his image. He hired Bieber what they call a “swag coach” so Bieber could develop his “ladies man image”. This was Ryan Good, one of Usher’s former assistants. Good worked on his “streetwise look” by having him wear baseball caps, hoodies, chains, shoes, and pretty much anything else rappers wear. They even worked with him on his speech and what slang to use.
Right now he’s working on his third album and constantly showing up in the world of entertainment news. He’s relevant as anything currently in pop culture. He’s making hundreds of millions of dollars, setting records, and is friends with and dating other huge stars. Someone is obviously doing something right. I just don’t think that “something” is “music”.
My conclusion is that people spend too much time talking and thinking about Justin Bieber. He’s not worth the time either way. He’s not good enough to get excited about and he’s not worthy enough to get all angry about. Life is too short to hate on a kid for making money and getting laid. He’s a trend. His time will end before we know it. If he finds any real staying power he’ll HAVE TO evolve in a more mature way. If so, then good on him. Pop music is disposable. What’s cool today is forgotten tomorrow. He’s the boy pop singer version of a Kardashian.
All bullshit aside, if you’re a fan of Justin Bieber then you ultimately like him because of his admittedly great marketing and should probably consider summer school this year so you can graduate 8th grade midterm. It’s his appearance too. He’s a clean cut white kid with a hair-cut and a happy-go-lucky hip hop persona that’s “mom-friendly”. Sadly, these are the mom’s that just stopped saying “You Go Girl!” last year.
So I really got to ask… Why do you hate him? Why do you like him? Why Justin Bieber?
Please use your inside voice and for the love of God… eat your vegetables!
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