Quote:
Originally Posted by Crystal_Ageha
I'm sorry, because you're obviously a huge Namie fan, but to me she's a sellout, because, no, she wasn't originally hip-hop, and no, her hip-hop projects didn't do very well. And now she's doing electro/techno pop stuff, which is what's big now.
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Then what would you call Ayumi when her first album was a hip hop/rap album and she went around proclaiming herself in interviews to be the worlds youngest female rapper, but then when that didn't sell she pretty much ignored that the album ever existed? Wouldn't that by your definition make her a sell out? And once again, she has never been Hip HOP, but Hip POP which are two different things. She went from being a pop artist, to a pop artist with R&B elements, to a pop artist with even more r&b thrown in to become Hip Pop. Like you said, she has always been a mainstream pop artist and she has never denied being a pop artist so I don't know why, but you seem to have the impression that she was like this hard core hip hop rapper that put down other pop artists or something and that can't be further from the truth. I don't know why to you, changing ones musical style over their career = sellout, but then for some reason, Namie is the only one that you don't like because that can certainly apply to many artists. And I definitely don't see either Ayumi or Namie as sellouts. First of all, by American standards, just about every single pop artist in Japan would get labeled as a sellout. ^_^ I also don't know why you seem to get so bent out of shape over this particular artist.
Lately you and I have agreed on a lot of things, but this subject I don't think I can ever see your point of view on.
Also, about having something "handed to her" she had to work for it just like many artists. I mean she was going to a school afterall that was specifically for training singers, dancers, other entertainers - she didn't just suddenly get a record contract handed to her while at the arcade or something. She came from a poor, single parent family, just like Ayu did and she would walk to and from her lessons for hours everyday. I'm not saying that to make her seem better than anyone else, but more that it seems many of your statements meant to minimize her, are just based in a place of personal dislike for her.
As for the song writing thing (this is directed at everyone) - since when is it a prerequisite for pop stars to write their own stuff? In Japan, it is especially a rarity. People like Ayumi and Koda are definitely exceptions. It's part of Japan's idol culture. Did Nakamori Akina and Yamaguchi Momoe write their own stuff? Nope and yet they are considered some of the most revered female singers in Japanese music history. Plus, people can enjoy different artists for different reasons - I enjoy Ayu for her lyrics but with Namie I don't really care about the lyrics and more about just being entertained.