Posts by Russell Brown
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EW's newly-posted Five Quick Facts about Lorde is pretty standard stuff. But in the comments, someone in the business says something interesting:
She's huge right now. I auditioned a bunch of teenage girls for a group this week, and so many of them chose to sing Royals. She's definitely speaking to them.
On the other hand, she is now in the zone of excitable, highly tribal fans. A mildly critical comment about Lana Del Rey (possibly an old one) has angered many in the Lana tribe. One Lana Tweeter who kinda sorta agreed with Lorde says she's had death threats. I learned all this in a few minutes' browsing a Twitter search. This is going to be quite a strange world at times.
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Hard News: Friday Music: History, motherfuckers, in reply to Simon Grigg,
another ETA: the upside of course is that when Pauly went out there was no prior experience. Now we have some, and Adam Holt has some 20 years of international experience (he was heavily involved in OMC too of course). We’ve learned stuff.
I don't know much about Hayley Westenra, but that should have been a good learning experience. I remember her just after she broke, at the Music Awards with her school friends, all them them laughing and taking pictures of each other. She seemed really young.
It's interesting that outside NZ, she's very much seen as an alt-pop artist. Pitchfork, NME and Pretty Much Amazing are all touting the new single today.
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In the Public Notices section, page C10 of the Weekend Herald today.
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Hard News: Friday Music: History, motherfuckers, in reply to Scott A,
As a point of interest, Russell – why should he?
He doesn’t have to. But the justification being offered for what he wrote was that it fostered discussion: a discussion he doesn’t bother to join. And I don’t mean here. He’s had people calling him out on his own blog and doesn’t seem inclined or able to defend what he wrote. And if he can’t defend it, perhaps he should find the grace to apologise.
He’s a great bomb-thrower, but not much else in this case.
As I’ve said to other people, I wrote something about it because I felt that someone had to. What he said was not only nasty and offensive, it was also mostly fundamentally untrue.
If I’d wanted to make a pissing contest out of it, I’d have led with it in the blog, but I deliberately didn’t. I’m actually trying not to do that.
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Hard News: Friday Music: History, motherfuckers, in reply to Simon Grigg,
ETA: and how she deals with all the above both on an emotional and a business level. It’s monumentally tough.
And clearly she needs to be protected from that. But I think the people around her know that. It’s not quite the same situation as Pauly’s, surely.
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Hard News: Friday Music: History, motherfuckers, in reply to Grant McDougall,
I’ve got no qualms about her having a crack at the big time, success, etc – good luck to her.
Indeed. But why wouldn't she have a crack at success?
But she should enjoy it while she can, if it lasts, I’ll be surprised.
And if it doesn't, she goes to university. She doesn't seem to be short of options.
You don’t need me to tell you the long list of people that’ve had initial massive fame and success in the music biz only to burn out after only a few years.
And then there are the ones who've had perfectly satisfactory careers, surely?
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Okay, and bringing it back ... an acoustic mash-up of 'Royals' and 'Wrecking Ball':
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Hard News: Friday Music: History, motherfuckers, in reply to Simon Grigg,
I was going to say I can’t imagine what she’s going through right now, but I actually can, from experience. The thing she really needs most right now is ironclad worldwise management acting as a buffer and a shield. Because they are the only friends you have, despite the smiling record label folks who are championing you now, and the media who want to tag their byline to you on the way up.
Yes, I'm sure you're right about good management being crucial. And management who aren't also her record company.
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Two kids cover ‘Royals’ a capella:
And another one, bit wobbly but good knee-percussion:
One from New Zealand, that’s clocked up 200,000 views in its own right:
Another local one: a Nelson school girls choir, at the 2013 Mahi Toi Arts Festival:
A bedroom trio:
And one more, with strumming:
There are literally hundreds of these covers on YouTube. Amazing.
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The Kanye bit from last Saturday is back on YouTube:
