Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Friday, April 2, 2010
Essay
What message does one of the most successful artists of the last decade try to pass on to us ? Christina Aguilera has recorded seven albums, including Back to Basics, released in 2006, and Keeps Getting Better, released in 2008. I find both records very strong, expressive and catchy by their themes, their lyrics and their popularity.
Even though the same artist is singing, the themes have slight differences. The name of the album concretely shows what the singer was thinking when recording : Back to Basics which means back to the old, previous way. It is explicitely demonstrated in her clips for example, where the background is completely different and changed with elements from the oldies. The album is a sort of flashback in the 20s, 30s and 40s with a modern twist while it still remaining vintage. 2008 was a significant year for Christina which explains the change of topics found in the last album, Keep Getting Better: the decade of hits. The singer tried to insert a futuristic connotation to her music which didn’t suit her as well as her own style. I think Back to Basics is the more impressive one because the artist succeeded and showed her audience another face of music, by reintegrating the previous decennies’ technics and sounds.
These lyrics from Christina’s songs are not coming from nothing. Christina Aguilera’s songs are most of the time stories, sometimes from her own past and experiences. That makes her music sound more authentic. In Back to Basics, she sings about personal feelings and concerns such as family, love and relationships. For example, in ‘’ Hurt ‘’, she talks about her childhood and the regret she felt later towards her dad what she had said but didn’t mean. Whereas in Keeps Getting Better, she rerecorded some of her old songs such as ‘’ Genie in a bottle’’ and ‘’ Beautiful ‘’ by inserting new different ways of expressing herself to try a new style that doesn’t necessarily put in value the tone of her voice. I find the second album more commercial than the first one which was more true.
An artist doesn’t necessarily have an only proper style. The fact that the previous record was more of the old style didn’t affect the success it had. For example, in Back to Basics, ‘’ Ain’t no other man ‘’ reached the number 2 on the World Chart, ‘’ Hurt ‘’ did pretty well in Europe and ‘’ Candyman ‘’ was more famous in the Pacific area. In Keeps Getting Better, the single premiered at the MTV Awards. I think all this success is due to the depth and sense of the lyrics that carry meaningful messages that the audience can relate to.
In conclusion, both albums pass on messages but one shows it better than the other. So Back to Basics is more interesting and better done in all points of views then Keeps Getting Better which is more of a playful or futuristic album.
Even though the same artist is singing, the themes have slight differences. The name of the album concretely shows what the singer was thinking when recording : Back to Basics which means back to the old, previous way. It is explicitely demonstrated in her clips for example, where the background is completely different and changed with elements from the oldies. The album is a sort of flashback in the 20s, 30s and 40s with a modern twist while it still remaining vintage. 2008 was a significant year for Christina which explains the change of topics found in the last album, Keep Getting Better: the decade of hits. The singer tried to insert a futuristic connotation to her music which didn’t suit her as well as her own style. I think Back to Basics is the more impressive one because the artist succeeded and showed her audience another face of music, by reintegrating the previous decennies’ technics and sounds.
These lyrics from Christina’s songs are not coming from nothing. Christina Aguilera’s songs are most of the time stories, sometimes from her own past and experiences. That makes her music sound more authentic. In Back to Basics, she sings about personal feelings and concerns such as family, love and relationships. For example, in ‘’ Hurt ‘’, she talks about her childhood and the regret she felt later towards her dad what she had said but didn’t mean. Whereas in Keeps Getting Better, she rerecorded some of her old songs such as ‘’ Genie in a bottle’’ and ‘’ Beautiful ‘’ by inserting new different ways of expressing herself to try a new style that doesn’t necessarily put in value the tone of her voice. I find the second album more commercial than the first one which was more true.
An artist doesn’t necessarily have an only proper style. The fact that the previous record was more of the old style didn’t affect the success it had. For example, in Back to Basics, ‘’ Ain’t no other man ‘’ reached the number 2 on the World Chart, ‘’ Hurt ‘’ did pretty well in Europe and ‘’ Candyman ‘’ was more famous in the Pacific area. In Keeps Getting Better, the single premiered at the MTV Awards. I think all this success is due to the depth and sense of the lyrics that carry meaningful messages that the audience can relate to.
In conclusion, both albums pass on messages but one shows it better than the other. So Back to Basics is more interesting and better done in all points of views then Keeps Getting Better which is more of a playful or futuristic album.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Interview
Me: Has the birth of your son Max disturbed your career?
C.A: No, absolutely not. Naturally, it changed a little bit my time management but music is an important part of my life so is my family. I always try to find a way to spend time doing both.
Me: Do you have any future project?
C.A: The education of my son is definitely my priority. This will make me discover, live and face new situations. I will try to inspire from all those experiences to later record a new album.
Me: Where will your next tour take place?
C.A: I’m planning on visiting South America, and also Europe. If it’s possible, Asia too. I want to see something different. North America has became too familiar now.
Me: How do you feel when you’re on stage?
C.A: I’m a little bit nervous everytime, but also very excited to get out there and do what I love.
Me: How did you start out being a singer ?
C.A: I used to perform in front of my parents and other family members at first. And as I grew older, singing became my passion.
Me: Is it hard being on the road ?
C.A:. Of course, there are some disadvantages but I think it is part of the charm
Me: How does your family and friends feel about you being a star?
C.A: I am glad they are very supportive. The fact that I’m famous doesn’t change our relationships.
Me: Do you miss your old life? Or regret?
C.A: For sure, I miss some aspects such as privacy. No, I do not have any regrets. I think I have accomplished everything I ever wished for the right way.
Me: Out of all your songs, which is your favourite?
C.A: I like all of them, thanks to all the amazing producers I worked with. But there is one, in particular, that I especially enjoy singing which is Candyman. It was challenging, a lot of fun and at the same time hard since the ambiance that we were trying to reproduce was very different than the one we are used to.
Me: You are an idol for so many people, who is your idol ?
C.A: When I was about 7 years old, my grand mother used to take me to look for records with her . That was when I discovered the legendary Etta James and her amazing music. Since then, I always listen to her songs full of emotion and real heart .
C.A: No, absolutely not. Naturally, it changed a little bit my time management but music is an important part of my life so is my family. I always try to find a way to spend time doing both.
Me: Do you have any future project?
C.A: The education of my son is definitely my priority. This will make me discover, live and face new situations. I will try to inspire from all those experiences to later record a new album.
Me: Where will your next tour take place?
C.A: I’m planning on visiting South America, and also Europe. If it’s possible, Asia too. I want to see something different. North America has became too familiar now.
Me: How do you feel when you’re on stage?
C.A: I’m a little bit nervous everytime, but also very excited to get out there and do what I love.
Me: How did you start out being a singer ?
C.A: I used to perform in front of my parents and other family members at first. And as I grew older, singing became my passion.
Me: Is it hard being on the road ?
C.A:. Of course, there are some disadvantages but I think it is part of the charm
Me: How does your family and friends feel about you being a star?
C.A: I am glad they are very supportive. The fact that I’m famous doesn’t change our relationships.
Me: Do you miss your old life? Or regret?
C.A: For sure, I miss some aspects such as privacy. No, I do not have any regrets. I think I have accomplished everything I ever wished for the right way.
Me: Out of all your songs, which is your favourite?
C.A: I like all of them, thanks to all the amazing producers I worked with. But there is one, in particular, that I especially enjoy singing which is Candyman. It was challenging, a lot of fun and at the same time hard since the ambiance that we were trying to reproduce was very different than the one we are used to.
Me: You are an idol for so many people, who is your idol ?
C.A: When I was about 7 years old, my grand mother used to take me to look for records with her . That was when I discovered the legendary Etta James and her amazing music. Since then, I always listen to her songs full of emotion and real heart .
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