Examples of Public Backlash

[Deleted]

I was just thinking about this today, and how part of Christina's "comeback" album campaign has been coming back into favor with the public since Bionic was such a shaky time for her.

How important do you think public opinion is in terms of selling albums and what are some examples of public backlash against popular artists that stalled or even ended their careers?

[JOJO SIWA DERANGEMENT SYNDROME]

Public opinion is fairly important, but even if the artist is loved by the public, that will not guarantee that their albums will sell. Katy Perry was well-liked when "California Gurls" and "Teenage Dream" were smashing on radio and predictions for her album's first week sales were 600-700k, however, the actual number was around 250k. The public didn't suddenly hate her. On the other side of it, Chris Brown's R&B/Urban albums continued to sell well even after his infamous Rihanna domestic abuse episode.

Some will argue that backlash is something that doesn't exist or doesn't happen, but it really does exist.

Ashlee Simpson's disastrous performance on SNL where she lip synced and did the wrong song, and then did an Irish jig before running off the stage led to a backlash which basically destroyed her career. She made things worse by blaming her lip syncing on acid reflux. The music wasn't that great either. She did try again later but with little success.

And Janet Jackson has struggled after the fallout from her Superbowl performance in 2004 where Justin Timberlake exposed her breast. Her music and videos continued to be sexually explicit thus reminding the public of that "wardrobe malfunction". Her success has been limited since then. Many will say that it's the music that was uninspired and dated, but all that coupled with the public blaming her for that incident made for the perfect storm.

Madonna faced backlash over the sexually explicit Sex book, Erotica album, and Body Of Evidence movie which all came one after the other. The media felt she had gone too far, pushing the boundaries of what was considered acceptable and decent. The book was massive, the album underperformed, and the movie flopped hardcore, though the movie was a mess. Madonna managed to successfully comeback from it though with subsequent albums.

[Devil Marlena Nylund]

Public opinion is the most important factor in the fame and success of a celebrity. It depends on the level of it but it can have a huge effect. Example 1, Dixie Chicks. They had a public backlash from their primary audience in 2004.

I also think it works both ways. Sometimes it seems like the public wants you to succeed and it works. I think Britney's comeback was because there was a desire to see her succeed. There was a sudden change in the type of attention she was getting. People were suddenly rooting for her.

[Deleted]

Albums or CDs or singles do not sell by themselves

If your favorite artist releases an album and it tanks it is because not too many other people cared.

A classic example is Milli Vanilli. They were done after they were exposed as the pretty face of the album and not the singers.

Britney is a good example. Dixie Chicks too

Don't agree with Janet Jackson though. By 2004 she was already 38 and had 35 years in the public spotlight. Her hitmaking days were already behind her even then.

[Verisimilitude]

Sept 29, 2012 16:05:16 GMT -5 @2m said:

Don't agree with Janet Jackson though. By 2004 she was already 38 and had 35 years in the public spotlight. Her hitmaking days were already behind her even then.

Wrong, she had a very successful era with the "All For You" album not even 3 years prior to Nipplegate.

[Deleted]

Which would be BEFORE 2004. Not after


Hits are hard to come by for artist pushing 40, (was closer to 35 in 2000-2001).

Especially someone who had been in the spotlight that long

The lack of hits after 2004 had more to do with her age and prior timein the spotlight than being a part of the Superbowl

[Verisimilitude]

You said her hitmaking days were behind her by that point. Unless you were able to predict the future before 2004, your statement is not valid.

[Deleted]

It is 100% valid. It had already been 3 years since her last hit and she was 38

Not too many #1 hits at this point for anyone

The Super Bowl may or may not have been a factor but all I am saying is the writing was on the wall so to speak even without it.

FYI - the other performer in that show had a fine career after 2004

[think pink.]

Sept 29, 2012 16:27:25 GMT -5 @2m said:

FYI - the other performer in that show had a fine career after 2004

Because he's a man. And it wasn't his breast that was shown.

[Deleted]

If Janet Jackson were 18 or 28 instead of 38(or 37) and the career of a young superstar was forever ruined due to a 10 minute show, you guys might have a point. There is no way you are going to convince me that any artist pushing 40, regardless of who it is would have a long sustainable hit making career. Janet Jackson was not going to be topping the charts after 2004 (even without the Super Bowl) simply because of a combination of her age and her decades long time in the spotlight even at that point.

Topping the charts stops for everybody at some point even without being a part of public events.

I am willing to bet more people now know Janet Jackson more as Paris Jackson's aunt as opposed to the Super Bowl performer from 2004.

Most people have short memories and really don't care.

[Devil Marlena Nylund]

I think Janet Jackson's career was negatively affected by the Super Bowl incident for the simple fact that nearly every reference to her after that and even since then has made mention of it. It was seen as a controversial act and many Americans frowned upon it, as harmless as many of us likely think it is. When your image becomes associated with a negative act, and it reaches a point where it's synonymous like Janet + Nipplegate, the music is no longer the leading attribute attached to your name.
I agree that Janet's major hitmaking days were behind her by that point but that incident was something that increased the slide. She hasn't had a major hit since then.

The same with Michael Jackson. His name became synonymous with the abuse accusations up until the day he died. Except for You Are Not Alone, he didn't have a significant hit since Dangerous was released, which came out before the allegations first began. Scream was accompanied by a record-breaking video and didn't do as well as expected and his albums after failed to do anything - up until his death.

The reason why Justin escaped Nipplegate was because he was able to break away from the incident. He had a good team behind him that were able to bring the focus on him to other areas.

I think Chris Brown has been negatively affected as well. His album sales are decent and he does still get hits but I think he was on the verge of superstardom before his incident and his name is rarely ever mentioned without bringing up his attack and subsequent violent episodes. He has been lucky to an extent but the backlash is still there.

[Deleted]

I can agree with that. The 2004 show likely enhanced the hitmaking slide but the hitmaking slide was already underway regardless

[Verisimilitude]

But she didn't RELEASE anything in 2002 and 2003, outside of one collaboration with Beenie Man called "Feel It Boy", which was a hit.

[Deleted]

Don't have anything else to say. I guess we will never know.

Even Michael Jackson's last #1 was 1995, 25 years after his first #1. In my opinion, the time comes for everyone at some point but maybe that would not have been the case here, I guess it is possible.

[Almost Honest]

Not that it really matters but didn't the Dixie Chicks get backlashed in 2003?

[josh]

Lana Del Ray (sp?) on SNL.

[Deleted]

No discussion of public backlash against an artist would be complete without mention of the John Lennon "Beatles are bigger than Jesus" controversy of 1966.

Long story short; John Lennon made remarks in Feb 1966 interview that were later taken out of context and printed in a teen magazine which caused a firestorm in the American south during the summer of 1966 which led to boycotts, and bonfires where Beatles records, posters and other memorabilia were encouraged to be burned.

The Beatles were touring the United States that summer of 1966, and the height of this lunacy was probably when the Ku Klux Klan themselves (being the good Christians that they are) picketed outside of a Beatles' show and somebody even threatened to shoot one of the Beatles while they were onstage.

Even John himself trying to explain what he meant by his comments was not good enough for some, and it wasn't until he was basically browbeated into apologizing by the press that the incident started to die down.

Nevertheless, some in the south have long memories and when the Beatles released a song that John had written only three years later which had the word "Christ" and "crucify" in it, a number of radio programmers in the south simply refused to even play it.

[ga68153]

Janet's age had alot to do with it. It would have caused a backlash for any artist, but it wasn't like the young listeners were angling for her to smash on pop radio again. If Rihanna pulled that same stunt in 2012, I doubt it would have hindered her career the way it did Janet because she is still VERY popular with the youth.

[JOJO SIWA DERANGEMENT SYNDROME]

One incident that I almost forgot about was when Sinead O'Connor ("Nothing Compares 2 U") performed on SNL in 1992 and then at the end of the performance, she ripped a photo of the Pope (Pope John Paul II at that time) and said "Fight the real enemy!" It led to people destroying her CDs and boycotting her. Her career in the mainstream ended after that. She continued recording and became a priestess. She still causes controversy every so often.

Madonna famously parodied that moment when she performed "Bad Girl" the following year. She ripped up a photo of Joey Buttafuoco (he was in the headlines at the time over that "Long Island Lolita" scandal) and said the same thing that Sinead said. Madonna even felt that Sinead went too far. :o

Sept 29, 2012 17:49:15 GMT -5 Devil Marlena Nylund said:

The reason why Justin escaped Nipplegate was because he was able to break away from the incident. He had a good team behind him that were able to bring the focus on him to other areas.

This is also a consequence of the U.S. culture of slut-shaming. Men are seen as casanovas, lotharios, and ladykillers when they demonstrate their sexual prowess but women are labeled as sluts, harlots, hussies, tramps, etc. when they dress a certain provocatively and assert their sexuality. Janet was viewed as an outcast, as the devil incarnate for her exposure.

Sept 29, 2012 17:49:15 GMT -5 Devil Marlena Nylund said:

I think Chris Brown has been negatively affected as well. His album sales are decent and he does still get hits but I think he was on the verge of superstardom before his incident and his name is rarely ever mentioned without bringing up his attack and subsequent violent episodes. He has been lucky to an extent but the backlash is still there.

His album sales have suffered as he alienated a good chunk of his core fanbase by going further in the Dance/Pop direction that he has been going in lately. Usher too. Some of the public who were fans of Chris blamed Rihanna for what happened instead of Chris as they felt she must have done "something wrong" for him to react like that, and that she was ruining his career.

Sept 29, 2012 20:06:46 GMT -5 josh said:

Lana Del Ray (sp?) on SNL.

It did serve to create additional awareness about her after it happened. But I think it forced the public to become a little more interested in her. Her music was too different for the general public to get into it.

[Mack]

Sept 29, 2012 15:24:48 GMT -5 JOJO SIWA DERANGEMENT SYNDROME said:

Ashlee Simpson's disastrous performance on SNL where she lip synced and did the wrong song, and then did an Irish jig before running off the stage led to a backlash which basically destroyed her career. She made things worse by blaming her lip syncing on acid reflux. The music wasn't that great either. She did try again later but with little success.

SNL definitely put a huge damper on Ashlee's career, but I wouldn't say it *destroyed* it. I mean, her follow-up album did debut at #1 and sell nearly a million copies in the U.S. Her third album flopped, yes, but that was over three years after the SNL fiasco and - as I just mentioned - she had another successful record in between. Also, I completely disagree that "the music wasn't that great"; I happen to love all of her albums.

[Devil Marlena Nylund]

Sept 29, 2012 20:24:14 GMT -5 JOJO SIWA DERANGEMENT SYNDROME said:

Madonna famously parodied that moment when she performed "Bad Girl" the following year. She ripped up a photo of Joey Buttafuoco (he was in the headlines at the time over that "Long Island Lolita" scandal) and said the same thing that Sinead said. Madonna even felt that Sinead went too far. :o

I remember reading about that a few months back in an article where I believe Sinead pointed out that Madonna was a hypocrite for her parody and the comments toward her.... unless it was the article pointing that out. I forget. I wish I could remember where I read it because it was interesting.

[divasummer]

When Donna Summer made supposed anti gay remarks it caused a backlash.
It didn't help she had recently become a born again christian as well.
To this day there's sill some older gay guys who hold some resentment to her.

[bryce]

Sept 29, 2012 20:23:00 GMT -5 @ga68153 said:

If Rihanna pulled that same stunt in 2012, I doubt it would have hindered her career the way it did Janet because she is still VERY popular with the youth.

She actually might even get her first number one album...

[Ballroom Blitzed]

How about Billy Squier and the "Rock Me Tonite" video? He was a rising star in the early 1980s with this hard rocking tough guy persona, then he released a music video which featured him prancing around his apartment in a pink shirt it made him look foolish in front of his fans.

[JJ]

I think Jewel's backlash during her Intuition era damaged her career a lot. Sure she was not getting a lot of hits anymore - even if Intuition was a decent sized hit, but I think her radio acceptance and even some fans were lost in the process. After that she's struggled to find a radio audience.

[Deleted]

LeAnn Rimes?

[Deleted]

Possibly LeAnn. I'm not sure b/c I never really followed her trajectory on the country charts. She had been off mainstream/CHR's radar for a good while but I don't know if that holds true for country fans.

There is a such thing as backlash, but it varies according to each situation. Sometimes it's just temporary (Madonna in the early 90's), and sometimes it seems to stick forever (Janet after 2004).

I also think it's worth pointing out that we should not get backlash confused with the public just being turned off by or apathetic to the artist. The latter happens sometimes when someone falls off musically, and it may come off as "backlash" because of how visceral the reaction to him/her is but it's not really that this person did or said anything to warrant it. Ciara, for example. I don't know why she has not been able to have any real success since The Evolution or why some people love to drag her so much for her failures, but no one's angry or protesting her for anything she said or did. People simply lost interest in her.

[Ballroom Blitzed]

I think the most significant example of a public backlash killing an entire genre of music for a while was probably the Disco Demolition Night.

[Lockheart]

Are Jewel and LeAnn examples of Public blacklash or loss of public interest. I know LeAnn was doing well until she released Twisted Angel then she hasnt really recovered since. Jewel has been on the decline since Pieces of You. But I guess it was a nail on the coffin when she released 0304.

[Mikal]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Nicki Minaj. I love her, but her latest CD saw a huge backlash.

OK it got her 'hits' and recognized as a popstar but I think she's probably lost most respect from her urban crowd that she originally had. The album has sold a million copies less than "Pink Friday" and it has her biggest hit on "Starships".

Obviously we don't know if this will be temporary, but I imagine the damage may well be done!

A major UK example is Joss Stone. She went over to America, picked up this god-awful accent and spoke at the BRIT awards with it, the media afterwards went insane and her subsequent albums sold nothing compared to the previous ones.