One of my favourite singers of all time, Whitney Houston, is under the media attack at the moment. The media has been slamming her performances as not being up to standard. Concert goers have also been reported leaving her Brisbane performance before it even ended. Some of the comments made by the media and concert-goers are quite personal, mean and degrading. I've said it before and I'll say it again. Her voice is not what it used to be but it is totally absurd to expect to hear the same voice that we hear on her CDs from twenty five or even ten years ago. We age and we age differently. I'm sure nobody expects Richard Gere to look the way he did in 'American Gigolo'. Even Arnold Schwarzenegger has gone flabby and old. The same thing happens when it comes to a singer's vocal quality and endurance. In Whitney's case, her past lifestyle has definitely put a toll on her voice. True, she made some mistakes but give her a chance to mend her ways. If we find it so hard to show her the love and support that she needs, the least that we can do is to let her be. I guess it makes a lot of people feel good when they make others feel bad. We are only humans and we can only go so far if we are constantly criticised, ridiculed and never given any support. Ever noticed and wondered why many drug addicts and alcoholics relapse? Well, it doesn't take a genius to answer that. Some people attend live performances expecting songs to be delivered exactly as they are heard on CDs. Live performances are all about the energy and the connection that a performer has with his or her audience. Many songs can be interpreted differently when they are performed live. Attending a live performance means one has to absorb and feel the whole experience and not just the singing itself. There are many performers who opt to lip-sync throughout their precisely-choreographed performances and I don't see anything wrong with that since that is their choice and their way of reaching and entertaining their audience. So what if Whitney Houston cannot sing the way she used to? She has entertained millions and that's a fact. Right now, stop this hating and let's show some loving.
Friday, February 26, 2010
UNDER ATTACK : DO YOU FEEL GOOD IF YOU MAKE ME FEEL BAD?
One of my favourite singers of all time, Whitney Houston, is under the media attack at the moment. The media has been slamming her performances as not being up to standard. Concert goers have also been reported leaving her Brisbane performance before it even ended. Some of the comments made by the media and concert-goers are quite personal, mean and degrading. I've said it before and I'll say it again. Her voice is not what it used to be but it is totally absurd to expect to hear the same voice that we hear on her CDs from twenty five or even ten years ago. We age and we age differently. I'm sure nobody expects Richard Gere to look the way he did in 'American Gigolo'. Even Arnold Schwarzenegger has gone flabby and old. The same thing happens when it comes to a singer's vocal quality and endurance. In Whitney's case, her past lifestyle has definitely put a toll on her voice. True, she made some mistakes but give her a chance to mend her ways. If we find it so hard to show her the love and support that she needs, the least that we can do is to let her be. I guess it makes a lot of people feel good when they make others feel bad. We are only humans and we can only go so far if we are constantly criticised, ridiculed and never given any support. Ever noticed and wondered why many drug addicts and alcoholics relapse? Well, it doesn't take a genius to answer that. Some people attend live performances expecting songs to be delivered exactly as they are heard on CDs. Live performances are all about the energy and the connection that a performer has with his or her audience. Many songs can be interpreted differently when they are performed live. Attending a live performance means one has to absorb and feel the whole experience and not just the singing itself. There are many performers who opt to lip-sync throughout their precisely-choreographed performances and I don't see anything wrong with that since that is their choice and their way of reaching and entertaining their audience. So what if Whitney Houston cannot sing the way she used to? She has entertained millions and that's a fact. Right now, stop this hating and let's show some loving.
