What about Spice Girls when they started out? Seeing as they began with a less sexed up image too.
They were as toxic as Backstreet Boys or Britney Spears in my circle of high school friends. (Actively mocked occasionally, and I remember "zig-a-zig-ah" being a particular target for not making sense.) But then none of us liked any pop acts. I wouldn't even cop to sorta liking older Michael Jackson.
Heh, you sure I'm not doing free scouting for one of their rivals?
Sure, just remind me a day or two before the show and tell me if there's anything you want to see specifically - lighting rig, speaker setup, etc. Gets tricky during the show though as I like to shut my eyes and dance.
Speaking of merch, one good way to signal "boys included" is to have a couple shirts in men's sizes at the table with not-too-girly designs. I don't think they have any men's shirts on their site at the moment. Coming from an internet fandom background, by the way, I find it curious that no pop bands seem to be going the WeLoveFine contest route with their merch. It seems like it would be a great way to find designs the fans like (a chat with the girls and/or backstage passes should be a highly motivating prize for their base), and it's a nice PR boost you can run every 3-6 months.
Heh, you sure I'm not doing free scouting for one of their rivals?
Sure, just remind me a day or two before the show and tell me if there's anything you want to see specifically - lighting rig, speaker setup, etc.
Their rivals wrote the book on merchandising, so no worries there. But my fear as the lead opening act for the Demi tour is that they are going to be shoved in front of a curtain for half an hour with no setup. I don't know how these things work though.
That "ear fiddle" that you sometimes see in live performances is normally a signal to the sound engineer that the singer is not happy with their ear monitor mix. They have a volume control in their personal pack but it doesn't change the balance of the other singers or the band. . It's very difficult to stay in tune if you can't hear yourself or the backing music properly.
I dont understand why singers have earpieces i always thought it was to tune out the loud backing music.
I went to one of their shows, me and my best friend, we were both 17 at the time and I couldn't see anyone older than us other than parents.
It was mostly younger teenage girls with mums and dads, so even we felt a little bit awkward! Especially as there were very few other people stood up and getting in to it like we did; I expect for most of the younger kids they're not really used to concerts but the atmosphere was very tame compared to when I went to see Cher Lloyd which I would have expected to be a similar fan base, but it was actually much older than the LM concert was.
Idk if that friend will go with me again for their next tour, so even I'm worrying about how it'll look if I go on my own, and that's as an 18 year old female!! It's a shame there's such a social stigma about these things tbh!
While on the topic of tours, does anyone have any guesses as to whether their UK tour will be arenas (are they big enough for that yet?) or will they be sticking to academies/theaters?Personally I do hope they stick to the smaller venues for now, just in case I do go, I always find concerts much more enjoyable at academies etc.
I went to one of their shows, me and my best friend, we were both 17 at the time and I couldn't see anyone older than us other than parents.
It was mostly younger teenage girls with mums and dads, so even we felt a little bit awkward! Especially as there were very few other people stood up and getting in to it like we did; I expect for most of the younger kids they're not really used to concerts but the atmosphere was very tame compared to when I went to see Cher Lloyd which I would have expected to be a similar fan base, but it was actually much older than the LM concert was.
Idk if that friend will go with me again for their next tour, so even I'm worrying about how it'll look if I go on my own, and that's as an 18 year old female!! It's a shame there's such a social stigma about these things tbh!
While on the topic of tours, does anyone have any guesses as to whether their UK tour will be arenas (are they big enough for that yet?) or will they be sticking to academies/theaters?Personally I do hope they stick to the smaller venues for now, just in case I do go, I always find concerts much more enjoyable at academies etc.
I think they should stick to smaller venues for now. I don't think they're big enough to fill out huge venues completely at the moment. Plus there's nothing worse than performing at a big venue and only being able to sell half the tickets. The media would have a field day. Small venues are also probably better for connecting more with the fans.
Nothing to apologize for as I found it very informative and honest. I think it brought up points for their team to think about. In past interviews I remember the girls themselves saying "we want more boys!" so they are well aware of the gender disparity. I would bet Destiny's Child had mixed gender audiences but they also had a sexier image from the outset.
What about Spice Girls when they started out? Seeing as they began with a less sexed up image too.
I can't really remember much about the Spice Girls, I hadn't even started school when their first single was released! I remember Destiny's Child being talked about as a really cool group though, and, like you say, with quite a mixed audience. I've still got their #1s album actually, there's so many brilliant songs on that!
All these bloody compilation albums coming out for christmas have put LM out of the top 10 on iTunes to #11 Annoying because it puts the album out of the eyeline of shoppers, so to speak.
Take them away they are #6 behind then two new EP's from Bastille & Luminites which will probably slide, but releasing my clutch on them straws it does look like the download performance hasn't been that incredible. If the figures where great, they would surely be holding up against these compilations, like Artpop has.
All these bloody compilation albums coming out for christmas have put LM out of the top 10 on iTunes to #11 Annoying because it puts the album out of the eyeline of shoppers, so to speak.
Take them away they are #6 behind then two new EP's from Bastille & Luminites which will probably slide, but releasing my clutch on them straws it does look like the download performance hasn't been that incredible. If the figures where great, they would surely be holding up against these compilations, like Artpop has.
I never understood why would music company release compilation around that time? It just kills the game.
The same as other artists always complain about Xfactor acts always getting the #1 Christmas spot.
Maybe LM management should think on another release period.
But then again it's all about competition, market awareness and lessons learned.
@ CV, I support LM the best I can, buying physical cd's, digital downloads, merchandising for my little girl but right now I just can't be asked to turn up in a concert full of screaming little girls. Or people blocking our view recording.
I love my music, like a sit down and peaceful hearing, so at the moment I'm fine with tv appearances or even festivals.
Little Mix will have longevity and will be looked after, I have faith they will be around in 2 years time when the main teens have grown lol.
If I am a tour operator, and an act has a history of not selling a huge lot of tickets, why would I want to promote them?
Also there's no guarantee things will stay the same. Look at Stooshe.
They sell a moderate amount of tickets to mostly tweens and young teens. Obviously Syco was fine with that, just look at the newer 5H single. Zero appeal outside girls 8-11, I'd say. I'd be curious who pushed the most for a more mature approach for LM.
What happened to Stooshe, anyway? Usually my Google-fu can solve these questions but there's not much about it. Band troubles? Their releases seem to have done ok but they've just sort of disappeared into playing sporadic small gigs.
I dont understand why singers have earpieces i always thought it was to tune out the loud backing music.
It's so they can hear themselves and each other as clearly as possible in the mix. I've never played a gig, but apparently it's a massive problem with the delays on speakers, louder and quieter instruments, etc.
What happened to Stooshe, anyway? Usually my Google-fu can solve these questions but there's not much about it. Band troubles? Their releases seem to have done ok but they've just sort of disappeared into playing sporadic small gigs.
Their album release was bungled even though they had momentum and they announced they were seeking new management. Ergo the out of sight for now.
The thing is. A lot of us older posters complained the first time around the music was too young. Then LM gave us music we liked on this new album. But if all they see are young tweens still coming to concerts, well, they are voting with their pocketbooks so why wouldn't LM go back to the fans that are paying for and supporting them? If they manage to sell bucket loads of sales this time around because of older listeners buying then maybe, but as people have pointed out the money is in touring these days. If they aren't getting the older fans supporting them on tour I see no reason they should be catering to their gripes.
I went to my local food store today and checked out the music section.. no sight of LM salute. There was an empty shelve under number 3 , they were all sold out. All of the top five had plenty of their CD's there, so I asked and the shop assistant said they had sold out of salute. That's gotta be a good sign.
Paging sniffingchocake and Body Electric. Since you've been to see them, what was the audience makeup when you were there?
It did tend to be alot of 13-17yr olds with their mums, but me and my friend both in our 20s didn't feel uncomfortable, there were a few older fans dotted around where we were and im pretty sure i was sat next to two 40+ who were loving it. My friend was annoyed that the merch was only for children though she wanted a tee haha
I would presume they will probably follow a similar audience pattern to that of Girls Aloud
I first saw them at Hammersmith too and the audience was not dissimilar in age to Little Mix's first tour. Obviously fans grew up with them, but their music matured and so did their fanbase.
The audience at festivals is obviously a lot older and at wireless the tent was pretty packed with both men and women singing along, thats why i thought doing festivals was important for them, they reached a different audience.
Comments
I can write down the setlist for y'all.
They were as toxic as Backstreet Boys or Britney Spears in my circle of high school friends. (Actively mocked occasionally, and I remember "zig-a-zig-ah" being a particular target for not making sense.) But then none of us liked any pop acts. I wouldn't even cop to sorta liking older Michael Jackson.
I pretty much missed DC completely in college.
Sure, just remind me a day or two before the show and tell me if there's anything you want to see specifically - lighting rig, speaker setup, etc. Gets tricky during the show though as I like to shut my eyes and dance.
Speaking of merch, one good way to signal "boys included" is to have a couple shirts in men's sizes at the table with not-too-girly designs. I don't think they have any men's shirts on their site at the moment. Coming from an internet fandom background, by the way, I find it curious that no pop bands seem to be going the WeLoveFine contest route with their merch. It seems like it would be a great way to find designs the fans like (a chat with the girls and/or backstage passes should be a highly motivating prize for their base), and it's a nice PR boost you can run every 3-6 months.
Their rivals wrote the book on merchandising, so no worries there. But my fear as the lead opening act for the Demi tour is that they are going to be shoved in front of a curtain for half an hour with no setup. I don't know how these things work though.
I got Perrie's and Jade's lipsticks and Perrie's blush in SuperDrug. Really good price too!
I wanted to get more but I didn't wanna get carried away.
I dont understand why singers have earpieces i always thought it was to tune out the loud backing music.
Dont worry, they are releasing more Collection make up next year. I persume Collection does just make up?
Yeah, the collection just does make-up. I think.
It was mostly younger teenage girls with mums and dads, so even we felt a little bit awkward! Especially as there were very few other people stood up and getting in to it like we did; I expect for most of the younger kids they're not really used to concerts but the atmosphere was very tame compared to when I went to see Cher Lloyd which I would have expected to be a similar fan base, but it was actually much older than the LM concert was.
Idk if that friend will go with me again for their next tour, so even I'm worrying about how it'll look if I go on my own, and that's as an 18 year old female!! It's a shame there's such a social stigma about these things tbh!
While on the topic of tours, does anyone have any guesses as to whether their UK tour will be arenas (are they big enough for that yet?) or will they be sticking to academies/theaters?Personally I do hope they stick to the smaller venues for now, just in case I do go, I always find concerts much more enjoyable at academies etc.
I think they should stick to smaller venues for now. I don't think they're big enough to fill out huge venues completely at the moment. Plus there's nothing worse than performing at a big venue and only being able to sell half the tickets. The media would have a field day. Small venues are also probably better for connecting more with the fans.
I can't really remember much about the Spice Girls, I hadn't even started school when their first single was released! I remember Destiny's Child being talked about as a really cool group though, and, like you say, with quite a mixed audience. I've still got their #1s album actually, there's so many brilliant songs on that!
People are not ready to take them seriously unless you're a parent buying music for your child and getting to know about what they're listening too.
Shame their management targeted the teens market at first, but hey, teens grow and become young adults theirselves!
I'll give LM another 2 albums b4 being taken as they should: great artists!
Only at that time, myself as a fan and a parent, will be ready to support them on a tour.
Take them away they are #6 behind then two new EP's from Bastille & Luminites which will probably slide, but releasing my clutch on them straws it does look like the download performance hasn't been that incredible. If the figures where great, they would surely be holding up against these compilations, like Artpop has.
This makes me very fearful.
If I am a tour operator, and an act has a history of not selling a huge lot of tickets, why would I want to promote them?
Also there's no guarantee things will stay the same. Look at Stooshe.
You may regret waiting.
I never understood why would music company release compilation around that time? It just kills the game.
The same as other artists always complain about Xfactor acts always getting the #1 Christmas spot.
Maybe LM management should think on another release period.
But then again it's all about competition, market awareness and lessons learned.
@ CV, I support LM the best I can, buying physical cd's, digital downloads, merchandising for my little girl but right now I just can't be asked to turn up in a concert full of screaming little girls. Or people blocking our view recording.
I love my music, like a sit down and peaceful hearing, so at the moment I'm fine with tv appearances or even festivals.
Little Mix will have longevity and will be looked after, I have faith they will be around in 2 years time when the main teens have grown lol.
They sell a moderate amount of tickets to mostly tweens and young teens. Obviously Syco was fine with that, just look at the newer 5H single. Zero appeal outside girls 8-11, I'd say. I'd be curious who pushed the most for a more mature approach for LM.
What happened to Stooshe, anyway? Usually my Google-fu can solve these questions but there's not much about it. Band troubles? Their releases seem to have done ok but they've just sort of disappeared into playing sporadic small gigs.
It's so they can hear themselves and each other as clearly as possible in the mix. I've never played a gig, but apparently it's a massive problem with the delays on speakers, louder and quieter instruments, etc.
I think their album flopped.
The thing is. A lot of us older posters complained the first time around the music was too young. Then LM gave us music we liked on this new album. But if all they see are young tweens still coming to concerts, well, they are voting with their pocketbooks so why wouldn't LM go back to the fans that are paying for and supporting them? If they manage to sell bucket loads of sales this time around because of older listeners buying then maybe, but as people have pointed out the money is in touring these days. If they aren't getting the older fans supporting them on tour I see no reason they should be catering to their gripes.
ITS.TIME.TO.FACE.THE.MUSIC.SALES.
Actual sales are usually posted on the Monday following by the OCC. Unless it does really well.
Nissl
#5
theagronislife
#2
nooneoo
top 5 50-60k
1992
#5 75K
kieranyeah123
#5-7
Chem
40-55K
avon942
top 3
LandslideBrad
#3
JB92
#3 65-70k
Casualviewer
#3 67k
ICON111
#3 50k-60k
aldu
#1 As Leigh-Anne often says 'you have to aim high'.
davem1234
#4 65.5k
wise-up
#3/4 62k
old mixer
#3/5
58k - 63k
Lol talk about optimism!
If you do know the position, please put it in a spoiler tag. Thank you.
That's good news about the physicals. Go Little Mix!
I would presume they will probably follow a similar audience pattern to that of Girls Aloud
I first saw them at Hammersmith too and the audience was not dissimilar in age to Little Mix's first tour. Obviously fans grew up with them, but their music matured and so did their fanbase.
The audience at festivals is obviously a lot older and at wireless the tent was pretty packed with both men and women singing along, thats why i thought doing festivals was important for them, they reached a different audience.