http://www.express.co.uk/celebrity-n...affic.outbrain
Can't argue with any of that.

Totally agree with her.

I am sick to death of all these "talent" shows and haven't watched any in a few years now. There are interesting and unique artists out there but you won't find them anywhere near these shows, on radio, or in the charts. Mainstream music seems to be aimed solely at people who would listen to anything just to have a bit of noise around them but who don't actually give a shit or really pay attention to what they're actually listening to. I don't judge the listeners, by the way and I'm not a music snob. I just despise the corrupt and morally bankrupt music and TV industry who treat good, honest musicians like dirt.

It's not even talent shows that are tainting the music industry.

What's really mind boggling is the signing of YouTubers who end up getting a record deal when they're quite evidently shite!!!

E.g. Jacob Sartorius!!!

It beggars belief how anyone can listen to him singing and think "wow, what an incredible voice". Sadly record companies these days are all about the money and very little about the music.

There must be millions of talented young kids all over the world right now. Some who have fantastic singing voices. Some who are fantastic musicians who can play different musical instruments.

...and yet it's bloody Jacob Sartorius who gets signed up.

I really don't know what's worse.

well said chrissie...

Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson has said something similar in the past.

He said that those who go on these shows aren't interested in a career as a musician, they are simply interested in being famous.

If they were interested in a career in music they would join a band, play in pubs, go busking, learn their craft.

I bet he hasn't heard that Little Mix are about to release an EPIC album though.....

These shows are television: nominally about the music biz but primarily prime time entertainment.

"none of the stuff I loved growing up was mainstream."
Well, aren't we hip, Chrissy?

"Now everything is mainstream."
No. That's not even possible.

"It’s just not cool any more. Nothing’s cool."
Probably thinks The Pretenders were cool... Can't say I knew many people who liked them. Weren't they a bit erm... mainstream?

"All the talent shows are for people who aren’t very talented".
Well, that's a bit of an offensive generalisation isn't it? They are shows which focus on vocal performances; on cover versions. You're not excluded if you are a songwriter or play instruments. I don't watch much of this stuff but I've heard some far better singers on them than cool, hip Chrissy.

... and how would Bruce Dickinson know the motivation behind contestants on these shows? Does he know them all personally? Or even any of them?

The trouble with Rock 'n' roll dinosaurs like Chrissy Hynde and Bruck Dickinson is that they can't see a world beyond their own little bubble. It's all too easy and simplistic to blame talent shows for what they see as wrong with the current music scene and dismiss people who appear on them.

you make a good point re-mainstream.... she was a huge kinks fan and they were certainly mainstream.

but she/they are right about contestants on talent shows..... we know their motivation because they the contestants tell us in their interviews. its clear they think they are talented, 'its what i was born to do, i dont know what id do if i didnt win' . its like they believe they are entitled...

What's this fascination with certain people coming forward to trash talk talent shows? I don't watch them or particularly like them, but I don't feel the need to comment on them. It's pretty easy to ignore them.

There are still artists getting signed and enjoying success in the traditional way, so live and let live I say.

Also, who cares what's "cool" anymore? More important things in life than being "cool".

I'm sure there are plenty of people in plenty of bands who would love to be a "Rock 'n' roll dinosaur" like Bruce Dickinson and still be releasing albums that go to #1 around the globe 40 years after the band started. Their last album, The Book of Souls, when to #1 in at least 24 countries, not too shabby for a "dinosaur".

If you read his biography you would discover that because of all his aviation interests, commercial airline pilot, aircraft maintenance business, and involvement in such projects as the Airlander 10, etc, music plays a tiny part in his life so to say he lives in a "little bubble" is nonsense.

He was asked for his thoughts on TV talent shows during an interview. What was he supposed to say? "No comment?" He is entitled to give his opinion along with everyone else, but as he has spent 30 years at the top of the industry he is more informed than most of us.

As for him knowing all of the contestants individually to know their motivation, he doesn't need to because they all say what their motivation is during the programmes and it is obvious from most their primary driver is fame and not a long singing career. If you take the entire history of these shows, going back to the likes of Opportunity Knocks, there are very, very, few who make a long-term sustained career out of winning any of these talent shows; and arguably the most successful of those don't even win.

I'm not going to read his biography but I did know that he's a pilot and that Maiden are extremely popular. The bubble I was suggesting is a musical one: the older generation seeing things only one way i.e. their way. We see examples of it on this forum all the time. From what was written re: Dickinson's views and quoted re: Hynde's, it comes across that they see a specific path that should be followed to have a career in music, probably akin to their own.


They way to be informed about TV talent shows would be to watch a fair few of them. Maybe he does, or maybe, like many of us, he wouldn't waste much time on them. I'd guess that the journalist posed such an irrelevant question to him hoping for some sort of negative response because in many ways these shows rightfully appal many of us.


I think that generally they haven't been the winners, as you've said, which is pleasing in the regard that the shows cannot have the ultimate control of making or breaking careers.

You may well be right re. their motivation but on the other hand, much of this could be people saying what they believe they are expected to say or what they are encouraged to say. The likes of Cowell will want statements that encourage the next wave of hopefuls so he can keep perpetuating the charade and raking the money in. Don't they all go on "emotional rollercoasters" as well? Cliché on top of cliché.

There is a view from people who hate these shows (and what's not to hate about dumb prime time TV?) that the participants are talentless because they are attached to the shows - because they only sing -- maybe they don't but this is the focus of the show: running through covers -- and what's wrong with 'only singing' anyway - many great records have been made fronted by vocalists who only sing...

OR that are crap singers because they have to be because they're on that stupid TV show innit!

I think that too many people have subscribed to the pervasive suggestion that a singer is always lesser than a singer songwriter or e.g. a guitar-strumming vocalist. Going back in musical history it was quite normal for a singer to be just that and to be accompanied by musicians.

Regardless, the shows are still deceitful, promoting false hope and broken promises.

When you are 'cool' you are already winning the battle. Style can eclipse content. I actually disagree strongly with Chrissy Hynde re: "nothing's cool" [anymore].

Cool is in the eye of the beholder and I believe that the young people who enjoy those current acts in the charts see them as the epitome of cool (!), regardless of what we older folk might think. Justin Beiber: cooler than Iggy Pop. Iggy Azalea: cooler than Bob Dylan.

They're wrong, of course...

re "because they can sing"

i wouldnt mind if someone could actually sing in a unique style. but they all do the mariah warble, they think that using as many notes as you can = emotion... i hate the overuse of melisma...

The problem here is that if a contestant sang in a unique style, Simon Cowell would screw his face and say he didn't "get" it and that person would be sent home with four no's.

They all sing like Mariah because that's all Simon Cowell knows. What is shocking is how his judgement even in 2016 is considered important when he's clearly been out of touch with the publics tastes for several years.

Two words; Forever Young

Is that higher or lower than the YouTubers who have got book deals. (Having been brave enough to look inside one, it's safe to say that I could do better than them.)

As Chrissie Hynde says in the article, 'All the talent shows are for people who aren’t very talented, judged by people who have no taste.'

And for the next show we have Simon, Louis and Sharon...all effectively out of touch. However, like the rest of us they can hear what's in the charts and see if there is an artist who fits the current sound.

When I hear this years winner's single for the first time, that will tell me very clearly if Cowell really is hearing what's in the charts.

I agree. I don't think talent shows really have much effect anymore. Almost all the current successful artists don't come from talent shows but the conventional way.

I actually think talent shows could be interesting and find artists, but they need to require that people on them perform their own original music they wrote, not sing covers of other people's songs. Why not have a show that is more of a songwriting contest, rarely than purely a singing one?

Isnt that what Eurovision is supposed to be

fair comment...

Now if it had been the Alphaville song it would have worked I think many like me were disappointed when we heard the above song and I quite liked her as well.

However that is a well-trodden path that works, even today. it is now a very difficult to path but, ultimately, it can still be a successful one for those that are good enough.

The TV talent show path very rarely offers the same opportunity for success, even for the "winners".

I can't take music that seriously.

While I do think that most TV talent shows are crap, it's just music and music is just a job to some and there's nothing wrong with that. Music may be this creative, inspiring beacon of light to others, but some just want to have a career in music. I don't get why anyone can tell them they're wrong for that.

Louisa was my favourite contestant last year. She didn't really have much competition imo granted once Sean got voted out early on.

Her winner's single should've been much more like the Clean Bandit song Tears. Catchy, uplifting and most importantly appealed to the Spotify generation.

I'm glad that Forever Young failed as that song choice and moreso the arrangement of the song really emphasised just how out of touch Simon Cowell is. Even Louisa couldn't save that coma inducing snoozefest.