Cbreezy Posted April 18 Posted April 18 23 minutes ago, Bey'Knight said: I know we clown her for lack of promo n there's no excuse for the absence of visuals but the arduous promo of yesteryears is not something only Bey sidesteps. Taylor's gonna have the biggest album of the year and you won't see her hitting any of those spots either. Ari only did SNL n one Interview. Dua's doing a bit more. In general, no established MPG is getting up at 4AM to perform on a tv show anymore. Not to shame her but Pink hit the promo circuit hard for Trustfall and it didn't move the needle one bit. Millennials have their minds made up and Gen-Z dont look to Television to tell them what to listen to. If you miss it purely for the content, i think BTS look would be more effective. Only few hosts have interesting questions for musicians these days. They're either spousing ass-kissing platitudes (the kiwi guy, Zach Sang) or playing for laughs n soundbites (most talkshow hosts). If it's for actual promo, there are proven strategic means of achieving that these day without the artist being in people's faces at all. Parkwood is still very much lacking there. I pretty much agree with all of this (though, I think Parkwood has too many savvy minds in the mix for the promotional missteps to be anything other than directives from Bey herself. The tell-tale sign is that she has cleaned house at an exec level at Parkwood a few times over since ST and the antics persist. So it's her or at least her mindset or governing approach. But hey, no business or business leader is perfect). As for the promo thing, I agree: no major Pop girl does promo like yesteryear. And there's a part of me that likes that. I lived for the Wendy Williams, Oprah, and Barbara Walters-type interviews of the 90s/00s, but I also kind of hypocritically and retroactively cringe at what our faves had to subject themselves to **just** to sell a record. For context, had Lemonade been a mid-00s album, every single interview would have forced Bey's hand to lay bare the night she found out Jay strayed, how they mended fences, and (because sexism was rife) what "she" was gonna "do" to ensure he didn't "do it again". There's an air of the "I've achieved too much to be subject to that" and "let the music do the talking" that I DO like about today's age. I think the kinda-sorta main problem now is how the evolution towards a touring-led music market has changed..well..everything. It's a new kind of money grab. The gworls used to peddle every platform they could to sell records (because that was the way to sell records...which they earned $$$$ from). Now music itself has next to no commercial value, touring has (more than ever before) been commoditized to become the main money maker. Because tne "end goal" is to get us in seats at these arenas and stadiums, the top-grossing touring artists aren't incentivized to "give" us the "premium" (aka: live performance) for "free" (on an SNL, award show, etc). Bey, Taylor, and co send a very loud and clear message: if you want to see me perform, you're gonna have to pay for it. And potentially a few times over if they decide to flip it into a film, doc, etc. I think THAT, as someone who was reared on Bey's televised "performances," has been the toughest pill to swallow. I go to the tours, so I'm technically not missing out but the nothingness on the live front for sure makes stanning a little less fun. Especially as it's not like there's a whole lot else going on. Visuals, yes are pending, but there's no stimulus on that front either. Songs aren't being worked on radio in quick or opportunistic ways (re CC), so there's not even much in the way of airwave omnipresence. Social media use is serving beautiful gowns (often literally lol). I also used to pretty loud and proud part of the crew that almost liked that she didn't do interviews and, in many ways, I still am. From the standpoint of maintaining mystery and mitigating the risk of saying anything that can be taken out of context. BUT...there is no reason per era there can't be ONE event-style sit-down with her talking through the project. Even if just musically. Could be any host of her choice (e.g. Trevor Noah, Charlamagne, Robin Roberts) and can live on her YouTube (as she's all about ownership). But it'd be...something. I'm not holding my breath for any of the above, but it grates because there are new-age and "reflective of the times" ways she can promote while keeping her mystique, privacy, regality, and cool factor intact. 1 1
Bey'Knight Posted April 18 Posted April 18 17 minutes ago, Cbreezy said: I pretty much agree with all of this (though, I think Parkwood has too many savvy minds in the mix for the promotional missteps to be anything other than directives from Bey herself. The tell-tale sign is that she has cleaned house at an exec level at Parkwood a few times over since ST and the antics persist. So it's her or at least her mindset or governing approach. But hey, no business or business leader is perfect). As for the promo thing, I agree: no major Pop girl does promo like yesteryear. And there's a part of me that likes that. I lived for the Wendy Williams, Oprah, and Barbara Walters-type interviews of the 90s/00s, but I also kind of hypocritically and retroactively cringe at what our faves had to subject themselves to **just** to sell a record. For context, had Lemonade been a mid-00s album, every single interview would have forced Bey's hand to lay bare the night she found out Jay strayed, how they mended fences, and (because sexism was rife) what "she" was gonna "do" to ensure he didn't "do it again". There's an air of the "I've achieved too much to be subject to that" and "let the music do the talking" that I DO like about today's age. I think the kinda-sorta main problem now is how the evolution towards a touring-led music market has changed..well..everything. It's a new kind of money grab. The gworls used to peddle every platform they could to sell records (because that was the way to sell records...which they earned $$$$ from). Now music itself has next to no commercial value, touring has (more than ever before) been commoditized to become the main money maker. Because tne "end goal" is to get us in seats at these arenas and stadiums, the top-grossing touring artists aren't incentivized to "give" us the "premium" (aka: live performance) for "free" (on an SNL, award show, etc). Bey, Taylor, and co send a very loud and clear message: if you want to see me perform, you're gonna have to pay for it. And potentially a few times over if they decide to flip it into a film, doc, etc. I think THAT, as someone who was reared on Bey's televised "performances," has been the toughest pill to swallow. I go to the tours, so I'm technically not missing out but the nothingness on the live front for sure makes stanning a little less fun. Especially as it's not like there's a whole lot else going on. Visuals, yes are pending, but there's no stimulus on that front either. Songs aren't being worked on radio in quick or opportunistic ways (re CC), so there's not even much in the way of airwave omnipresence. Social media use is serving beautiful gowns (often literally lol). I also used to pretty loud and proud part of the crew that almost liked that she didn't do interviews and, in many ways, I still am. From the standpoint of maintaining mystery and mitigating the risk of saying anything that can be taken out of context. BUT...there is no reason per era there can't be ONE event-style sit-down with her talking through the project. Even if just musically. Could be any host of her choice (e.g. Trevor Noah, Charlamagne, Robin Roberts) and can live on her YouTube (as she's all about ownership). But it'd be...something. I'm not holding my breath for any of the above, but it grates because there are new-age and "reflective of the times" ways she can promote while keeping her mystique, privacy, regality, and cool factor intact. I agree with all of this too. Parkwood did an impeccable job pivoting Chloe x Halle's album campaign during the pandemic. I'd even go as far as to say they checked off all boxes in launching Chloe's solo venture. It's just … there's only so much marketing can do when the talent in question chooses to double down on the criticisms levied against her. I'd love Bey to do a one-hour in-depth sit down with a journalist she trusts. I just don't know who'd be up to par. The last time she did something similar was the interview for LIBAD. And Oprah was in fangirl mode, she asked nothing substantive. I don't know what she was like in her hey day but the only times I find Oprah's specials compelling is when there's ready-made material to harness e.g. Harry n Meghan drama, Lance Armstrong accusations etc. I never watched the full sitdown she had with Adele. Maybe she got more out of her. Adele also makes for an easier interview subject than Bey who can be understandably cagey, charmingly so. I think a Brit or at least a European would have the cheekiness to ask Bey salient questions respectfully. In lieu of that, i'd take more B-tolls and BTS footages. Thank you. 1
satellites.™ Posted April 18 Posted April 18 7 hours ago, Mariah4life said: I miss the old days when album releases were eventful. Interviews, early morning live performance, music awards, MVs. Like I know things have changed, but it's kind of insane that these women drop albums and then disappear lol. Like, they do not care at all to actually help people discover their music and I'm honestly not sure if they think their name interest alone is enough or if they legit don't understand that new music needs to be spread out and around. Not even just Beyonce, I mean across the board these girls are failing at it. Bey still doing magazine promo though when no one buys or reads them.
V$. Posted April 18 Posted April 18 Time has passed and I love this album so much! It's full of surprises, it's truly a Beyoncé album. A body of art. 1
Kalmanta Posted April 18 Posted April 18 What strikes me the most with the acts is how far she goes outside of her usual comfort zone with her voice. The crazy vocal effects on ITG/ad-libs, the famous Heated outro, AUIYM's aggressiveness (??, I mean she sounds sooo different in this track), operatic style on Daughter, Flamenco's the crazy register switch. 2
Mariah4life Posted April 18 Posted April 18 7 hours ago, Cbreezy said: I really do too. It's such a hard concept to properly relay to people without sounding moany, dated, and lodged in a time of the past lol. Especially as someone who actively enjoys aspects of what's happening in music NOW. All at once I love somee of what the digital/social media era has brought in (more voice for the consumer, direct connection to artists, sometimes more interesting creative when it comes to marketing e.g. surprise drops, visual albums etc). But besides that, like you said, this new era of music...especially as a Bey fan...literally means getting less and forcing oneself to be fine with it. The albums themselves are an abundance of brilliance, but everything around it is minimal to the point that we are forced to cling to crumbs as promo. The DC/DIL-4 era lover in me is gagging at how an "appearance" week of release, cliquebait clips, IG posts, and a scrapbook like beencountry.com is what we stans are now subject to as "content" and almost have to force ourselves to be excited by it all. As a fan with one foot in the past and one foot in the now, it's hard to wrap one's head/acceptance around her approach to her current eras when knowing how much of a standard-bearer she was for promo back in the day. Release weeks were a clean sweep of all the morning shows, GMA Summer Concert Series, Oprah/Tyra performances, commercials ahoy, new video drops. So much...content. And content, performances, interviews etc that we still talk about now. Even her more renegade eras like ST and Lemonade still gave us...more. I actively love Bey's modern ability to gag us and I know the art of pulling that off IS surprise/delayed gratification. Also, as she gets older, so do we. So, I'm also very understanding of most artists' desire to work smarter rather than harder (especially in this pivot to a touring-led market where the release of music by and large is simply a vehicle to get to the real money maker: touring). That said, I guess my little/long piggy-back point from your post is that it's objectively and admittedly less fun being a Bey stan these days. At a literal level. I don't need her to revert to the promo practices of the old days (as times have moved on), but being fed compelling content (of any kind) regularly during an album cycle...some of which actually doesn't even require her physical presence...would make stanning her a much more engaging process. Releasing great albums but juxtaposing them with a bare-bones experience content-wise has been...frustrating as a fan. It's even more grating for me, because I all at once enjoy the regality, deity, and effortlessly cool positioning she has in Pop culture and I **KNOW** a lot of that comes from taking on this laid-back, laissez-faire and almost indie-like approach and swooping in with occasional big moments (see: the visuals). Still, I think there is a very easy and happy medium where she can retain her "cool" while drumming up the content. At least during an album cycle. I totally agree with your take on this matter. Unfortunately, as you know, the music consumption culture these days just isn't set up to reward these live performances/interviews anymore but I do wish the artists would think more about the hardcore fans who longed about their return between their highly anticipated releases. This is even more true for someone like Beyonce where her music is so multi layered that it would be so interesting to understand her thought process and her intention with everything. 1
Cbreezy Posted April 18 Posted April 18 50 minutes ago, Mariah4life said: I totally agree with your take on this matter. Unfortunately, as you know, the music consumption culture these days just isn't set up to reward these live performances/interviews anymore but I do wish the artists would think more about the hardcore fans who longed about their return between their highly anticipated releases. This is even more true for someone like Beyonce where her music is so multi layered that it would be so interesting to understand her thought process and her intention with everything. Right! Because it facilitates a deeper, more qualitative, long-lasting connection with the music itself. Given how little we hear from Bey these days, a deep dive chat spotlighting the musical aspect of her release and process will - if even just for the core fans - make the release stick more. And, given the high quality of the music and the time taken to craft it, I can't be convinced it's something she would be blah about. It would be a great cherry on top. 1
Bey'Knight Posted April 18 Posted April 18 2 hours ago, Cbreezy said: Right! Because it facilitates a deeper, more qualitative, long-lasting connection with the music itself. Given how little we hear from Bey these days, a deep dive chat spotlighting the musical aspect of her release and process will - if even just for the core fans - make the release stick more. And, given the high quality of the music and the time taken to craft it, I can't be convinced it's something she would be blah about. It would be a great cherry on top. Get into music analysis video essays and podcasts. It's what I do. I still think Dissect is the best one out there - they really spend an entire season dissecting one album whereas others do so in one episode. Unfortunately they haven't covered either if the acts so far but there's plenty out there on Ren and CC to varying quantities. 1
Rafael Posted April 18 Posted April 18 II saved the entire album on my own Spotify playlist but replaced original Texas with the Pony remix.... am I the only one? 6
Navyboy20 Posted April 18 Posted April 18 A documentary about an era that can't include any visuals, interview clips and barely any quotes from Beyonce because they don't exist 3
Blue Rose Posted April 18 Posted April 18 26 minutes ago, 99sandthe2000s said: The media is starving for Bey content
Fleahive Posted April 19 Posted April 19 (edited) I don't know about anybody else, but I keep playing American Requiem over and over and over again. It does not get old. It never will. If you really feel the passion behind the song. Understand the lyrics. It's her best **** talking song she ever made and has surpassed Virgo Groove as one of her career highlight moments. What an OPENER. I truly cannot believe somebody can turn that on and think the album sucks. They're not actually listening. Y'all should see me in my car screeching the "LOOKA DERE LOOKA DERE. LOO LOO LOO LOO LOO LOOK AH DERE!!!!!" on full blast. I almost lost my voice. Edited April 19 by Fleahive
Godontop Posted April 19 Posted April 19 57 minutes ago, Fleahive said: I don't know about anybody else, but I keep playing American Requiem over and over and over again. It does not get old. It never will. If you really feel the passion behind the song. Understand the lyrics. It's her best **** talking song she ever made and has surpassed Virgo Groove as one of her career highlight moments. What an OPENER. I truly cannot believe somebody can turn that on and think the album sucks. They're not actually listening. Y'all should see me in my car screeching the "LOOKA DERE LOOKA DERE. LOO LOO LOO LOO LOO LOOK AH DERE!!!!!" on full blast. I almost lost my voice. This but think I may like Amen more
Doogle Posted April 19 Posted April 19 So I work in a high school in Japan and this morning near the vice principal's desk there's always some newspapers for that day but I noticed a daily English Asia news one that has the cover of this album on it?? I'm so confused lmao I wanna go snoop and see what it says about CC but it's right by his desk and he might be like wtf is this weird foreigner doing 4
Blue Rose Posted April 19 Posted April 19 17 minutes ago, Doogle said: So I work in a high school in Japan and this morning near the vice principal's desk there's always some newspapers for that day but I noticed a daily English Asia news one that has the cover of this album on it?? I'm so confused lmao I wanna go snoop and see what it says about CC but it's right by his desk and he might be like wtf is this weird foreigner doing It has the tea about the videos. Go find it
Lose My Breath Posted April 19 Posted April 19 17 minutes ago, Doogle said: So I work in a high school in Japan and this morning near the vice principal's desk there's always some newspapers for that day but I noticed a daily English Asia news one that has the cover of this album on it?? I'm so confused lmao I wanna go snoop and see what it says about CC but it's right by his desk and he might be like wtf is this weird foreigner doing She's making a comeback in Japan, sis
period sis Posted April 19 Posted April 19 (edited) 18 minutes ago, V$. said: definitely a mashup by a former atrler!!!!!! Edited April 19 by period sis
Doogle Posted April 19 Posted April 19 6 hours ago, Lose My Breath said: She's making a comeback in Japan, sis 6 hours ago, Blue Rose said: It has the tea about the videos. Go find it it was actually an article with the headline "Flying High" saying about her becoming the first black woman to chart at #1 on the billboard country chart. Then it was translated to Japanese next to it. Global after all
Recommended Posts