2.10.12 US Radio Promo info, In:Demand Interview

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Ok, this is my last post on the Kris subject.

I completely agree that both of them have their own battles to fight in the music industry, and their successes are not linked to each other. I also wish I could totally ignore him.

That being said, the competitive side in me cannot let this one go. Wish I could. I added a "scroll away" warning on my earlier post.

It's DEFINITELY not that I wish him to fail (I like him), I just don't think it would be *fair* (as in, in the greater scheme of things) for him to have greater success than Adam on US radio. And I expressed that opinion, since this is what we are doing here, after all, expressing opinions.

I am moving on from this subject now.

GAH. LOOONG. SCROLLL! (most of it is quotes? sorta? maybe?)


Hey--Love all your perspectives and I think it is a good conversation to have. I just wanted to jump in and say, tigerlily, that I completely agree with your analysis here and appreciate that you put it forward so directly and clearly.

It's funny what a difference one's perspective makes. I hear everything people are saying about Adam's being too outside the box for pop radio, and too edgy, I hear about how much his sexuality is a hurdle he has to overcome, and I read, for example, what Jo just wrote above about Adam's getting the collective eye-roll for being too flamboyant in the FYE era...and I have to believe that's all true because I hear it again and again in the fandom, and also because I'm sadly wise enough never to underestimate the force of homophobia in this or for that matter most countries.

But in my world, where Adam also ( >:() receives eye-rolls, he's facing the opposite problem, from an equally (well, maybe not equally but similarly) ignorant position. The people I know don't think Adam is too out there--they think he is too mainstream. They think he is a commercial product (thank you, AI) who sings manufactured, boring, simplistic pop. His sexuality, to the extent that people in my circle think of it at all, is if anything thought of as a redeeming feature--something that makes him slightly more interesting. And they are barely aware of his FYE-era camp and flamboyance (more on that in a minute).

It's funny and ridiculous, actually, when you think about it, because within the world of AI, these people (those who watched, which is a minority) would have rooted for Adam as being a supreme talent with a kind of fuck-this-world iconoclasm. But outside of AI, he's still stamped with the AI label. I've tried to figure out why this is (setting aside the people who simply don't like mainstream pop music from anyone) and what I keep coming back to, in addition to the AI stigma, is very relevant to our discussion today: the singles.

None of Adam's three big singles to date (I'm skipping FYE because it was on the scene so briefly) has been (IN MY OPINION) particularly groundbreaking or exciting pop. I agree, there is a lot of dross on the radio, but for me there are also a lot of pop songs that get a lot of play that are significantly more exciting and certainly edgier that WWFM, IIHY, and BTIKM. And I'm not talking exclusively about faster, dancier music--both of Adele's big singles struck me as more interesting, as songs, than Adam's singles.

PLEASE NOTE: 1) I am not dissing Adam here. I am a huge fan and I happen to think his singles barely represent who he is as a pop artist for me. He didn't even write any of these singles, and without fail, the greater a hand Adam has in the music he produces, the more I like the outcome. (Have I mentioned I'm FUCKING excited for TRESPASSING?!) 2) This is, needless to say, entirely my own opinion, which comes shaded with all sorts of personal biases and prejudices, and should in no way diminish the pleasure anyone else takes in these songs.

BUT: IMO one of the reasons (and I acknowledge there are powerful additional reasons) that Adam has had a difficult time on the radio is that he hasn't released a TRULY GREAT POP SINGLE yet. And when I think of what my friends and family, say, who don't follow Adam closely at all, have been exposed to--his singles on the radio and on late-night talk show performances and other performances like AI--then I understand much better the ways in which they dismiss him. They would have loved the "flamboyance" of GNT so much more, if they had seen it. They would have loved Fever, and Broken Open, and DTRH, also Music Again. They may recognize, from the singles, that the guy has a great voice, but they don't care, they're bored by the music, and frankly I might be too if that were all I knew. "The Heart Must Go On" is possibly my most hated song of the last two decades, and as a vocal performance it is impeccable. (Again, just a matter of taste, YMMV.)

SO yes. I was disappointed by BTIKM (even though it sounds beautiful and I flove the video). I was disappointed with the claude kelly demo that leaked months ago, and I was disappointed with the slicker production of the single. It did sound a little song-factory to me. To be clear, I thought it had potential for radio success, and I still do, but I was disappointed, and I certainly didn't think it was the single to make people sit up and take notice of the new Adam Era. It is reminiscient of WWFM, and WWFM had significant success, but I have already heard enough of and about this new album to confidently expect something far more exciting, far greater than that, from it. So I'm not worried. I'm not worried at all. BTIKM may still take off (as people have pointed out, there are far worse songs ruling the airwaves, and radio promo is just kicking in next week). But speaking only for myself, I'm more excited for the NEXT single, and for the Album, and I share msn.uk's conviction that this is the beginning of a brave and massively successful new world for Adam.

One last thing, and again, YMMV. I don't follow Kris, and hadn't known that his single was out until now, so I obviously haven't heard it. But now I'm curious and will definitely go seek it out, and I hope I like it. He seems like a nice guy, and as far as I'm concerned, more good music is better than more bad music. And he definitely doesn't represent a threat to Adam in any way. I wish him luck.

I want Adam to get a "fair" shot too but I think it's important to realize that the music industry isn't about being "fair". the most talented people aren't always the most successful people and sometimes success is found in places outside of the mainstream.

Adam has a bigger hill to climb but he's climbing it and IMO Kris getting on the radio in no way knocks Adam back down the hill. They aren't adding Kris over Adam (if they even add Kris). It's not an either or situation as far as I can tell.



Hee... thanks! love those lip freckles!



His radio play so far has been good, not great but decent enough for not having done any U.S. promo to speak of. The song got 13 radio adds this past week, that's good and he can build from there.

I think I'm more of a glass half full person.