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The Adele Topic: From 19 to 21 to 25

UYI

By UYI
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Cobalt Stargazer

Cobalt Stargazer

Wow.  Just...wow.

 

Brits and other nationalities can get just as fucked up as Americans.

 

 

Oh, for the love of.....

 

I didn't say they couldn't be. Amy Winehouse was British, for instance, and I think we can agree that she was pretty fucked up. Hell, Amy's a part of the "club" with Hendrix, Morrison, Joplin and Cobain, since they all died at the same age.

 

But if you want another comparison with Adele, how about Britney Spears? Different kinds of music, sure, so maybe its not entirely fair, but I don't think 'level-headed' has ever been a word associated with Spears. She may have cleaned up her act at this point, but her life was quite the train-wreck for a while there. I almost suggested Bieber, but he's Canadian, so that doesn't count. Don't read too much into that sentence, please.

 

My only point was, Adele seems unlikely to start hitting the clubs and/or lapdancing some random talk show host. I know the internet conveys tone for shit, but I wasn't meaning to lump all Americans or all Brits or all anybody together.

It's funny you made this comment while simultaneously discussing what a train wreck Amy Winehouse was....and she was also British.

 

Peep the post below you, CaughtOnTape :-)

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Cobalt Stargazer
Cobalt Stargazer

I looked it up, and I'm very surprised to find out that Adele is only twenty seven, making her just two years older than Swift. Her voice is very mature for someone so young, and it wouldn't fit the i

truthaboutluv
truthaboutluv

I know that may not be the intent but I don't think it's fair to sort of dismiss Adele's success to luck and Taylor's to hard work. Yeah Taylor's shrewd but many believe Taylor is VERY lucky - very lu

truthaboutluv
truthaboutluv

Adele has had many comments about her weight and image since she came on the scene. It's just that many of those writers believe they're being "positive" in these comments, even if on some level it is

Ohwell

Ohwell

I know the internet conveys tone for shit, but I wasn't meaning to lump all Americans or all Brits or all anybody together.

 

But that's exactly what you did when you said Adele was not American.  Anyway, I'm out.

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UYI

UYI

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And 21 came out after Amy's death.

21 came out on January 19th, 2011, Amy died on July 23rd, 2011. But like you said, yes, Amy was MUCH more well-known for her drug issues by the end of her life than her music, sadly.

Adele has definitely said, though, that Amy is a major reason she's even a musician at all. This is from last October:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/entertainthis/2015/10/28/adele-amy-winehouse-reason-make-music/74730328/

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amaranta

amaranta

I find Adele charming.  Here's a video interview she did with James Corden:  Adele Carpool Karaoke.  So fun!

 

That was amazing!  I think I've become a fan through her talk show appearances - the Jenny bit on Graham Norton, Hello on Fallon with the grade school instruments, and now this clip.  I watched them on YouTube.  Though I'm late to the Adele party - just started listening with this release - I'm in.

 

I especially liked it when Corden asked her when she was going to realize she was "Adele."   That, her rapping (and doing it well!) and them revisiting her Spice Girls obsession from when she was a kid.  What a fun video. 

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AshleyN

AshleyN

(edited)

I find Adele charming.  Here's a video interview she did with James Corden:  Adele Carpool Karaoke.  So fun!

And in case anyone still had the slightest doubt as to her impact: "Monster" is now inside the Top 40 on iTunes (and "All I Ask" is just outside the top 10). LOL, there's really nothing she can't do, is there?

Edited by AshleyN
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UYI

UYI

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25 will apparently be replaced at #1 on the next Billboard Hot 200 Albums chart by Blackstar, the new, & final, album by the late David Bowie.

 

And yet it was Justin Bieber's "Sorry" who knocked "Hello" off the song chart. Eh, no one's perfect. ;) 

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27bored

27bored

Yeah that one has been stated a few times and as someone who was a fan of both of these women when they broke onto the scene, I disagree. Yes, Amy ushered in a wave of British white woman soul singer that saw her, Duffy and Adele pop onto the scene in the space of a year. Except Adele's 19 was nothing like Amy's sound in my opinion. Sure she had many soul singer influences like Aretha Franklin but 19 was very coffee-house/indie singer-songwriter vibe. I honestly think it's become this urban legend over time that Adele is a soul singer because she is a white woman with a big voice but in my opinion, Adele's music is and always has been pop.

 

Adele and Amy have different sounds -- those differences are more readily apparent given Amy got two records in before her demise and Adele's on her third record -- but they're similar in that they're both reappropriating retro sounds and non-mainstream styles of music into pop music (jazz for Amy, blues for Adele). Even though they have distinct styles, Amy's popularity created a creative space in pop music for Adele and Duffy. It's not unlike how Sam Smith's success thus far created space for Hozier, or Mumford & Sons created space for the Lumineers and Bastille, or Bruno Mars created space for The Weeknd. That's kind of how it works in pop music.

 

Also, it is key to remember that 19 wasn't a massive commercial success. Certainly it did more than respectable for a new artist, selling a little over 1 million in the U.S. but it wasn't until 21 that she exploded as she did. And 21 came out after Amy's death, well after her moment and her being "a thing" had passed since sadly by the time of her death, all she was really known for was being an alcoholic/drug addicted mess. And again, while Rolling In The Deep did okay, it had a slow build on radio and the album sold a respectable 300,000 + copies the first week but certainly not a million smash. 21 didn't really take off until Someone Like You. THAT'S the song and the moment that changed Adele's life and she's said as much.

 

I think it's been noted that 21 actually came out six months prior to Amy's death, and I don't want to seem like I'm saying Adele's success is only because of Amy. I would agree she's gotten pretty lucky in that she made music in a time in which there was a demand for it. That's true for talented and untalented artists alike.

 

As for the bolded, first of all, Adele really hasn't made her success being or needing to be tabloid fodder so that's inconsequential really but honestly, and I say this as someone who loved Amy's music and thought she was amazingly talented but unless she got her life together, yeah she'd still be on the blogs and tabloids more than Adele but it wouldn't exactly be for good reasons. While I understand the point that's sort of being made - because yes, there is some luck that goes into success in the entertainment industry. Right timing, right song, right look, etc. does play a part. However, I always feel slightly uncomfortable by these comments because it almost feels like an implication that Adele is where she is because Amy died and no longer there to be a threat to her. And I don't agree with that. Unless Amy's being alive would somehow stop Adele's writing and creating 21, then I say she would still be where she is.

 

I hate to say it, but it's kind of true that Adele's success is kind of tied to Amy's demise. There is only so much ink the entertainment press will devote to one person, and I think there are more than enough examples to show they like trainwrecks more than actual talented artists. It's not so much that Adele wouldn't be successful or people wouldn't like her music, but Adele's foul-mouthed-chick-next-door mien and her heartbreaking grace on record would take a backseat to Amy looking gaunt and emaciated while walking her dog if she was still alive. It makes no sense, but that is the industry.

 

It's sort of like what happened with Britney and Christina. Christina made good music, she tried to do stuff for the publicity, she tried to be daring...but the media largely didn't care because of Britney. At the end of the day, Christina could sing, she could pull herself together when she needed to, and she dated Regular Joes and married a Regular Joe. Britney was a trainwreck, so she got more publicity. Christina still sold records, had successful tours, won Grammys, etc. But that took a backseat to Britney attacking cars with umbrellas, randomly jumping in the ocean for no reason, and kissing Madonna (a few years of separation between those events, but they still happened).

 

I disagree. For one, as I noted above, Someone Like You was the song that really defined Adele's 21 era and in a way her career to that point, in my opinion, and it wasn't the lead single. Second, there is a video floating around of Celine Dion performing Hello at her NYE concert and aside from the fact that she really should have learned the words, the performance was kind of bland. And this is Celine Dion, a woman with an incredible voice. But I watched that performance and the whole time I thought, "you know this is why some songs work for some artists and they don't for others."

 

Well, I'm not going to totally disagree, but "Someone Like You" is sort of proof of why I have to hedge a bit on singing Adele's praises. It's a good song that's well sung. Bookended up against Katy Perry, Rihanna, Gaga, and all the other shit on Top 40, "Someone Like You" sounds like it was written by Burt Bacarach. I don't think it's a great song, it's not one of the better songs on 21, and I think the only reason it got so popular is because the media kept talking about it and it provoked a multitude of covers by unknowns and established artists alike. Had it been the lead single, I doubt it would've done so well, but I think it fed off the momentum of "Rolling in the Deep", which is a standout for any artist in any decade.

 

I can understand your point about Celine. That's what I said in my post about how "Hello" is a statement making song for Adele, whereas songs like "While We Were Young" and "Someone Like You" are just good songs of a particular record. I just think Adele needs to make an album of statement making songs for her and not decent songs of a piece; songs that work for that album or that style, but songs where she sort of leaves her indelible mark. She has maybe an EPs worth of songs between her three albums where she does that, IMHO.

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UYI

UYI

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It's sort of like what happened with Britney and Christina. Christina made good music, she tried to do stuff for the publicity, she tried to be daring...but the media largely didn't care because of Britney. At the end of the day, Christina could sing, she could pull herself together when she needed to, and she dated Regular Joes and married a Regular Joe. Britney was a trainwreck, so she got more publicity. Christina still sold records, had successful tours, won Grammys, etc. But that took a backseat to Britney attacking cars with umbrellas, randomly jumping in the ocean for no reason, and kissing Madonna (a few years of separation between those events, but they still happened).

 

 

 

 

 

Christina kissed Madonna too, of course, but because Britney kissed her first and the camera just HAD to get Justin Timberlake's reaction to his ex-girlfriend kissing another woman, most people forget that. 

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Nite Ryder

Nite Ryder

(edited)

It's sort of like what happened with Britney and Christina. Christina made good music, she tried to do stuff for the publicity, she tried to be daring...but the media largely didn't care because of Britney. At the end of the day, Christina could sing, she could pull herself together when she needed to, and she dated Regular Joes and married a Regular Joe. Britney was a trainwreck, so she got more publicity. Christina still sold records, had successful tours, won Grammys, etc. But that took a backseat to Britney attacking cars with umbrellas, randomly jumping in the ocean for no reason, and kissing Madonna (a few years of separation between those events, but they still happened).

 

Regulating Britney's success to being a "train wreck " versus Christina Aguilera being a "real artist" is a bit of a stretch, don't you think?  Britney was clearly going through a mental crisis that effected her personal life with serious consequences she is still paying for.  (Her situation isn't comparable to say Lindsay Lohan or Paris Hilton, whose escapades came across more girl gone wild than serious.)  No shade because Christina Aguilera is a talented vocalist, no denying that, but she has always been the Jayne Mansfield to Britney's Marilyn Monroe. Then and now.  Britney's name still garners a lot of attention and weight for doing rather mundane things with her Instagram account being a hit with the media, for example.  Christina hasn't toured or had a solo hit since '02-'04, has released two albums while on The Voice that have been commercial & critical flops, but is still a Grammy favorite.  Like Britney she has an audience that wants to see her do well and with the right material she should be fine, but it has been a long time for Christina.  

 

ETA:  Britney kissing Madonna as a slight?  It was part of the performance and Xtina wanted to actually kiss Britney.  

Edited by Nite Ryder
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VCRTracking

VCRTracking

On Friday Adele had a surprise pre-Grammy concert at the Wiltern in LA with California fans and included a lot of celebrities including Jennifer Lawrence, Emma Stone, Woody Harrelson, Katy Perry, Orlando Bloom, Tom Hanks and wife Rita Wilson:

 

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RealHousewife

RealHousewife

On 1/29/2016 at 7:30 PM, Nite Ryder said:

Christina Aguilera is a talented vocalist, no denying that, but she has always been the Jayne Mansfield to Britney's Marilyn Monroe. Then and now.  Britney's name still garners a lot of attention and weight for doing rather mundane things with her Instagram account being a hit with the media, for example.

I think what Britney has in common with Marilyn is the it factor. As talented and pretty as Christina was, Britney was just more magnetic even before her life started unraveling. She was larger than life, but at the same time she seemed so sweet and real. I think people are drawn to her vulnerability. It's the exact same quality Marilyn Monroe had. 

I also have to say I enjoy the music of every woman mentioned in this thread-obviously Adele, but also Britney, Christina, Amy Winehouse, Taylor, Celine, everybody. I just love music and can enjoy different styles. 

I'm not sure what my favorite Adele song is, but I agree with the post that there is beauty in simplicity of lyrics. There are songs that sound so pretty, but I have no clue what the fuck the artist is singing about unless I literally slow down and read them. With many of Adele's songs, she tends to get right to it. I think that's a big part of the appeal of songs like Hello and Someone Like You. They're simple, but so relatable and beautiful. I really like her cover of Lovesong. It's always been one of my all-time favorite songs, and she did it justice. 

Regarding the way she looks and her success, I think it's wonderful she became so famous without being skinny Minnie or having to show off T&A. But the fact she's always been beautiful probably didn't hurt. 

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GaT

GaT

On 10/14/2021 at 6:39 PM, BetterButter said:

 

I've only heard part of this song, but I'm sorry, all her music sounds the same to me. I once saw someone describe her music as always sounding like a dirge, & I kind of agree.

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