Selena Gomez

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Jul 26, 2013 8:28:54 GMT -4 mrpeanut said:

I agree that her voice itself is pretty bland/lacking charisma, although at this point C&GI is the fourth hit she has under her belt (albeit the biggest).

The general consensus on her album is that it may be faceless, generic dance-pop that anybody could have recorded, but it's full of catchy songs, so I think Selena will have a few more hits in the future, too. Something tells me not to rule out a long career for her. She seems to choose wisely - there is a small niche available for a young, hot girl making dance music now that Britney and JLo are older. This quote about her having targets and a gameplan I can well believe and often it's not the most talented people who last in the business, but those who are the most focused and driven. For someone from the Disney factory, Selena seems more together than Demi or Miley and she's the only one who hasn't had some kind of scandal or meltdown. I'm not saying I see her becoming an Oscar-winning actress or a Grammy-winning singer, but I wouldn't be surprised if she did enough to keep herself steadily B-list for a long time.

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For someone from the Disney factory, Selena seems more together than Demi or Miley and she's the only one who hasn't had some kind of scandal or meltdown.

Miley is a savvy famewhore. She's not going anywhere for a long time. And Demi Lovato has turned her life around and seems very grounded now. Plus, she's an excellent singer. I saw her perform Heart Attack on GMA and was blown away. Selena was on GMA yesterday and it's clear her singing ability is very limited. Demi Lovato may not end up being the biggest star, but I think she has a better chance at a long term career as a singer, kind of like Kelly Clarkson. They can sing anything writers throw at them and sometimes that trumps star power.   

This quote about her having targets and a gameplan I can well believe and often it's not the most talented people who last in the business, but those who are the most focused and driven.

It's not that hard for a Selena Gomez to have a goal and reach it at this point in her life. She's a Disney star who had a successful show. I'm sure Hilary Duff had a plan too. I'm not seeing the drive and ambition in Selena that her friend Taylor has. Right now she's kind of going along with the program. Selena is pretty and personable and professional and seems like a nice person. I'm sure she'll have a nice life eventually, but more on the fringes of the entertainment world than in the Taylor Swift realm. 

[Hamatron]

Yeah, I was going to say that she has her level-headed attitude in her favor, and she seems professional and willing. However, she is dull as dirt. Like, incredibly boring. The only interesting thing about her in her relationship with Bieber, and that's more of a hit against her. She might have It more together than Miley or Demi, but I would rather watch, read, or listen to the other two. Unless she eventually brings more charisma to the table, I see her career petering out and her ending up in a nice marriage with kids. (Not a bad fate, hah. It's just that from what I have read she is really family oriented, and would be into starting a family youngish and prioritize family over a career.)

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Jul 27, 2013 10:14:40 GMT -4 @highondegrassi said:

For someone from the Disney factory, Selena seems more together than Demi or Miley and she's the only one who hasn't had some kind of scandal or meltdown.

Miley is a savvy famewhore. She's not going anywhere for a long time. And Demi Lovato has turned her life around and seems very grounded now. Plus, she's an excellent singer. I saw her perform Heart Attack on GMA and was blown away. Selena was on GMA yesterday and it's clear her singing ability is very limited. Demi Lovato may not end up being the biggest star, but I think she has a better chance at a long term career as a singer, kind of like Kelly Clarkson. They can sing anything writers throw at them and sometimes that trumps star power.

Oh, Miley's definitely not going anywhere. Even if she's not successful/got nothing going on, I agree she'll find a way to stay in the public eye. Demi has a big voice, but I think she has an Xtina problem where she has no idea how to use it. I've listened to her latest album and there is a hell of a lot of screaming and screeching going on. I fear she may ruin her voice if she keeps that up. And while she's a very pretty girl, music videos and photo-shoots don't seem to be able to capture that very well (see: the 'Heart Attack' video). In terms of appeal (not personality) I definitely see the early Britney vs. Christina parallels between Selena and Demi (although these are different times and I don't think either of them will be as successful as the previous gen).

Jul 27, 2013 11:40:35 GMT -4 Hamatron said:

I see her career petering out and her ending up in a nice marriage with kids. (Not a bad fate, hah. It's just that from what I have read she is really family oriented, and would be into starting a family youngish and prioritize family over a career.)

I've picked up the opposite from her - that she wants to avoid settling down young due to her family history. She said this in Glamour:

I’m terrified of what I would have become if I’d stayed there [Texas]. I’m sure I’d have two children by now.

[Hamatron]

Yeah. By youngish I mean by the time she's 30. But who knows, maybe not. She seems really close to her mom, and enjoys spending time with her younger siblings. That's probably why I get that vibe. And there have been gossip stories out there about her wanting to start a family young, hah. She did tell Seacrest that she wanted a big-ass family, and would slow her career down when that started happening (she might not have to make that choice, lol).

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And while she's a very pretty girl, music videos and photo-shoots don't seem to be able to capture that very well (see: the 'Heart Attack' video).

I've seen the video, and I'm not sure what you mean. Are you saying she looks unattractive? I don't see that at all.

I definitely see the early Britney vs. Christina parallels between Selena and Demi (although these are different times and I don't think either of them will be as successful as the previous gen).

I hope the times are different enough that young female performers aren't pitted against each other the way Britney and Christina were. It turned into a 'who's hotter' contest with talent and personality being secondary. I think it had a lot to do with them being a part of the TRL era when the music business was middle school cliquey. Anyway, Selena is no Britney. Britney had that undeniable "it" factor that made her a household name (and still does despite her zombie state). Demi is no Christina either. Christina was brash, laughably rebellious, overly sensitive, and incredibly stubborn. She's been her own worst enemy career wise. I don't see Demi being like that at all. Demi has gotten serious treatment and overcome serious problems, and I think she's better equipped now to handle herself and her fame. Demi is just singing and being who she is, whereas Christina was starting with her embarrassing blaccent phase at Demi's age. 

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Jul 27, 2013 15:49:32 GMT -4 @highondegrassi said:

I hope the times are different enough that young female performers aren't pitted against each other the way Britney and Christina were. It turned into a 'who's hotter' contest with talent and personality being secondary. I think it had a lot to do with them being a part of the TRL era when the music business was middle school cliquey.

Oh, believe me, the Disney era these girls come from was just as middle school cliquey -in fact, it was probably worse. People have been comparing Miley, Demi and Selena and picking sides for years and that the three of them have a history of broken and repaired friendships and back-and-forth boyfriends only adds to that. And the music industry is always going to be about who's hot, especially for females; I don't see that changing. I don't think that was the main issue in the Britney/Christina days, though. IMO, Britney was more successful because she had catchier songs and was more likeable.

Anyway, Selena is no Britney. Britney had that undeniable "it" factor that made her a household name (and still does despite her zombie state). Demi is no Christina either. Christina was brash, laughably rebellious, overly sensitive, and incredibly stubborn. She's been her own worst enemy career wise. I don't see Demi being like that at all. Demi has gotten serious treatment and overcome serious problems, and I think she's better equipped now to handle herself and her fame. Demi is just singing and being who she is, whereas Christina was starting with her embarrassing blaccent phase at Demi's age. 

I side-eye how together and grounded Demi is when she's still with creepy-ass Wilmer and my opinion of that predator is that if she wasn't still vulnerable in some way, he wouldn't still be around. But I don't want to get too OT; this isn't the Demi thread.

But people don't have to be exactly the same for you to be able to draw parallels. Britney is no Madonna, but you can still draw a parallel between Britney/Christina and Madonna/Cyndi Lauper. Demi reminds me of Christina because of her singing style and the fact that she's always talking about how strong she is, she's a 'warrior', etc. And in interviews she seems a little bitter that less talented singers have more success than she does. Selena reminds me of Britney, well, mostly because she's always going on about Britney being one of her big inspirations and wanting to bring back Britney-style dancing and performances. She's no Britney but as the top level pop stars are not really Britney-esque anymore, she's the one most like.

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Why on earth would anyone see Britney as an inspiration?? She was a music industry puppet who was objectified and exploited and thrown away and then picked up out of the trash and used and exploited again. But if Selena is talking about emulating Britney strictly from a performance standpoint then, well, I don't get that either. What was so great about Britney's performance style? She lip-synced and danced with backup dancers. This is nothing unique or special.

Oh, believe me, the Disney era these girls come from was just as middle school cliquey -in fact, it was probably worse. People have been comparing Miley, Demi and Selena and picking sides for years

Who are these people, though? I can only assume it's teen related media. I do remember something about some Jonas Brothers drama between a couple of these girls (not sure which), but other than that, this drama doesn't seem to crossover into mainstream pop culture and people in general just aren't as interested in these trumped up music rivalries anymore. MTV and the music industry itself fueled those fires because they were profitable at the time. You're in the the UK, though, right ronette? From what I can tell things can get a little more intense over there with the celebrity coverage, so maybe our perceptions are different because of that.

[Hamatron]

Jul 27, 2013 18:23:29 GMT -4 @highondegrassi said:

Why on earth would anyone see Britney as an inspiration?? She was a music industry puppet who was objectified and exploited and thrown away and then picked up out of the trash and used and exploited again.

Excellent question. I often wonder the same thing about people who idolize Marylin Monroe.

As for the rivalry/comparison thing, it's definitely there. If you follow the three and the stories being written on them (and most of my knowledge of them comes from stuff posted on ONTD), it comes up in articles and in the comments. Much less with Miley, but it's there. It seems to be a Disney thing that is constant. Once the kids from one generation grow up and start doing their own thing, each gen gets compared and contrasted with their Disney contemporaries. Who is going to be the super-successful one? The trainwreck? The one who ends up normal and moves on? Oooh!

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Jul 27, 2013 18:23:29 GMT -4 @highondegrassi said:

Why on earth would anyone see Britney as an inspiration?? She was a music industry puppet who was objectified and exploited and thrown away and then picked up out of the trash and used and exploited again. But if Selena is talking about emulating Britney strictly from a performance standpoint then, well, I don't get that either. What was so great about Britney's performance style? She lip-synced and danced with backup dancers. This is nothing unique or special.

Selena's talking about in terms of music and performance-style, yes. Selena was born in '92 and was 7/8 years when Britney was at her peak, so it makes sense that Britney's her frame of reference when she thinks of performing with dancers and choreography, rather than Janet Jackson. I'm guessing she sees Britney as an inspiration because Britney's one of the most successful female artists of all time. Lots of new artists cite MJ as an inspiration and his life was ten times the trainwreck Britney's was/is. I think they mean they want to be an iconic performer, not that they want to be drug-addled and accused of child abuse.

Who are these people, though? I can only assume it's teen related media. I do remember something about some Jonas Brothers drama between a couple of these girls (not sure which), but other than that, this drama doesn't seem to crossover into mainstream pop culture and people in general just aren't as interested in these trumped up music rivalries anymore. MTV and the music industry itself fueled those fires because they were profitable at the time. You're in the the UK, though, right ronette? From what I can tell things can get a little more intense over there with the celebrity coverage, so maybe our perceptions are different because of that.

Nah, the Disney Channel is even more of a niche in UK than it is in the US; there's not any interest here. The stuff I see on these three is from US magazines and gossip blogs and fans. It's not as big and mainstream as it was in the TRL days because none of the Disney stars are as big as the TRL pop stars, but it's present at the level they are successful at and with their target audience. Miley, Demi and Selena are definitely aware of it and are always quick to profess friendship and appease the respective fanbases.

Unfortunately, people aren't less interested in rivalries now; on music-oriented boards and Twitter, it's been crazier than ever the last couple of years. I think mainstream media hasn't run with anything much because none of the big female artists have been feeding it, but I definitely think they'll jump all over a new feud if they get the chance.