Amy Winehouse

[Deleted]

I wouldn't really compare X-Tina to Winehouse. Winehouse is the more authentic retro muscian (though the terms "authentic" and "retro" might seem to be a contradiction in itself). But she's a genre specific artist. X-Tina doesn't really limit herself (pop, soft rock ballads, retro tunes, hip-hop collabos, R n' b, James Brown songs ect). For X-Tina, the retro thing is simply a phase of many phases. She'll move onto to something different for her next album.

X-Tina is pretty much of a concept artist (and a very versatile one at that). Winehouse is a retro genre artist, and I can't see her being anything else. Amy is kinda like Norah Jones, in that you always know what you're going to get from her.

Aguilera seems to pride herself on not repating herself, which is either a good thing or bad thing depending on your expectations from an artist. None of her 3 studio albums bear the slightest resemblance to each other in tone or content. I wouldn't be surprised if her 4th album was a funk style collection of tunes inspired by Prince and Rick James (or something equally left-field). For me, Augilera is pretty much what you'd get if you crossed Madonna's experimental daring and fearlesssness, with the vocal chops of a pre-crack Whitney.

[Coffeecakes]

I believe the comparison comes from the fact that Christina was promoting her album as supposedly sounding like something an artist from the 20's, 30's and 40's would release today. I unfortuntaley didn't hear that. While Amy definitely does that sound. She IMO accomplished what Christina was going for.

[soul]

For me, Augilera is pretty much what you'd get if you crossed Madonna's experimental daring and fearlesssness, with the vocal chops of a pre-crack Whitney.

Okay, you lost me, when you put Xtina and Whitney's chops in the same sentence. All X can do is belt loud. Amy brings the emotion in her songs. There is an X factor to music an it's not Christina, because she can hold a loud note.

[ahenobarbus]

Her most cracked out performance (last October). Really disturbing.

[Deleted]

soul said:

For me, Augilera is pretty much what you'd get if you crossed Madonna's experimental daring and fearlesssness, with the vocal chops of a pre-crack Whitney.

Okay, you lost me, when you put Xtina and Whitney's chops in the same sentence. All X can do is belt loud. Amy brings the emotion in her songs. There is an X factor to music an it's not Christina, because she can hold a loud note.

What is this, 1999? If we were talking about Aguilera circa her "pop princess" phase with "Genie In A Bottle" and "What A Girl Wants", I might have been inclined to agree with your assessment. But when she had the power to actually make the music she wanted, as she did with her "Stripped" album, as far as I'm concerned, she rendered all those criticisms inert. I think there's more genuine emotion and feeling in "Stripped" than in half the bullsh/t albums that pass for "R'n b/Soul" these days. Remember, when Whitney first came on the scene, singing anodyne pop songs like "How Will I Know", "So Emotional" and "I Wanna Dance With Somebody", she just came across as a pretty pop singer with a strong voice, not an emotionally raw powerhouse. When she got less anodyne material, she became a noticably more emotionally charged singer. People have rose tinted glasses when it comes to Whitney. She started off just like Aguilera, as a pop princesss, singing technically sound, emotion free ditties. Like Aguilera, she got better. I don't live in the past, and I give credit where it's due. Aguilera convinced me she was the real deal on her second album. If others are yet to be convinced, that's their buisness.

But it's your opinion, and you're welcome to it. I choose to disagree. Aguilera brought more raw emotion to her performance of It's a Man's Man's World at this year's grammy's than any other singer present, except Mary J. Blige (who always sings like she's about to bust a blood vessel). She embarrassed a lot of so-called "soul singers" present and silenced a lot of her critics with that performance. So much so, that it prompted Brian Mcknight (a brilliant vocalist himself) to ask X-Tina immediately after the ceremony, "how does it feel to be the best singer in the world?". If Mcknight feels that way, I imagine a lot of her peers hold her in similarly high regard.

I've always felt the charge that X-Tina didn't bring emotion to her songs and just held loud notes, was bogus in the extreme (especally since her second album). When she's singing an emotionally charged song like "Beautiful" or "The Voice Within" or even "Fighter", I'm not hearing an emotionless robot with a tuneful voice (stand up Corrine Baily Rae). I'm hearing Aguilera connect emotionally with the words. But that's just me. People hear what they want to hear.

And I prefer X-Tina to Whitney. My pergoative, as Bobby might say.

I like Amy, and think she has a terrific voice. But I think Aguilera is brilliant in her own right. But they are very different animals.

[grommit]

Cocaine at award show?

[Deleted]

"Hit a low"? WTF. Blow is the least of her problems with drugs.

[stillmecholo]

grommit said:

Cocaine at award show?

Obviously, it's icing.

And that performance made me sad. When you're making Charlotte Church look like the sane one you know you've got issues.

[marywebgirl]

ahenobarbus said:

Her most cracked out performance (last October). Really disturbing.

I can't believe they let her perform like that.

[Deleted]

This woman looks a lot like Janice from Friends.

Edited to add: Even during her seemingly drugged out performances, there's something oddly compelling about her.