Do looks count for more than music nowadays in the music industry?

[-:Undertaker:-]

Do looks count for more than music nowadays in the music industry?


http://www.jtmagz.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/One-direction-photoshoot-Dec-18.jpg

In recent years, mainly since the rise of the boyband in the 1990s - critics of modern day pop music have claimed that bands such as Take That, Boyzone One Direction and The Wanted are only popular purely for their looks rather than any real musical or vocal talent. The most recent example of a pop band, which appeals mainly to younger markets, is One Direction - a group formed from the British X Factor who have done better than any other winner of the show despite not actually winning the show.

Others will hit back and say that of course looks matter and make something appeal more than it would normally as it's simply a natural human instinct to admire something somebody you lust over has done (that's a bit of a mouthful I know, but let it sink in!). An example of this could be for instance Elvis Presley and the Beatles who were good looking when in their younger days - but then critics would also argue that Elvis and the Beatles were immensely talented compared with todays selection of pop singers and bands.


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The debate is open to you.

[Jurv]

i wouldn't say so completely but i guess it depends on what sort of music you listen to. i mean, i'd say looks were more important within popular chart music than say any other, a good example being one direction. obviously they have some sort of vocal talent (i guess..) but i honestly don't think they'd go anywhere without their looks. the same with the majority of boy bands though, the target audience for that type of music is generally aimed at the opposite sex and when it comes down to it, i don't think the music is as important as the appearance (obviously it has some sort of relevance but not as much imo.) although saying that i do think there are and have been artists who have achieved well purely for their music and vocal talent within chart music recently, one example being ed sheeran. idk how people feel about him but wouldn't say he's the best looking guy in the music industry but has still seemed to do alright.

[Daltron]

My answer to this is yes. Absolutely. More than ever now artists are being found through social media and televised shows and no one wants to watch someone ugly on television (as harsh as that sounds), and if they are not attractive they have some form of sob story we can try and relate to.

[Matt]

I am inclined to say yes to this seeing as a majority of people/groups in the AU/UK/US charts are good looking. It's extremely rare you get a not so good looking person (ugly enough to create a reaction where the worldwide audience says outloud that an individual is ugly). Of course you'll have exceptions but you just expect an artist/future artist to be good looking. A part of being popular, even in schools in current society today, means the looks are a "must have" on the criteria list. Rihanna, Beyonce, Justin Beiber all have features that others would love to have which is what makes them so popular. As long as other people want to be them, appearance wise, then they will almost always be successful. A good example in my opinion would be Susan Boyle. When she stood out on stage the reaction of many was to snigger and laugh at her physical appearance and manner. Once she started singing, yes, she blew everyone away but the point is that everyone instantly judged her upon physical appearance and didn't give her a proper chance (even Simon Cowell made a reaction without even giving her a chance)!!!. This is reflected in our society today as many people judge others on appearance and disregard their personality and manner.

I do believe that the majority of famous singers and artists current today only got where they are because of how they look. It's a whole new argument when they get plastic/cosmetic surgery to help them look a million dollars, then you can argue that they got it to get attention and elevate their levels popularity. After all celebrities are often looked upon to represent fashion labels and promote products. Who would buy a product if the advert had an ugly ambassador showing off the product. But in answer to the question and to stop me from writing more and more nonsense, yes i do believe looks count for more than music.

[H488041!f3]

Honestly, I think unless it comes to someone with undeniable, undebatable talent, looks are once of the largest factors in the music industry. For example; say you have an incredibly pretty girl with a decent voice, she'll go pretty far compared to an (for lack of a better word) "ugly" girl with a great voice. I mean I can speak from personal experience. My friend (who's not the most attractive girl) has an incredible voice but is overshadowed by a more popular and "hotter" girl who's alright at singing. This happens in all sorts of genres, not only the mainstream pop music. Just go to a random genre on itunes and look at the bands showcased, none of them look unflattering unless they were blessed with amazing talent. Some of these "eye-candy" artists don't even sing that well, I mean if you just listen to their voices rather than the catchy tune and all the musical effects, you'll see that they're not that great. I'm not saying that Justing Bieber and One direction are not talented I just don't think their fanbase would be as large if it weren't for the image.

[mrwoooooooo]

Lol no. Adele.

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[Daltron]

Lol no. Adele.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

Adele isn't even that bad of a looker tbh

[karter]

Adele is a bit overweight but she is very beautiful lol

[MKR&*42]

Think its a factor but not a gigantic one. Most singers I find to only look "average/decent" anyway , Wirh a few exceptions.

With*

[Zelda]

I would say it is quite a big factor in some areas but not so much others. Pop music certainly though, and some labels can be completely ridiculous about it tbh, example being Marina's label telling her that she isn't releasing her original video for how to be a heartbreaker cause she looked "ugly" in it (not possible ever really wow) even though her fans really didn't care and were outraged too. It's not so bad in areas like indie and stuff though but it can still be a factor sometimes really

[lawrawrrr]

Oh definitely. Look at famous artists recently: odd or distinctive looking (Marina & her heart tattoo thingy, Lady Gaga, Kesha, Nicki Minaj) or really attractive (the entirety of 1D, J Biebs, Taylor Swift to name a few).

The thing is, most new music is aimed at young people, teenagers and young adults. These people have been brought up in a world which nearly prides itself on being shallow - look at every female young adult magazine: LOOK WHO'S THE HOTTEST MAN, WHO HAS THE BEST ABS, THIS WOMAN IS 9ST SO FAT!!, THIS WOMAN ISN'T WEARING MAKEUP!! etc etc etc. It's mainly young women who are being indoctrinated in this way, men's magazines are usually just concerned with big boobs (I suppose you could say that's a feature which helps with some female artists' sales - dressing provocatively/sexy).

And if we're brought up in this society, is it any wonder that we judge people on what they look like? I've seen so many articles which go roughly along the lines of: this person is an amazing singer, shame he/she is 2st overweight, or suggesting ways they could lose weight or have surgery/makeup to enhance it.

When you buy albums, 9 times out of 10, there'll be a picture of the artist on the front, and we, even in our basic human nature, will always be attracted to the most attractive individual. There are obviously a few exceptions to this rule - Adele, for example, who has been near enough ridiculed for her weight, has managed to become a famous artist due to her incredible voice. But look at her 5 years ago, and now... she's been madeover, and dressed to flatter her figure. Susan boyle, for example - look how she was received!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxPZh4AnWyk

And now look at her:
http://i4.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article1449634.ece/ALTERNATES/s615/Britains+Got+Talent+star+Susan+Boyle


There are also artists, like Lana Del Ray, who might not be the most attractive woman in the world (IMHO), but her distinctive fashion sense lets people feel like they look up to and idolise her.

This is why I respect the work of artists like Daft Punk, people who literally don't have a face. But then, that's their hook - their masks are what makes them interesting and famous.

At the end of the day, these people are trying to sell themselves to young, impressionable people to idolise - and at the end of the day, who'd really want to be like someone who was really unattractive? It sounds rude and incredibly shallow but I hope you understand what I mean. A few people might want the voice, but the majority of teenagers would immediately take to Twitter to undermine that person's appearance. I see it a thousand times a day, people calling random people ugly (EXAMPLE: every tweet of Amanda Bynes') just because they can. Even people who the majority of humanity would call gorgeous (is beyonce a good example?), you see people calling them ugly.

Mainly men tend to stay out of it, young men don't tend to judge male artists too much in my experience, and only a bit with female artists (calling them hot or not, not really judging them too much really), but young women and girls, who have impossible standards set will be jealous of attractive women and shoot down anyone less attractive to boost their own self confidence. And towards men, they're judged basically on how good they'd look as arm candy.

It's easy to bully people and join in with the hate, less easy to see past someone's looks for the talent underneath.

[Yawn]

absolutely there is a high correlation between ugly person and bad music. ed sheeran is PERFECT example of this. he is scruffy and ginger and his face is rly fat and round. he is AWFUL IN EVERY WAY IMAGINABLE he is so incredibly UGLY. and the reason his music is so bad is because he is UGLY

[Jurv]

Lol no. Adele.

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adele is actually a good example. she isn't the typical looking artist in the current music industry and she knows that. she doesn't want to lose weight or change her appearance for anyone but herself yet still ends up selling records worldwide and winning multiple awards. obviously the reason being for her vocal talent (and the fact she's a normal person.. fame hasn't changed her). she doesn't need a gimmick, fireworks or dancers to put on a good performance because she is strictly about putting across her message and showing strong emotion within her songs. she's a fantastic songwriter.

[GommeInc]

I'm leaning towards yes as well. The number of times friends have said (when speaking about a band or singer) "They're not that good, but they're so hot" makes me wonder if talent ever makes up for everything. Let's take Susan Boyle who won the hearts of many and is quite talented - she's disappeared now, and became famous because of her "poor" looks, which made people laugh at themselves for judging her, then when the initial judging ended they ignored her and she disappeared again.

One Direction are all magazine/poster boys which are loved purely for their looks, and then their voices. You see it during concerts where the girls are all screaming at them going "Oh they're so cute" and screaming, and only singer the odd lines of their songs. Then when you look at other singers, particularly older ones with mature fans, you noticed that previous generations go by musical talent and maybe their back stories (who they were and are with, their upbringing etc), rather than their looks.

It's just something I've observed lately :)

[Empired]

Jurv; SORRY I COULDN'T RESIST
http://assets8.heart.co.uk/2013/02/adele-celebrities-without-make-up-1358347192-view-1.jpghttp://www.hdwallpapers3d.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Adele.jpg

I hope habbox resizes this picture it's huge (NO PUN INTENDED SORRY)

Anyway um. I think it's important to look nice on camera, but all celebrities look the way they do for a reason. Despite Nicki Minaj looking like a ******* Barbie, someone sometime decided that that's how she should look. Celebs are made up in a certain way to reflect the kind of music they perform, what kind of audience they're aiming this music at, and how they want people to think of them. Everything they do is done for a reason.

[Jurv]

Jurv; SORRY I COULDN'T RESIST

I hope habbox resizes this picture it's huge (NO PUN INTENDED SORRY)

Anyway um. I think it's important to look nice on camera, but all celebrities look the way they do for a reason. Despite Nicki Minaj looking like a ******* Barbie, someone sometime decided that that's how she should look. Celebs are made up in a certain way to reflect the kind of music they perform, what kind of audience they're aiming this music at, and how they want people to think of them. Everything they do is done for a reason.

i don't understand your point? that just proves that she's changed slightly within the period the two photo's were taken and that she wears make up. :S

[H488041!f3]

i don't understand your point? that just proves that she's changed slightly within the period the two photo's were taken and that she wears make up. :S

I see his point I mean if you look at the picture on the top it shows that she is more overweight and the lower one, someone could say she's "volouptuous" and it's not just a little makeup that makes that much of a change. Even so the amount that photoshop is used in magazines and almost every picture of any artist.
TL;DR: It's all about the image

[Jurv]

I see his point I mean if you look at the picture on the top it shows that she is more overweight and the lower one, someone could say she's "volouptuous" and it's not just a little makeup that makes that much of a change. Even so the amount that photoshop is used in magazines and almost every picture of any artist.
TL;DR: It's all about the image

the top photograph was taken in 2009 and the bottom was taken in 2011 (as far as i know) so there's bound to be a change.. she's lost weight since then. i don't know why i'm bothering replying though because what you've said only backs up the point i mentioned previously about adele not having the typical appearance of someone in the charts or in the music industry. yet saying that she has still beaten chart records and broke america in the process. she is one, if not the most successful british female artist at the moment and someone who people should be looking up too as an artist.

[Aiden]

2 most ppl yea
2 me no

all my fav singers are women and idc what they look like
although i think miley cyrus looks hot;)

but ilike tracy chapman and lady gaga which arnt the best looking :)

I think I like celebrities for what they stand for more than their music or looks.

[iBlueBox]

Yeah, but on the other side look at that kid who won BGT last year, Jonathan or something.

[lemons]

Yeah, but on the other side look at that kid who won BGT last year, Jonathan or something.

he didn't win, but defo got far because of sympathy vote

-------

i wouldn't say looks count for MORE than music nowadays but they definitely count for something

[Yawn]

depends on style of music and genre as well

adele isnt exactly pop so she can afford to be less conventionally attractive because the demographic she predominantly appeals to is less shallow :Innocent:

[Lewis]

For most idiotic children and teenagers, yes. Looks do count more for them.

For me, the music counts and the talent of the instruments/voice.