just wondering...seems entertainers (Madonna, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson) have a longer "popular" shelf life than the gifted musicians (Prince, Santana) Why do you think that is?

Entertainers pander to popular tastes and often resort to fomulaic albums to sell records. Rather than innovate, they ride trends in an attempt to stay relevant to the mighty Gods of sound scan and Billboard. Entertainers are a passing amusement, relying on constant exposure to the public eye rather than the musician's model of lingering in the mind of a listener through innovative artistic achievement. If quantity of records sold is the barometer of "lasting" the entertainer will always win. However the musician often will outshine them in sheer innovation and artistry, music for art's sake as well as the sake of commercialism.

meltwithu said:

Because entertainers are willing to compromise themselves and chase trends