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Thread started 07/31/05 4:51pm

funkyblues

WHY MADONNA IS MORE FAMOUSE THAN PRINCE??????

HI CAN U TELL ME WHY MADONNA SOLD MORE RECORDS THAN PRINCE???? THAT ITS A SHAME RIGHT???? PRINCE IS A GENIUOS, MADONNA IS ONLY A SINGER I MEAN ARETHA FRANKLIN OR M CAREY ARE MUCH BETTER. WHEN I THINK TAHT MADONNA IS MORE FAMOUSE THAN PRINCE I GO CRAZY SHE IS NOTHIN COMPARE TO PRINCE RIGHT? MAYBE WARNER BROTHERS SPENTED MORE MONEY ON MADONNA? WHAT DO U THINK?????
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Reply #1 posted 07/31/05 5:04pm

Rinluv

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funkyblues said:

HI CAN U TELL ME WHY MADONNA SOLD MORE RECORDS THAN PRINCE???? THAT ITS A SHAME RIGHT???? PRINCE IS A GENIUOS, MADONNA IS ONLY A SINGER I MEAN ARETHA FRANKLIN OR M CAREY ARE MUCH BETTER. WHEN I THINK TAHT MADONNA IS MORE FAMOUSE THAN PRINCE I GO CRAZY SHE IS NOTHIN COMPARE TO PRINCE RIGHT? MAYBE WARNER BROTHERS SPENTED MORE MONEY ON MADONNA? WHAT DO U THINK?????



She sold more records than Prince? She is no where near Prince musically, or any way 4 that matter.
Some people think I'm kinda cute
But that don't compute when it comes 2 Y-O-U.
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Reply #2 posted 07/31/05 5:13pm

squirrelgrease

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Who's this Madonna?
If prince.org were to be made idiot proof, someone would just invent a better idiot.
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Reply #3 posted 07/31/05 5:18pm

toejam

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It's no secret why Prince isn't a huge seller when compared to Madonna (and the like). Madonna's music is always aimed at 10-15 year old girls. In pop music, that's where the $$$ is!! Prince has always (especially post-Purple Rain) tried to make music that challenges his audience. Prince's music is just too eclectic for a lot of people. They don't know how to catagorise it. Plus he dresses funny lol!
[Edited 7/31/05 17:20pm]
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Reply #4 posted 07/31/05 5:18pm

yrh

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Madonna has sold more records than Prince? eek
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Reply #5 posted 07/31/05 5:50pm

sitruk7

Madonna makes "safer" records that are aimed more so for radio airplay and is much more coopertive with MTV than Prince is or ever has been.
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Reply #6 posted 07/31/05 5:52pm

lilgish

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WHY MADONNA IS MORE FAMOUSE THAN PRINCE?

cause she want's to be
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Reply #7 posted 07/31/05 6:01pm

eugnj420

Totals are derived from cumulative album sales totals (U.S. only)

Artist
Certified Units (in Millions)

BEATLES, THE
168.5

PRESLEY, ELVIS
116.5

LED ZEPPELIN
107.5

BROOKS, GARTH
105.0

EAGLES
89.0

JOEL, BILLY
78.5

PINK FLOYD
73.5

STREISAND, BARBRA
70.5

JOHN, ELTON
69.0

AC/DC
66.0

AEROSMITH
65.5

ROLLING STONES, THE
64.5

SPRINGSTEEN, BRUCE
61.5

MADONNA
60.0

STRAIT, GEORGE
60.0

JACKSON, MICHAEL
59.5

CAREY, MARIAH
57.5

METALLICA
57.0

VAN HALEN
56.5

HOUSTON, WHITNEY
54.0

U2
50.5

ROGERS, KENNY
50.0

FLEETWOOD MAC
48.5

KENNY G
48.0

DIAMOND, NEIL
47.5

DION, CELINE
47.0

TWAIN, SHANIA
47.0

ALABAMA
46.0

SANTANA
42.0

JOURNEY
41.0

JACKSON, ALAN
39.5

CLAPTON, ERIC
39.0

PRINCE
39.0
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Reply #8 posted 07/31/05 6:26pm

meow85

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I think your question's been as good as answered, my friend. Because her music is more radio-friendly, and he's fucking wqeird in the public's eyes.
"A Watcher scoffs at gravity!"
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Reply #9 posted 07/31/05 6:32pm

ElectricBlue

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WHY?

This is WHY.

She is White!

The White Media didn't want 2 Black Guys running MTV (Michael Jackson & Prince) so The Record Industry with the White Media promoted someone who did MJ's dancing & Prince sexual shock, like she was more or AS important then the 2 Black guys she was stealing from. mad

This has been going on since Elvis & all the way up to now with Britney Spears.

rolleyes

They promote the "stealers" more then the creators. rolleyes

Vanity 6 was around way before Madonna. But Madonna in 1985's MTV Music Awards wearing a Vanity 6/Prince Style Lingerie rolleyes

Madonna was still wearing Breakdancer/Hip Hop Clothes when Prince & his ideas were into Lace.
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Reply #10 posted 07/31/05 8:03pm

meow85

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ElectricBlue said:

WHY?

This is WHY.

She is White!

The White Media didn't want 2 Black Guys running MTV (Michael Jackson & Prince) so The Record Industry with the White Media promoted someone who did MJ's dancing & Prince sexual shock, like she was more or AS important then the 2 Black guys she was stealing from. mad

This has been going on since Elvis & all the way up to now with Britney Spears.

rolleyes

They promote the "stealers" more then the creators. rolleyes

Vanity 6 was around way before Madonna. But Madonna in 1985's MTV Music Awards wearing a Vanity 6/Prince Style Lingerie rolleyes

Madonna was still wearing Breakdancer/Hip Hop Clothes when Prince & his ideas were into Lace.



Everybody steals from everybody though. Race is only part of the picture, not the frame.
"A Watcher scoffs at gravity!"
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Reply #11 posted 07/31/05 9:21pm

mellow1

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cool It is no surprise that Madonna sold more records than Prince. Madonna is more of a pop artist that relates to all audiences. She has that radio friendly sound. Her music is more marketable. She does promote herself. MTV is still a good friend to her. Prince has his audience, but we all know how he is & always was about promoting his stuff. MTV or radio does not give Prince the same play as Madonna.
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Reply #12 posted 08/01/05 1:02am

NouveauDance

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Saying it's soley an issue of race is ridiculous.

Comparing artists purely on sales shows nothing more than who sold most ("d'uh!" I hear you say).

But they show nothing else - you can't compare an artist from the 60s to an artist now on sales figures, because the industry is a COMPLETELY different ball-game now as it was then - in terms of promotion, marketing, distribution, even socio-economic terms - EVERYTHING is completely different.

So comparing artists based purely on sales figures, trying to acertain some sort of "quality of music" yardstick, it would be futile.

Now as for why Madonna is more "famous" than Prince: Well, their careers run a parallel time-frame. I think what it comes down to is "fame".

Prince wanted fame, but when he got it, he systematically hacked at it, and then when he'd hacked at it so much, he built it up again, and then he hacked at it all the more.

The commercial success he had with Purple Rain, Prince could have rode that and even built on it by releasing record and record of crowd-pleasing/critic-pleasing records. We know this, because there was material from 1983/4/5 that he could have used to make a sort of Purple Rain II (an album of similar quality and sound).

He CHOSE not to do this. He CHOSE to make ATWIAD, a record that is clearly at odds with the Rockstar Stadium guitar antics of Purple Rain, Let's Go Crazy - think of the energy of the first side of Purple Rain, and the energy of that of ATWIAD - completely different. Prince surely knew this record wouldn't be as well received by these new fans he'd picked up from the Purple Rain hype.

He wanted no promotion for the record, no promo videos, just to slip it out. He released it VERY quickly after Purple Rain, and he could have rode the PR-hype for another year or two, release another single even with the promotion, and take the PR Tour around the world.

He didn't. Why? I hazard an obvious guess that keeping that Purple Rain level of FAME was less important than what he could do with it (the freedom, the money, the success), now he had it.

Releasing records with nude covers, building an expensive recording complex far away from the entertainment industry epicenters, changing his name to a kooky symbol, not giving interviews, battling his record company, dressing the way he does, writing lyrics about the things he does, not promoting a record till it's had 5/6 singles squeezed from it, releasing record after record every year.

These aren't the actions of someone who solely wants fame and to be a popstar.

Madonna is a VERY different artist. She has taken chances with her image, but those chances were gambles on FAME to gain more FAME. The Like A Prayer video is a great example, it's notoriety was due the controversy it created, but Madonna knew burning crosses and a Black Jesus would create such a reaction, so she used to get more fame and sell her records.

Madonna's actions were geared towards selling records and keeping her fame status, not destroying it (although sometimes it's blown up her face, like the Sex Book, and the original American Life promo video).

Comparisons can be made with Michael Jackson too (since those 3 are often compared against), and the same conclusion can be drawn - Michael wrang out his albums for all they were worth in terms of singles and videos, releasing records every few years, and capitalising, financially, on that one single album completely, before moving onto the next.

Prince is the complete opposite, other than a couple of exceptions (PR and D&P) Prince has never really stuck with a project long enough to make it a huge commercial success, with 5 singles, a giant tour, professional looking promo videos, lots of TV appearances etc, etc.

He has always got bored of a project and moved onto the next (often before the current one is even in the stores), under-promoted them, less physical singles, and less commercial singles (IIWYG for example).

What is all this pontification getting at?

1) Fame is a meaningless yardstick for artistic or musical quality
2) Not comparing him to anyone else - Prince could have been A WHOLE LOT MORE commercially successful (and thus famous) than he was, but he, himself made sure this did not happen, for many reasons throughout his career, but it shows he has never considered commercial success his #1 priority.

Phew! I can feel that coffee kicking in! lol
[Edited 8/1/05 1:06am]
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Reply #13 posted 08/01/05 1:34am

meow85

avatar

NouveauDance said:

Saying it's soley an issue of race is ridiculous.

Comparing artists purely on sales shows nothing more than who sold most ("d'uh!" I hear you say).

But they show nothing else - you can't compare an artist from the 60s to an artist now on sales figures, because the industry is a COMPLETELY different ball-game now as it was then - in terms of promotion, marketing, distribution, even socio-economic terms - EVERYTHING is completely different.

So comparing artists based purely on sales figures, trying to acertain some sort of "quality of music" yardstick, it would be futile.

Now as for why Madonna is more "famous" than Prince: Well, their careers run a parallel time-frame. I think what it comes down to is "fame".

Prince wanted fame, but when he got it, he systematically hacked at it, and then when he'd hacked at it so much, he built it up again, and then he hacked at it all the more.

The commercial success he had with Purple Rain, Prince could have rode that and even built on it by releasing record and record of crowd-pleasing/critic-pleasing records. We know this, because there was material from 1983/4/5 that he could have used to make a sort of Purple Rain II (an album of similar quality and sound).

He CHOSE not to do this. He CHOSE to make ATWIAD, a record that is clearly at odds with the Rockstar Stadium guitar antics of Purple Rain, Let's Go Crazy - think of the energy of the first side of Purple Rain, and the energy of that of ATWIAD - completely different. Prince surely knew this record wouldn't be as well received by these new fans he'd picked up from the Purple Rain hype.

He wanted no promotion for the record, no promo videos, just to slip it out. He released it VERY quickly after Purple Rain, and he could have rode the PR-hype for another year or two, release another single even with the promotion, and take the PR Tour around the world.

He didn't. Why? I hazard an obvious guess that keeping that Purple Rain level of FAME was less important than what he could do with it (the freedom, the money, the success), now he had it.

Releasing records with nude covers, building an expensive recording complex far away from the entertainment industry epicenters, changing his name to a kooky symbol, not giving interviews, battling his record company, dressing the way he does, writing lyrics about the things he does, not promoting a record till it's had 5/6 singles squeezed from it, releasing record after record every year.

These aren't the actions of someone who solely wants fame and to be a popstar.

Madonna is a VERY different artist. She has taken chances with her image, but those chances were gambles on FAME to gain more FAME. The Like A Prayer video is a great example, it's notoriety was due the controversy it created, but Madonna knew burning crosses and a Black Jesus would create such a reaction, so she used to get more fame and sell her records.

Madonna's actions were geared towards selling records and keeping her fame status, not destroying it (although sometimes it's blown up her face, like the Sex Book, and the original American Life promo video).

Comparisons can be made with Michael Jackson too (since those 3 are often compared against), and the same conclusion can be drawn - Michael wrang out his albums for all they were worth in terms of singles and videos, releasing records every few years, and capitalising, financially, on that one single album completely, before moving onto the next.

Prince is the complete opposite, other than a couple of exceptions (PR and D&P) Prince has never really stuck with a project long enough to make it a huge commercial success, with 5 singles, a giant tour, professional looking promo videos, lots of TV appearances etc, etc.

He has always got bored of a project and moved onto the next (often before the current one is even in the stores), under-promoted them, less physical singles, and less commercial singles (IIWYG for example).

What is all this pontification getting at?

1) Fame is a meaningless yardstick for artistic or musical quality
2) Not comparing him to anyone else - Prince could have been A WHOLE LOT MORE commercially successful (and thus famous) than he was, but he, himself made sure this did not happen, for many reasons throughout his career, but it shows he has never considered commercial success his #1 priority.

Phew! I can feel that coffee kicking in! lol
[Edited 8/1/05 1:06am]

eek That's a whole lot of words. Some good points though.
"A Watcher scoffs at gravity!"
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Reply #14 posted 08/01/05 5:07am

hellomoto

ElectricBlue said:

WHY?

This is WHY.

She is White!

The White Media didn't want 2 Black Guys running MTV (Michael Jackson & Prince) so The Record Industry with the White Media promoted someone who did MJ's dancing & Prince sexual shock, like she was more or AS important then the 2 Black guys she was stealing from. mad

This has been going on since Elvis & all the way up to now with Britney Spears.

rolleyes

They promote the "stealers" more then the creators. rolleyes

Vanity 6 was around way before Madonna. But Madonna in 1985's MTV Music Awards wearing a Vanity 6/Prince Style Lingerie rolleyes

Madonna was still wearing Breakdancer/Hip Hop Clothes when Prince & his ideas were into Lace.

ummmm, race has nothing to do with it, michael is more famous than madonna and hes black (dont make white jokes, you know what i mean)
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Reply #15 posted 08/01/05 5:14am

Ellie

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Who even cares? SInce when did Prince fans ever care about sales and fame levels?
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Reply #16 posted 08/01/05 6:39am

SassyBritches

madonna sells more records than prince because she wants to. she is more famous than prince because she wants to be. simple as that. prince has had every opportunity to be just as famous as madonna and he's had every chance to sell just as many records. he chose one path (no doubt, the one that did best by his needs) and madge chose another one (which suited her desires and needs). there ain't no reason to get frustrated over it.

if you want something to get frustrated over let's try to figure out how to save millions of people in Niger who are about to starve to death.
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Reply #17 posted 08/01/05 6:40am

Handclapsfinga
snapz



what?
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Reply #18 posted 08/01/05 6:45am

KatSkrizzle

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I never understood this. Because regardless of the cheddar they both make, Prince pockets the most dough. And then why do they really care because we get none of that cheddar. In fact we spend our little cheddar on making him wealthy. Our little salaries are his sales tax for a single trip to Bermuda or something. So really, I could realy care less. I'm already duped but I'm not the one to pout because someone who isn't paying my bills is on top or not.

I also want you to spell genuis right. Not genoius, or genouis, how did you spell it?
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Reply #19 posted 08/01/05 6:48am

KatSkrizzle

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I meant genius Oops smile But I still know how to spell it right.

Being a P.R. person, spelling little words incorrectly, strips your credibility.
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Reply #20 posted 08/01/05 6:49am

KatSkrizzle

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It's famous not FAMOUSE...
are you a fame mouse? Famous mouse?

Good God
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Reply #21 posted 08/01/05 7:25am

vainandy

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Prince fucked his own sales up by changing his style at the height of his popularity after "Purple Rain". Herds of his fans, especially a lot of the old R&B ones, left Prince and never returned. Madonna continued on making the type of music that had made her a star and didn't start changing things until the 1990s when music changed as a whole.
Andy is a four letter word.
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Reply #22 posted 08/01/05 7:45am

vainandy

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[quote]

ElectricBlue said:

WHY?

This is WHY.

She is White!

The White Media didn't want 2 Black Guys running MTV (Michael Jackson & Prince) so The Record Industry with the White Media promoted someone who did MJ's dancing & Prince sexual shock, like she was more or AS important then the 2 Black guys she was stealing from. mad


This is totally untrue because a lot of Prince's black fans that had supported him since day one were the first to jump ship with "Around The World In A Day". Even more got the hell out of dodge with "Parade", especially after being tricked into buying it by the misleading first single, "Kiss", and then getting an album full of artsy/fartsy type music and even elevator music such as "Venus De Milo" and "Do U Lie" (the ultimate in uncool). A lot of white people weren't too cool with it either.
[Edited 8/1/05 7:47am]
Andy is a four letter word.
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Reply #23 posted 08/01/05 8:34am

npgmaverick

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Because Madonna is the master of a game that Prince never cared 2 play.
Listen to me on The House of Pop Culture podcast on itunes http://itunes.apple.com/u...d438631917
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Reply #24 posted 08/01/05 8:41am

namepeace

vainandy said:

Prince fucked his own sales up by changing his style at the height of his popularity after "Purple Rain". Herds of his fans, especially a lot of the old R&B ones, left Prince and never returned. Madonna continued on making the type of music that had made her a star and didn't start changing things until the 1990s when music changed as a whole.


Vain, despite the fact I vigorously disagree with his assessment of Prince's post-Purple Rain work in the 1980's,is right.

I'd also add that Prince's prolific musical output saturated the market. He was not as calculating as Madonna or MJ as to "staggering" his releases, and proceeded to release an album a year, and as many as 3, in the 2 decades that followed. It was one thing to challenge your audience with new sounds. Add to that the fact that he bombarded the audience with new stuff at a dizzying pace, and the market simply got fatigued. It was amazing that he was able to have the kind of commercial success that he did.

But at the end of the day, I'm glad he chose to challenge his audience and himself. Despite what others may say, his entire body of work in the 1980's has made him more of an artistic influence that Madonna will ever be. From Alicia Keys to Beck to Me'Shell to Lenny to OutKast to Tupac to D'Angelo and countless others, his influence has been heard and will continue to be heard in the artists that admire him.

P.S. -- the black audience started leaving Prince BEFORE PR.
Good night, sweet Prince | 7 June 1958 - 21 April 2016

Props will be withheld until the showing and proving has commenced. -- Aaron McGruder
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Reply #25 posted 08/01/05 12:27pm

MsLegs

ElectricBlue said:

WHY?

This is WHY.

She is White!

The White Media didn't want 2 Black Guys running MTV (Michael Jackson & Prince) so The Record Industry with the White Media promoted someone who did MJ's dancing & Prince sexual shock, like she was more or AS important then the 2 Black guys she was stealing from. mad

This has been going on since Elvis & all the way up to now with Britney Spears.

rolleyes

They promote the "stealers" more then the creators. rolleyes

Vanity 6 was around way before Madonna. But Madonna in 1985's MTV Music Awards wearing a Vanity 6/Prince Style Lingerie rolleyes

Madonna was still wearing Breakdancer/Hip Hop Clothes when Prince & his ideas were into Lace.


hmmm You've made an interesting point. And in light of all the payolla scandals, Clear Channel,big major media mongols, and major media conglomerates around I would say that anything is possible.
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Reply #26 posted 08/01/05 12:34pm

thesexofit

avatar

MsLegs said:

ElectricBlue said:

WHY?

This is WHY.

She is White!

The White Media didn't want 2 Black Guys running MTV (Michael Jackson & Prince) so The Record Industry with the White Media promoted someone who did MJ's dancing & Prince sexual shock, like she was more or AS important then the 2 Black guys she was stealing from. mad

This has been going on since Elvis & all the way up to now with Britney Spears.

rolleyes

They promote the "stealers" more then the creators. rolleyes

Vanity 6 was around way before Madonna. But Madonna in 1985's MTV Music Awards wearing a Vanity 6/Prince Style Lingerie rolleyes

Madonna was still wearing Breakdancer/Hip Hop Clothes when Prince & his ideas were into Lace.


hmmm You've made an interesting point. And in light of all the payolla scandals, Clear Channel,big major media mongols, and major media conglomerates around I would say that anything is possible.


Vanity 6 were not pop or more radio friendly then madonna is. Lional Ritchie was (and actually still is) black and guess what, As soon as he did pop music, he started selling more records, so that arguement is bollocks. Dont pull the colour card.
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Reply #27 posted 08/01/05 12:40pm

MsLegs

thesexofit said:

MsLegs said:



hmmm You've made an interesting point. And in light of all the payolla scandals, Clear Channel,big major media mongols, and major media conglomerates around I would say that anything is possible.


Vanity 6 were not pop or more radio friendly then madonna is. Lional Ritchie was (and actually still is) black and guess what, As soon as he did pop music, he started selling more records, so that arguement is bollocks. Dont pull the colour card.

talk to the hand Young bloke, you have no idea what you are talking about. So save the drama for your mama. Unlike your self, I am actually an musician and so you can save the melodramatic banter for the amatures.
[Edited 8/1/05 12:40pm]
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Reply #28 posted 08/01/05 12:43pm

thesexofit

avatar

MsLegs said:

thesexofit said:



Vanity 6 were not pop or more radio friendly then madonna is. Lional Ritchie was (and actually still is) black and guess what, As soon as he did pop music, he started selling more records, so that arguement is bollocks. Dont pull the colour card.

talk to the hand Young bloke, you have no idea what you are talking about. So save the drama for your mama. Unlike your self, I am actually an musician and so you can save the melodramatic banter for the amatures.
[Edited 8/1/05 12:40pm]



I didn't pull the colour card. But saying she is more famous then Prince because of skin colour is silly. Her music is more radio friendly, this has been said.

And i play guitar and was in bands. So u better take my name out ur mouth lol
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Reply #29 posted 08/01/05 12:48pm

meltwithu

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madonna became huge for doing shocking things..showing her tits, racy videos, french kissing girls half her age...but at the end of the day...SHE'S A GREAT MUSICIAN!!! (insert sarcasm here, please)

you look better on your facebook page than you do in person hmph!
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