[img:$uid]http://i51.tinypic.com/of27n4.jpg[/img:$uid]

January 2011

Article

In the wake of disappointing first-week sales for her latest album, Calling All Hearts , singer Keyshia Cole announced she has fired her longtime manager, Manny Halley.

She wrote on Twitter: "Would like for u guys to know that Manny Halley is no longer my management." Half a day later, she followed up: "Someone said if the people around u won't change, change the people around you."

Cole's latest album, released Dec. 21, debuted at No. 9 on the Billboard 200 and subsequently slipped. Her two previous albums, 2007's Just Like You and 2008's A Different Me, both debuted at No. 2 on the charts.

In the four weeks since its release, Calling All Hearts has sold 194,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. By comparison, A Different Me sold 539,000 during its first four weeks.

I don't know who's the blame, but her new album is horrible.

Oh lawd. It's the same shit different day.

When your album sucks and it doesn't sell well

blame someone else.

phunkdaddy said:

Oh lawd. It's the same shit different day.

When your album sucks and it doesn't sell well

blame someone else.

Well at least Ms. Cole didn't go the illegal downloading route. I'm not sure if Cole's album had been any good, it would've sold. I think music for many and especially this generation, is a BIG. . . Yeah, whatever, and next.

The problem with Keyshis that Mary J Blige already has her career.

Since she has stopped doing the reality show, her record sales have dropped.

I think the whole problem with her album flopping is because she waited until the fourth quarter to release the album with 20 million other artists and a lack of promotion. Nobody was feeling the singles at all and even though I'm not a big fan of her voice, I even hated the first two singles.

daPrettyman said:

Since she has stopped doing the reality show, her record sales have dropped.

and she thinks that show didn't help grow her fanbase ...

I never heard her singles but if she's doing stictly R&B/Hip-Hop then those genres are pretty much dead, so it wouldn't of been her fault.

I swear i was watching MTV Base and Kiss the other week when they were doing the official R&B chart and all i heard was pure dance and techno, weather the artist was rapping or singing it was all the same.

After three songs i got depressed and turned to youtube to watch the old school shit from the 90's and early 2000's.

Btw off topic but i re-discovered Aaliyah and never knew she could sing like that, nor Ashanti.

[Edited 1/23/11 8:35am]

It sure as hell ain't helpful when she sounds like a cat in heat locked out in the rain either

ABeautifulOne said:

I think the whole problem with her album flopping is because she waited until the fourth quarter to release the album with 20 million other artists and a lack of promotion. Nobody was feeling the singles at all and even though I'm not a big fan of her voice, I even hated the first two singles.

So true. Especially when you release on the LAST WEEK of the 4th quarter.

daPrettyman said:

Since she has stopped doing the reality show, her record sales have dropped.

Maybe it's ego based on her part. Her mom & sis were getting the attention, and then she fires her long time manager for poor record sales.

Harlepolis said:

It sure as hell ain't helpful when she sounds like a cat in heat locked out in the rain either

Again many things in play here. First thing is that she has had her moment of selling, and i think people are over her drama already, how many times can you sing about a man playing you when all the other RB ladies pretty much sing that too, but they sound better. Two, OVERKILL, this album plus the Keri Hilson plus Ciara all were similar albums with similar producers and NONE sounding or doing something that the other couldnt do better. THREE your label tanked this album not your manager! A release at the end of December is saying, we know this sucks but we really have to just put it out and make what we can, and not spend anything on it, thats what this was, that rule has been going on forever, labels call those releases STIFFS, that is the week when Bow Wow or Omarion used to put out albums. Labels go on vacation from the beginning of December to at least mid January, it all shuts down and really doesnt start to move again till the new quarter and grammy time, this is also the time the labels make roster/personnnel cuts after they look at the bottom line sales.

And the other point was the reality show, well, the thing is people just get tired of you, i never watched the show but i heard her dramas, and when you do shows like that you are really begging for instant success and then fall, but you have to know how to deal with the fall, she apparently doesnt know how. My advice is simple get away from what everyone else is doing, move out of the box.

IT'S BEYONCE'S FAULT!

musicjunky318 said:

IT'S BEYONCE'S FAULT!

And yet Beyonce hasnt even had anything out or around the charts for record time for her. Keyshia is gonna just need to re-address who and what she is, the RB females are so interchangeable, one moment Keyshia is trying to come off as a singer, then a Mary J wannabe, then she has a song with Nicki Minaj, so its like who are you? theres no indentity, she needs to do some mixtapes, and experiment build a fanbase because her day is done.

Man no one don't wanna buy no damn Keyshia Cole record, get the fuck out of here.

Harlepolis said:

It sure as hell ain't helpful when she sounds like a cat in heat locked out in the rain either

Got damn! Thank you. She fucking sucks.

But also lets remember she came out in 2004-05 when she was 24 now pushing 31 in her "genre" that is like being 50-60 years old. Also 2005 was way different then 2010-11 in the sales world, overall music has dropped over 30% in sales since then just in that 5 year span. And her first album sold 1.27 million and each after has gone down sales wise, her 4 albums were issued like this first one in JUNE plenty of sales that time of year, the next one in September still a good time of year, the next one in DECEMBER 2008, but a week prior to the last week of xmas sales so it had an extra week of bigger sales, plus the 2008 economy was light years better than now. Next album issued Dec 21st which is way too late, last minute toss out. And it all shows in numbers the decline, of her sales, industry, her peers, etc....cant everyone just get around the fact that you are almost never gonna see million plus selling albums anymore, i mean shit you are lucky if you can get to a 500,000 mark.

I think what it is, Keyshia don't have a solid fan base. They started turning on her around, I guess, the second release because people kept goo-goo, ga-ga'ing over her after the first album but the hype died down around the second album onwards though she still had some hits here and there. Plus she don't have a background plan just in case the career didn't work and reality shows are not a good background plan. I think the reality show also killed whatever audience she tried to maintain.

Timmy84 said:

I think what it is, Keyshia don't have a solid fan base. They started turning on her around, I guess, the second release because people kept goo-goo, ga-ga'ing over her after the first album but the hype died down around the second album onwards though she still had some hits here and there. Plus she don't have a background plan just in case the career didn't work and reality shows are not a good background plan. I think the reality show also killed whatever audience she tried to maintain.

well thats all it right there, there isnt much loyal fan base for most of them at all, I mean look at Ciara at this point, first album 2.7 but that went down 50% next album to gone by now, but there are alternatives and some just naturally will turn and blame those around for sales, "oh its the label, oh its my manager" when really its nothing more than, "i guess it didnt have the fan base i thought i did" but thats when u need to try and keep what you have, and thats when u need to start going the mixtape route giving away tracks, stuff like that and build it from there, i mean Amerie did that and held on to a base that actually stretches overseas more than here, which is smart, i honestly dont even think they know Keyshia overseas, she may want to investigate that, she should call Amerie and Kelly Rowland and ask them how to market overseas

Less get real, would it have made any difference in terms of sales if Ms. Cole's album had been dropped in the spring or summer ? I doubt it. It never seems to fail when an artist records sales go South, everyone comes back to the genius idea these artist need to build a fanbase, that's ass backwards. Prior to her "blowing up" has anyone ever heard or seen Ms. Cole performing /singing clubs, college music ciruit . . . anywhere? Here in lies one of the problems -which is why I'll assume many of these artist irrespective of their talent level or lack there of can't make it past the 2nd and 3rd album. Any of these artist come out of the Black Church, I doubt it, that's the main problem.

It appears to today, nice looking young women and young men who can kinda sing on A key are being plucked from semi obsurity and given record deals. Hype them and their look first and maybe think about long term later. As Timmy mentioned Reality TV is a curse. Some one screams ACTION, and on cue Ms. Cole's and other artist who go this route, clown.

Oh well, another one bites the dust .

TD3 said:

Less get real, would it have made any difference in terms of sales if Ms. Cole's album had been dropped in the spring or summer ? I doubt it. It never seems to fail when an artist records sales go South, everyone comes back to the genius idea these artist need to build a fanbase, that's ass backwards. Prior to her "blowing up" has anyone ever heard or seen Ms. Cole performing /singing clubs, college music ciruit . . . anywhere? Here in lies one of the problems -which is why I'll assume many of these artist irrespective of their talent level or lack there of can't make it past the 2nd and 3rd album. Any of these artist come out of the Black Church, I doubt it, that's the main problem.

It appears to today, nice looking young women and young men who can kinda sing on A key are being plucked from semi obsurity and given record deals. Hype them and their look first and maybe think about long term later. As Timmy mentioned Reality TV is a curse. Some one screams ACTION, and on cue Ms. Cole's and other artist who go this route, clown.

Oh well, another one bites the dust .

Good points. But yeah it's easier for them to go for the reality route when that's the wrong route to go to.

[Edited 1/23/11 12:29pm]

Timmy84 said:

TD3 said:

Less get real, would it have made any difference in terms of sales if Ms. Cole's album had been dropped in the spring or summer ? I doubt it. It never seems to fail when an artist records sales go South, everyone comes back to the genius idea these artist need to build a fanbase, that's ass backwards. Prior to her "blowing up" has anyone ever heard or seen Ms. Cole performing /singing clubs, college music ciruit . . . anywhere? Here in lies one of the problems -which is why I'll assume many of these artist irrespective of their talent level or lack there of can't make it past the 2nd and 3rd album. Any of these artist come out of the Black Church, I doubt it, that's the main problem.

It appears to today, nice looking young women and young men who can kinda sing on A key are being plucked from semi obsurity and given record deals. Hype them and their look first and maybe think about long term later. As Timmy mentioned Reality TV is a curse. Some one screams ACTION, and on cue Ms. Cole's and other artist who go this route, clown.

Oh well, another one bites the dust .

Good points. But yeah it's easier for them to go for the reality route when that's the wrong route to go to.

[Edited 1/23/11 12:29pm]

But lets also be real about who is jumping into reality shows now besides new comers like Keyshia, people like Salt n Pepa and Toni Braxton etc....all who are trying to recapture their glory days, shit, its the same difference, your day is done and accept it and go from there. All these things are lame attempts to recapture what they had and to say oh "the salt n Pepa" that one was good but that other reality show was bad is apples and oranges they all fucking suck and are fake ass attempts by either "has-beens" or "wanna-bes" that cant get it going for themselves.

TD3 said:

Less get real, would it have made any difference in terms of sales if Ms. Cole's album had been dropped in the spring or summer ? I doubt it. It never seems to fail when an artist records sales go South, everyone comes back to the genius idea these artist need to build a fanbase, that's ass backwards. Prior to her "blowing up" has anyone ever heard or seen Ms. Cole performing /singing clubs, college music ciruit . . . anywhere? Here in lies one of the problems -which is why I'll assume many of these artist irrespective of their talent level or lack there of can't make it past the 2nd and 3rd album. Any of these artist come out of the Black Church, I doubt it, that's the main problem.

It appears to today, nice looking young women and young men who can kinda sing on A key are being plucked from semi obsurity and given record deals. Hype them and their look first and maybe think about long term later. As Timmy mentioned Reality TV is a curse. Some one screams ACTION, and on cue Ms. Cole's and other artist who go this route, clown.

Oh well, another one bites the dust .

Well believe it or not it is about when you release a record, and also who is coming out the same day or has something out around the same time, but lets also be real, this album of hers will end up selling probably 300,000. Ask a kid on the street with no contract if he would take that??? shit i'd take 3,000, but its all a double standard, if she had no label we'd champion a 30,000 sales week, she is on a label so 30,000 means you suck?? so whats the difference?

lastdecember said:

Timmy84 said:

Good points. But yeah it's easier for them to go for the reality route when that's the wrong route to go to.

[Edited 1/23/11 12:29pm]

But lets also be real about who is jumping into reality shows now besides new comers like Keyshia, people like Salt n Pepa and Toni Braxton etc....all who are trying to recapture their glory days, shit, its the same difference, your day is done and accept it and go from there. All these things are lame attempts to recapture what they had and to say oh "the salt n Pepa" that one was good but that other reality show was bad is apples and oranges they all fucking suck and are fake ass attempts by either "has-beens" or "wanna-bes" that cant get it going for themselves.

It's primarily about coins. They aren't making any money anywhere else so they don't have any choice but to do a reality show. It's D-list stuff.

lastdecember said:

TD3 said:

Less get real, would it have made any difference in terms of sales if Ms. Cole's album had been dropped in the spring or summer ? I doubt it. It never seems to fail when an artist records sales go South, everyone comes back to the genius idea these artist need to build a fanbase, that's ass backwards. Prior to her "blowing up" has anyone ever heard or seen Ms. Cole performing /singing clubs, college music ciruit . . . anywhere? Here in lies one of the problems -which is why I'll assume many of these artist irrespective of their talent level or lack there of can't make it past the 2nd and 3rd album. Any of these artist come out of the Black Church, I doubt it, that's the main problem.

It appears to today, nice looking young women and young men who can kinda sing on A key are being plucked from semi obsurity and given record deals. Hype them and their look first and maybe think about long term later. As Timmy mentioned Reality TV is a curse. Some one screams ACTION, and on cue Ms. Cole's and other artist who go this route, clown.

Oh well, another one bites the dust .

Well believe it or not it is about when you release a record, and also who is coming out the same day or has something out around the same time, but lets also be real, this album of hers will end up selling probably 300,000. Ask a kid on the street with no contract if he would take that??? shit i'd take 3,000, but its all a double standard, if she had no label we'd champion a 30,000 sales week, she is on a label so 30,000 means you suck?? so whats the difference?

Difference is a major label promotes it or seldom promotes it. Those without a major label that can pull that off it's because it's from word of mouth more than anything. That's the difference.

Harlepolis said:

It sure as hell ain't helpful when she sounds like a cat in heat locked out in the rain either

Ouch!

After the next album flops Xtinca's gonna pop up somewhere on VH1. How much you wanna bet?

Save this post*

[Edited 1/23/11 13:51pm]

It seems like if any celeb's music doesn't sell, they end up firing their staff...it's not always the staffs fault though. Usually (not always), it's the celebs own fault, plus if you don't promote your music, wth do you think is going to happen. People just aren't interested in Keyshia anymore...imo thats really why no one brought her album.

lastdecember said:

musicjunky318 said:

IT'S BEYONCE'S FAULT!

And yet Beyonce hasnt even had anything out or around the charts for record time for her. Keyshia is gonna just need to re-address who and what she is, the RB females are so interchangeable, one moment Keyshia is trying to come off as a singer, then a Mary J wannabe, then she has a song with Nicki Minaj, so its like who are you? theres no indentity, she needs to do some mixtapes, and experiment build a fanbase because her day is done.

In a pop culture where it's all about Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, & Rhianna, it's a freaking surprise to me that Keyshia Cole has a music career at all. The poor woman didn't get the memo that some black artists (EXAMPLE: Usher) are making the switch to the dance-pop sound because hip-hop/r&b is worthless.

If Keyshia wants to save her career, she needs to leave the ghettoes, the hoods, & the streets behind and start touring outside of the USA.