Paperless Tiger
  • Paper[less] Tiger
  • BOOKS
  • COMING SOON
  • Press/Contact
  • Immersion Therapy
  • Curated Projects
  • Paper[less] Tiger
  • BOOKS
  • COMING SOON
  • Press/Contact
  • Immersion Therapy
  • Curated Projects

 paperlesstiger

Girl$ and Boy$

3/7/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
PictureScreen shot from forbes.com
FORBES was once a super prestigious publication, and during much of the eighties and nineties, it was the go to publication to celebrate anything financial.
Back then we were in the middle of a period where capitalism and globalisation were growing realities, and through its careful and conservative analysis of financial trends, it came out on top as the leading financial voice.
Back then the novelty of seeing pop stars and actors on its annual Celebrity Rich List was funny but proof that the entertainment industry was getting more and more corporate even if it injected a little colour into the otherwise stuffy, corporate world.
Any good editor knows a good annual list can boost sales, and help establish your publication as a reliable reference point and the celebrity list was Forbes' foot in the door to wider audiences.
It's a tactic that many publications today use as a template.
Looking at this year's Celebrity list, published by Forbes in recent weeks, the results indicate that not much has changed since its nineties hey day.
It's still very much the nineties in entertainment land. We've got two boxers that have taken out pole position and that of runner up, (one of whom has had alleged run ins with domestic violence: sound familiar?), followed by a swathe of music acts, including Katy Perry, who has polled in at #3, and in doing so is both the top female earner of the year as well as the top earning musician.
And can I just say, Garth Brooks. WTF? How nineties is that!!
Forbes has struggled to maintain its prestige with the dawn of electronic media. It's tough for a b*tch to survive with so much competition these days, especially when being older and respected doesn't help you attract you new readers. Cruel isn't it?
These days it's arguably The Economist that is the go to for in depth financial analysis but Forbes still has its lists, and they never fail to attract interest.
For a publication whose top earners list basically reminds us that women remain underpaid and undervalued compared to their male counterparts, it comes as a surprise that some of Forbes' contributing writers (to its blogs at least) indulge in some fame shaming. Some seem keen to celebrate any perceived failings of high profile female acts, and are routinely pitting them against each other.
I won't mention names, but a google search will yield results that suggest some of these contributing writers think they are writing for dazed or vice. #get #real.
Anyway, this $$$ list is basically evidence that being a successful woman in pop means being a young woman in pop (this year at least: maybe we're only obsessed with youth this year...ermm).
Let's face it. Record labels will only get behind an older (and by older, I mean 40) woman's album if she agrees to record some covers or to put out a greatest hits album. If she's 40 or above, something strange happens, in complete opposite to men. A woman suddenly doesn't have any new stories to tell and no audience to tell it to.
We as audiences in the West routinely shame people if they "act" young, but at the same time we crucify them if they try something new or repeat themselves. Actually, that's not true. We don't do that to people. It only applies to women. Elton John,  Paul McCartney, U2 et al, they can all do what they want. It happens more in Anglo countries than it seems to in Europe for example, where time tends to bring nostalgia and respect towards female acts. There's other shit going on here: but age is less of an issue in popular culture here.
Earnings come from touring, investments, record sales and royalties. The list is as much about wise  investments and sound business choices, but it's interesting to note that 53 year old Garth Brooks comes in at No.6. 68 year old Elton John comes in at No.31. The oldest female on the list is Britney Spears(!). She's 33 y'all (and polls in at #82). Like Elton, she hasn't had a hit in a while, but it's okay, like Elton she's a live act now, doing her greatest hits...wait, how old is she?
So while it's great that acts like Katy Perry and Taylor Swift are currently the big guns (with a bit of bad blood between them), in the context of industry earnings they are already at their peak. They'll need a bit more time to amass a back catalogue to help them eventually become bankable, evergreen touring acts, but who knows how many more records we'll support from them in the meantime to grow those collections. Tick tock, tick tock.
And in the meantime? Expect more blogs from contributing writers that continue to reinforce rather than overcome the typical female narratives, and a general reluctance to say anything supportive in the media to any female musician over the age of 40.

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Picture











    Picture

    Dave Di Vito


    Writer, teacher and former curator who splits his time between Melbourne and Rome.

    Subscribe to the mailing list for information about upcoming releases and a free excerpt!

    Subscribe!

    * indicates required
    Tweets by @DDVinyltiger

    Archives

    April 2020
    July 2019
    March 2019
    August 2018
    March 2018
    August 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    November 2014
    October 2014
    March 2014
    July 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    November 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    June 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010

    Categories

    All
    2016
    80s Music
    Adelita Huang-Bey
    Ahmed Basiony
    Ai Weiwei
    Alec Soth
    Alessia Rollo
    Andris Eglitis
    Angelica Dass
    Ang Lee
    Anne Inhauf
    Art
    Asako Narahashi
    Atif Khan
    Australia
    Bande A Sud
    Banksy
    Belinda Carlisle
    Berlin
    Bernardo Oyarzùn
    Beyonce
    Biennale 2011
    Biennale 2015
    Biennale 2017
    Biennale2019
    Bill Viola
    Bitume
    Blonde Redhead
    Blondie
    Bruce Nauman
    Cabello/Carceller
    Candice Breitz
    Cevdet Erek
    Chiharu Shiota
    China
    Christo
    Cinthia Marcelle
    City
    Claudia Fontes
    Cody Choi
    Contemporary Art
    Corporate Sponsorship
    Crash
    Crowdfunding
    Culture
    Curating
    Damon Kowarsky
    Dan Black
    Dapunta Hyang
    Darren Hayes
    David Bowie
    Design
    Donna Summer
    Dragoljub Raša Todosijevic
    Ekaterina Vasilyeva
    Elaine Sturtevant
    Electronica
    Environmental
    Events
    Exhibitions
    Fabrizio Albertini
    Fertility Day
    Fight The Fight
    Film
    Fiona Hall
    Flaka Haliti
    Francesc Ruiz
    Galleries
    Gal Weinstein
    George Drivas
    George Michael
    Gerald Machona
    Giorgio Andreotta Calò
    Giorgio Di Noto
    GLBT
    Gloria Casto
    Great Tigers
    Gwen Stefani
    Gyula Vàrnai
    Hajnal Nemeth
    Hany Armanious
    Haruki Murakami
    Heri Dono
    Heritage Management
    Hiroshi Sugimoto
    Ibrahim Mahama
    If They Could Speak
    Imranovi
    Italy
    Ivan Grubanov
    Jana Źelibská
    Janet Jackson
    Jan Fabre
    Jan Stradtmann
    Japan
    Jason Moran
    Jeon Joonho
    Jesse Jones
    Joel Peter Witkin
    John Niven
    Jorge Fuembuena
    Jun Nakasuji
    Kaarina Kaikkonen
    Kanye West
    Kate Ceberano
    Katherine Macdaid
    Katrina Neiburga
    Keith Haring
    Kunstpedia
    Kutlug Ataman
    Kylie
    Kyoko Imazu
    Kyoto
    Land Art
    Last Train Home
    Laszlo Biro
    Lecce
    Lee Wan
    Lee Yongbaek
    Legambiente
    Lisa Reihana
    Lorenzo Maccotta
    Lucamaleonte
    Lushsux
    Madonna
    Making My Peace
    Makus Schinwald
    Marcello Maloberti
    Mark Jenkins
    Marzia Migliora
    Matthieu Bernard Raymond
    Maurizio Galimberti
    May You Live In Interesting Times
    Media
    Melbourne
    Meshell N
    M.i.a
    Michelangelo Pistoletto
    Mika Rottenberg
    Mircea Cantor
    Modern Architecture
    Moha Modsiakeng
    Monica Bonvicini
    Moon Kyungwon
    Mounir Fatmi
    MTV
    Murals
    Museo Nazionale D'arte Orientale
    Museums
    Music
    Naples
    Natalie Imbruglia
    New Zealand
    Nicola Samori
    Nidhal Chamekh
    Nina's Drag Queens
    Nirvana
    Nufactory
    Paris
    Pascale Marthine Tayou
    Pepo Salazar
    Pet Shop Boys
    Photography
    Pop
    Pop Culture
    Prince
    Printmakers
    Public Art
    Puglia
    Ralph Rugoff
    Rania Matar
    Reactions
    Religion
    Retailing
    Riace
    Rihanna
    Rinko Kawauchi
    Rip
    Robbie Williams
    Roberto Cuoghi
    Robin Rhode
    Roisin Murphy
    Rome
    Salvador Dali
    Sam Harris
    Self Publishing
    Shanghai
    Social Media
    Space Invader
    Street Art
    Sun Kil Moon
    Super Pop
    Tabaimo
    Takahiro Iwasaki
    Television
    Terry Adkins
    Theatre
    Thomas Hirschhorn
    Tiago Mata Machado
    Tivoli
    Tom Ford
    Tony Oursler
    Tori Amos
    Tracey Moffatt
    Unesco
    Vajiko Chachkhiani
    Valentina Vannicola
    Vatican Museum
    Venice
    Vettor Pisani
    Video
    Vincent J Huang
    Vinyl Tiger
    Whitney Houston
    Willem Popelier
    Writing
    Wu Jian'an
    Wunderkammern
    Xu Bing
    Yao Huiffen
    Zai Kuning

    RSS Feed




Dave Di Vito is a writer, teacher and former curator.He's also the author of the Vinyl Tiger series and Replace The Sky.
For information about upcoming writing projects subscribe to the mailing list.
Dave hates SPAM so he won't trouble you with any of his own. He promises.