Clive Davis urges singers to stop writing songs

[D]

I think Clive was talkin about POP Stars and not about bands etc.


He was talking bout Kelly Clarkson who shunned readymade pop hits to write her own stuff and even though everyone told her they sucked and her album would flop, she wouldn't listen.


Her 2nd album was a HUGE FLOP.

U go from 11 million to 700,000, that is horrible.

She had one of the album of the year contenders with I think 5 hit singles or so.

She should've listened to Clive and added some readymade hits.

[fuckin crazy]

^D, I was going to poop on my back deck, but unfortunately, it is daylight.

EDIT: We had a snow storm tonight. The contrast of brown, and white, would have made it apparent.

[D]

^D, I was going to poop on my back deck, but unfortunately, it is daylight.

EDIT: We had a snow storm tonight. The contrast of brown, and white, would have made it apparent.

WTF?

[DeN]

These record companies are only interested in if you have hits on your current album.

disagree. record companies just LOVE greatest hits.
it costs nothing to do and it sells a lot.

[DeN]

the most funny thing is : Elvis didn't write a single song if i'm correct.

but what a singer, he made them his owns. so...

[fuckin crazy]

^D, I was going to poop on my back deck, but unfortunately, it is daylight.

EDIT: We had a snow storm tonight. The contrast of brown, and white, would have made it apparent.

WTF?

Maybe a bad analogy ... liquor you know.

My thought process is pretty fucked up ... especially when liquor is involved.

Humph!!!

[Chief]

that is so sad.. .clive is contributing to the death of creativity.  that sucks!!!

it reminds me of a line in a drive by truckers song, Self Destructive Zones:

"And the young'uns all turned to karaoke,
hanging all their wishes upon disregarded stars"

[Feel_The_Burn]

He is talking about pop stars , but I still think it's sad.  It's different when you have friends maybe like Guns with West Arkeen , but to have someone come in and fucking write FOR you thats sickening.

[MeanBone]

I Think he makes a good point actually.

Sometimes singers ruin their carrears trying to get that one song. and that's not necessary when there's so many brilliant songwriters out there. besides, most singers in the POP music scene don't really strive for their recognition as a musician, they strive for stardom, and that can be achieved by getting good songs from someone who can actually write them.

Ozzy is known for his vast catalogue of music that's not his to begin with, still no one questions his impact in heavy metal.

i guess it could work both ways, not everyone is a butch walker ( he's just a great songwriter and actually manages to sell his hit songs to other multi platinum artists) or an Axl Rose  ( Even though axl suffers from not having a hit single for more than a decade) or even an eddie vedder ( i dunno how's he doing lately with hit singles, but i reckon he's very prolific)  that can actually sing a deliever great music.

it's really up to the artist to decide. and the record company, well they're not there for the music part, they're for the business part, so i see why they'd think like that, and i can't really blame them, it's where they make money and that's what they do.

[LunsJail]

This guy gets a lot of credit in the music industry for some reason.  I personally don't think it takes a genius to listen to an album and pick out the 2 songs that will work on the radio.

As for singers writing their own songs....he may just be trying to find a creative and nice way to say Kelly Clarkson shouldn't be writing her own songs.

[freedom78]

Whitney Houston's first album of original material since 2002 will be out by the holidays this year, according to Clive Davis, who's the head of her label.

Tracks for the album have been produced or written by will.i.am, Sean Garrett and Akon, who says, "The voice is there; I don't think anyone could ever take that from her. As long as we apply that voice to hit records, she'll be right back where she left off."

With enough money to buy crack?

Seriously...fuck this guy.  What an idiot.  First, it waters down music to a collection of songs.  Can you imagine Dark Side of the Moon as just a collection of songs?  Or [insert random Beatles album]? 

Second, he seems to believe that music is about singing.  The vocal centric approach, over bland, uninspired instrumentation, is one of the major reasons why music sucks so much.  Put together a talented band.  Not some flavor of the month 20 year old girl with a decent (but rarely wonderful) voice.  We have enough "girl who plays piano and sings" acts...remember the guitar?  And the beats that come from drums, rather than synths?  Yeah...those were the days. 

[Negleyjj]

This is highly dependent on the artist, etc.

Should GNR have some dude write a bunch of pop songs for them? No, of course not.

Should random pop star X? Probably.

Some people have amazing voices but just can't write a decent song or don't have an ear for pop, it is a valid point. And there are some people that just have the right voice for a song. Others have already mentioned Elvis and Frank Sinatra, but even look at what GNR or Johnny Cash have done with covers - brilliant stuff.

I'm not saying I agree with Clive Owen completely, but you have to look at it in context.

P.S. It was Kelly Clarkson's third album that she did her self, it wasn't very good by pop standards (the songs weren't catchy, etc.), but very good for as a singer/song-writer.

[Eazy E]

Can you imagine Dark Side of the Moon as just a collection of songs?  Or Please Please Me? 

Can you imagine Dark Side of the Moon as just a collection of songs?  Or Meet The Beatles!? 

 

I think he's saying pop artists who are talented vocally should not be forcing the situation to "write their own songs" if they aren't any good at it.  I haven't heard the Kelly Clarkson album, but I'm assuming that his take on it was that she is a sub-par songwriter (considering the type of music that suits her abilites = pop music with hooks).  Isn't it a waste of talent to have someone with an incredible voice singing poorly crafted songs that no one will ever hear because they wanted to "go it on their own"?

If Kelly Clarkson truly believes in her artistic vision, then she shouldn't compromise her music... finish your current contract and sing what they tell you to sing, THEN give it a go at releasing your own material.  These "Idol" age pop-stars shouldn't think they suddenly have the gift of songwriting just because they won a karaoke contest.  In the same way that Andre 3000 shouldn't think he can act just because he won a Grammy for album of the year. 

Should Phil Spector try to sing on all of the songs he produces?  Should Elton John force himself to write his own lyrics?

I don't blame pop artists for using songwriters, it's still each individual's decision what/what not to listen to.  The music industry has barriers to entry for bands who play instruments/write their own songs/compose "albums" instead of "hit singles"/aren't 100% based on hooks... but this is not the fault of the talent involved in pop music.  Singers and writers should continue doing what they enjoy and what they do best.  However, these stars shouldn't participate in contracts that require them to sing exclusively and then decide, once they've sold albums and gained an audience, that they want to be a "complete artist" while still working with the people who are only interested in your voice.  The pop princesses can struggle with the rest of the artists out there if they truly want "artistic freedom"... if you signed on to be a star because you have a powerful voice, then shut up and sing! (Oxymoron?)

Clive Davis urges singers to stop writing songs

However... "You have got to go over the best material, and that should win out, not withstanding any track record. I don't care how many No. 1's you have written in the past, have you written a new No. 1?" -- This guy is a dick because of his opinion that a 'No. 1' indicates what the 'best material' is.  The best material should be released, but "Hollaback Girl" and "Crank That Soulja Boy" don't fall under that category based on being No. 1 hits.

[qcmyoungwill]

Why is anyone surprised by this?  The #1 show on American television is a karaoke competition called American Idol.  For about 6 months each of those contestants is loved by America, but once they are booted from the show, they are forgotten about forever.  How many of the American Idols have made it big?  Maybe 10 people out of thousands that have appeared?  Kelly Clarkson proved that everyone of those people needs the record company to make them famous.  Sometimes the record companies can't even do it (Taylor Hicks, Katherine McPhee).  It's people like Chris Daughtry who have the most success.  He was lucky to not win the competition. Until the public stops saying that they want a robot of a popstar all over their television screen, this is what we're stuck with.  Problem is... this show gives way too many untalented people 15 minutes and Americans are eating it up.  He's just making a buck off people's stupidity and willingness to accept what they are spoon fed.

[FunkyMonkey]

Clive Davis Steps Down as Head of BMG Music

4/18/08, 10:00 am EST

Famed record industry figure Clive Davis will relinquish his post as CEO of the Sony BMG Music Group. Davis will reportedly take on another creative post at the label. Barry Weiss, chief of the company?s Zomba Label Group, will take over Davis? role. Over the course of his fifty-plus-year career, Davis also served as president of Columbia Records, where he signed Janis Joplin, Pink Floyd, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel and many more. Davis also founded Arista Records, which he fronted for twenty-six years, and J Records. He was also inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. If this is Davis? final week on the job, he went out with a bang: One of his most recent signees, Leona Lewis, became the first British solo artist to have the debut album debut on the albums charts at number one. To see an in-depth look into Davis? prestigious career, from his biggest hits to pictures with his most notable artists, check out this photo gallery. Click here to read Rolling Stone?s February 2008 profile on Clive Davis, ?The Last Record Man.?

http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2008/04/18/clive-davis-steps-down-as-head-of-bmg-music/

[GNR_Green]

I've never heard of the bloke but he's definately a bit of a prick to be saying things like that.  It's time people stopped labelling people like Whitney etc as 'artists' anyway seeing as they clearly aren't artists.  I'm so glad I don't listen to the radio or watch tv anymore.