Recently I stumbled upon a music video by the name of "Friday," by Rebecca Black (pictured right). It's become a bit of a sensation, so I would not be surprised if you have heard of it. If you haven't, you can watch it here. I won't dance around it, it's bad. In fact, it's horrifyingly bad. Some hale it as the worst song ever written. However, that's not what I really want to talk about. There's no need, it mocks itself.But I do want to talk about how it became popular, and why it has sustained such popularity.
In fact, what I really want to do is ask a "Why" question. Why has this video gotten so popular, despite it's obvious lack of appeal? I found it through a website that was berating it, and the next day everyone in the school was singing the song. Everyone I talked to also said that they thought it was truly awful, but they liked singing it anyways because it was fun to make fun of. So it that the reason? Does everyone just enjoy being "in" on the joke? Because there is no doubting that Ms. Black has become hugely famous for making the song, and will probably sell a ton of copies to people "having fun making fun of." Is she still talentless if she is just as well known and just as successful as a good artist? Or is her being famous just a result of everyone making fun of her at once? A famous joke, perhaps. Please comment and share your views, because I know people love to talk about the Black Plague.
I think that it is like a gladiator match. People like to watch others getting hurt or bashed. In addition, people definitely want to be in on the joke and hear the worst song in the world. There are so many good songs that very few bad songs come around. I think that Rebecca Black is a bad singer, but doesn't deserve the death threats and hate mail that she is receiving. However, out of people hating her, she has tons of people who are following her story. Everyone knows about her, and they all want to see what she does next. Therefore, She is popular, but not necessarily in a good way. It will be interesting to see what happens next.
ReplyDeleteHey Andrew!
ReplyDeleteIt's true, everyone loves to talk about the Black Plague....and of course, Bieber Fever (it's weird that both those phrases represent illnesses). But I do think it's interesting that you mentioned how it is possible that everyone likes to be "in on the joke". I completely agree that people have been watching the video purely for laughing at it, which is fine, but I think there is a big difference between laughing at the video, and laughing at Rebecca Black herself. I'm glad Rebecca has gotten success and fame, which was clearly what she was aiming for, but its upsetting at how horrible people's comments about her have been. I think a more important question is why do people feel the need to destroy anything they don't like?