{"id":22209,"date":"2014-12-30T22:41:33","date_gmt":"2014-12-31T03:41:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rocktownhall.com\/blogs\/?p=22209"},"modified":"2014-12-31T12:31:01","modified_gmt":"2014-12-31T17:31:01","slug":"song-of-the-year-taylor-swift-vs-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rocktownhall.com\/blogs\/song-of-the-year-taylor-swift-vs-the-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Song of the Year: Taylor Swift VS. The World"},"content":{"rendered":"

The State of Pop Music in 2014<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Haters<\/a>

Haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate…<\/p><\/div>\n

There is no debate this year. The title says it all. Sure, it would be fun to have another silly \u201cSong of The Year\u201d competition but little else from the pop world came close to matching the sales and ubiquity of Taylor Swift\u2019s<\/strong> music in 2014<\/strong>. Her album 1989<\/strong><\/em> was the only album<\/strong> to sell over a million copies in it’s first week of release. The last album to do that was Swift’s album Red <\/strong><\/em>in the fall of 2012. I\u2019m sure the album sales were helped when her record company pulled her music<\/a> from Spotify<\/strong> and other streaming services before the album’s release. Yet, in a singles driven market where kids get their music from individual downloads and streaming<\/a> her album sales remain strong. I’m speculating it’s preteens and soccer moms moving the bulk of her units. Now, 5 albums into her career how does the Swift<\/strong> brand of the high school bedroom confessional anthem remain successful?<\/p>\n

Continue reading –><\/a><\/p>\n

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1989<\/strong><\/em> was supposed to represent a move away from “Country” to an official “Pop” album. But, that\u2019s just ridiculous since she\u2019s been releasing “Pop” music since 2009. I mean really what the heck was this<\/a> if not pop music with a banjo or this confection<\/a>. I don\u2019t see any shift in styles. She\u2019s just omitting the twang and stealing a page from the Katy Perry playbook by minimizing her songs into shouty sing-a-longs as evidenced this year by the impossibly catchy \u201cShake It Off\u201d<\/a> and the talky rap of \u201cBlank Space\u201d<\/a>. The airplay, downloads and sales of these two singles had all other contenders folding up the tables and leaving the convention centre early.
\nThat doesn\u2019t mean there weren’t any bold attempts from the rest of the pop world. The common thread of 2014<\/strong> was one of overreaching. Most have not figured out the Swift model <\/strong>of keeping it simple and stupid. Mainly, pop acts this year were more dumb than stupid. No one is more dumb than One Republic<\/strong> and their inescapable hit \u201cCounting Stars\u201d<\/a>. Just when I thought Imagine Dragons<\/strong> represented the dirty bottom of hollow earnestness, One Republic<\/strong> came with a bigger shovel. And if anyone held out a glimmer of hope that Maroon 5<\/strong> would return with something tolerable they embarrassed themselves with the auto-tuned madness of \u201cAnimals\u201d<\/a>. What’s worse is now we have Maroon 5 offspring.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"I'm<\/a>

I’m stumped!<\/p><\/div>\n

Hip-Hop was of little interest in 2014<\/strong>.\u00a0 Just new versions of the old. Instead of tolerable efforts from Rhianna<\/strong> and Beyonce<\/strong> we now have to contend with their bland substitutes Iggy Azalea<\/a> and Ariana Grande<\/a>. And when all else fails to grab attention and album sales, collaborate<\/strong>. More doesn’t mean better, especially when the collaborators are trying to outdo each other in tawdriness and yelling.<\/a> And for the 5th year in a row the Katy Perry Award for Making The Most Out Of a Lack of Talent <\/em>goes to Katy Perry<\/strong>. This year she beat a Dark Horse<\/a>, despite contenders like Sia,\u00a0<\/strong>whose \u201cChandelier\u201d<\/a> made it a close race. But, let us not go out on a negative tone.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"...like<\/a>

…like a room without a roof ??<\/p><\/div>\n

There were a few songs that seemed like spikes in the wheel of radio twaddle. Pharrell\u2019s<\/strong> song of the summer “Happy” <\/a>seemed to strike a comfortable groove. It’s inoffensiveness made shopping at Target a little more enjoyable.
\nThe internet brought us Meghan Trainor<\/strong> whose infectious \u201cAll About The Bass\u201d<\/a> skated the lines of knowing and novelty. The view tally for the song is up to 500 million on You Tube which is proof that the viral video is a swimmable channel to success for just about any fugly bass or trout.
\nFrom stranger waters came Hozier\u2019s<\/strong> “Take Me To Church”<\/a>. A genuine radio crossover hit, receiving substantial airplay on Top 40, alternative and hip-hop stations. That\u2019s an unusual feat in these days of customized playlists and personalized silo listening. The song further cemented its popularity in 2014, when it soundtracked Lebron James\u2019<\/strong> much hyped return<\/a> to the Cleveland Cavaliers.<\/strong>
\nStill the competition never came close to stealing\u00a0the pop crown from Taylor Swift<\/strong>. Sadly, another year has gone by with the pulse of rock & roll still fading. The radar is still shifted to commerciality. That is nothing new, but the lack of viable bands leading the charge has not led to any rock resuscitation on the radio. It isn’t too late to get out the defibrillator, but I wouldn\u2019t stop shopping for the casket.<\/p>\n

What is your Song of the Year?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n