Why Hayley has not succeeded in the US

[Eric]

In the midst of my homework, I "stumbled" upon this website again. How does that happen so much?!

Steve, I whole-heartedly agree with you. Some things in America will never change. (i.e. our fascination with "pop" celebrities and their juicy storylines, and music that "beats" us out of our chairs).

I do believe, however, that she is making her way into certain hearts and ears all across America...be it through Celtic Woman, through movies, or through some other "subtle" means...she is reaching us. Whether or not this will offset any losses caused by her not touring the UK during her "Treasure" CD release, I'm not sure; however, with her stops in America, she has developed a larger fanbase. I fail to see how no promoting in the UK will create less of a fanbase there, as they seem to already be rather enthusiastic about her music. Regardless of promotion during release (subtracting a few nonchalant fans) fans of a certain artist recognize the fact when that artist has produced something new. (I, of course, do not live in the UK, so someone may correct me).

I believe America is ready for a truly talented artist with a refreshing personality (whether we realize it or not), though Ms. Hayley's music has failed (time after time) to sink to the low standards we've created and grown accustomed to and named "music" here.

Again, these are just my thoughts. I must now return to my homework.

Regards,
Eric

[Dave]

stevemacdonald said:

Wanna know the real reasons Hayley has not succeeded in the US? Here they are:

1. Her voice is too beautiful. America prefers rougher, grittier and more strident voices.

2. She's too caring and wonderful a human being. Our successful singers are typically out-of-control, self-absorbed, unconcerned and vain.

Problem #1 would be taken care of if she made a decent foray into country music where the purity of her voice would be offset by the required twanginess. Problem 2, however, will never go away.

My goodness Steve, for some reason the name Cliff Richard suddenly shot into my mind as I read that!

For those who don't know, Cliff Richard is an English ex-Rock 'n' Roll singer from th 1950s onwards - he's had a UK number one single in every decade since then and his record sales here seriously rival those of The Beatles and Elvis Presley (there isn't much between them and Cliff beats them both in UK singles sales).

Why did it remind me of him? Well, Cliff turned to much more gentle Easy Listening music in the 1960s and became a committed and active Christian, soon acquiring a reputation for being the "Mr. Nice Guy" of the UK pop music industry.

But, huge that he has been in the UK for 60 years, he could never fully break into the US market (though he has had some hits)... and I don't think this was for want of his record Company trying. And guess what? He signed for Costa Pilavachi and Decca in 2004!!!

The parallels are far from complete but there do seem to be enough similarities to scare me!

Cheers, Dave

[Eric]

dave said:

The parallels are far from complete but there do seem to be enough similarities to scare me!

Cheers, Dave

Anyone else hearing "Twilight Music?" Too bad there's not a way for Hayley to sit at the computer and record her singing, and burn a couple million copies for all her fans.... I'd gladly pay the full amount still, knowing full well who's getting what!

Eric

[milewalker]

Steve,

Actually there is a lot to say in favor of your points. For one thing, while I dont really care that much for country music in general I have had a sense for some time now that some of the better voices around have seemed to gravitate there - women in particular but some men as well.

I think that there are still "nice" people who have done fairly well in American music. Once again many of these people seem to be centered in Nashville - though there are others as well. I would like to make one distinction here - they are successful vocalists who also happen to be decent people, not the other way around.
Edit - also your explanation leaves no room for Enya - who would seem to violate both points. Only Time wasnt the only time she had a big hit here. She was #25 on Billboard as far back as 1988.

Dave - I actually have a few samples of Richards around here, I think he may have done a duet with Brightman which got some attention, and I remember seeing a duet with him and Olivia Newton John. I can hardly speak for America as a whole, but nothing about him seemed that compelling to me personally. I therefore dont know how relevant he is to Hayley.

If it really does come down to a choice between success and what Hayley actually personally believes - well, I would chose love over money as well. As much as I want Hayley to succeed, I want her to simply be happy even more.....

Jon

[Stephany]

And just like Hayley said in a recent interview while in New York, trying to break the US market is very challenging but she still has a lot of places to tour around the world like Europe, Asia (I think she mentionned Singapore and Taiwan), NZ and Australia. If the US starts to get interested, we won't see Hayley anymore as they will probably want to keep her there i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif

[milewalker]

Stephany - I know when I am licked....try as I might there is no way I can keep up with such prolifity....I bow in your general direction

As I stated somewhere else - I dont remember where - at the end of the day I dont really care where she becomes popular - as long as it is somewhere.

Eric - there might be a way for her to do just that someday. a lot of artists have tried self-producing in the past - and while it is true that most of them were not successful, the future of music does seem to lie in downloads. That does seem to change the odds somewhat. The ceiling would be lower, but she would actually get to keep the money she makes. What a concept.

Jon

[Dave]

stephany said:

And just like Hayley said in a recent interview while in New York, trying to break the US market is very challenging but she still has a lot of places to tour around the world like Europe, Asia (I think she mentionned Singapore and Taiwan), NZ and Australia. If the US starts to get interested, we won't see Hayley anymore as they will probably want to keep her there i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif

Hi Stephany,

Yes they would... but Hayley would not necessarily agree! And we should remember that the actual income to be derived from any given sales position in the US charts is relatively somewhat less than it used to be, because of declining US music sales in the last few years, lower CD prices there... and the dollar's poor rate of exchange compared to European currencies. A ratio in income terms of less than 2 to1 compared to the UK (for example) is not uncommon and two weeks ago, the income ratio for the number 10 album in these two Countries was a shocking 1.7 to 1 (Amazon prices) - though it does vary from week to week. But to be fair, lower down the chart especially well outside the top 50, the ratio is greater as the US market base is broader. The population ratio is US 5 to UK 1.

Whatever happens in the US, I think Hayley (and Decca!) would want (her) to continue with Worldwide career and travels... the exhaustion factor permitting, of course!

Cheers, Dave

[Stephany]

dave said:

Whatever happens in the US, I think Hayley (and Decca!) would want (her) to continue with Worldwide career and travels... the exhaustion factor permitting, of course!

Cheers, Dave

I hope so, Dave!! She's a "global" artist and doesn't need to settle down on a single market just because its supposed to be the biggest, most attractive and probably the one which makes the most money.

[Ed]

Stephany: Again I must concur with what you have to say. Her popularity elsewhere other than the US will undoubtedly continue. Her talent is not only recognized but also appreciated there. The US is influenced more by shock and awe than anything else. Someone as wholesome as Hayley doesn't garner much attention. Personally I'd hate to see Hayley compromise anything in order to gain attention here. I want her to succeed everywhere based upon what she does musically and if she proves to be a good role-model for our young women, then the US will be all the better for it.

[milewalker]

And we should remember that the actual income to be derived from any given sales position in the US charts is relatively somewhat less than it used to be, because of declining US music sales in the last few years,

Dave,

I tend to focus on CD sales because they are pretty easy to track and generally provide a valid basis from which to estimate a fanbase. But what I feel is more important is her ability to tour - either here or elsewhere. I dont exactly have warm and fuzzy feelings about the recording industry in general (I spent too much time hearing horror stories from Gary Scoville )
The primary importance of CD sales from my perspective is simply that they serve to raise the profile.

Jon