Post by milewalker on Dec 16, 2007 23:31:36 GMT
This has its genesis in two different threads. It is relevant in some ways to the threads about Hayley and her lack of success in the UK, but was actually inspired by something recently said by Dave, in the thread called "What songs do you want/think are on her new album"
Why is it that of these two somewhat similar performers, one is a massive hit in the US, while the other possibly couldnt get arrested here?
If there was one single reason why Josh Groban has enjoyed massive success in the US, it is because of his connections here. David Foster took him under his wing, signed him, and produced many of his bigger hits -and effectively made him a star. When you are lucky enough to get backing like that, all kinds of things are possible - you get to actually act and sing on two episodes of "Ally McBeal". These were far different than what Hayley did on American Dreams - he was on screen about a third of each show. You get to perform "The Prayer" on live network televison with Celine Dion on the Grammies. You get a shot at virtually every "Crossover" song written - perhaps before anyone else does. If the content of his albums is better than Hayley's this is one of the primary reasons why.
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There are other things afoot as well. Josh has managed to create a more or less "cool" persona which transcends the general "uncoolness" of the music he sings. This is particularly notable in concert - but in interview he also expresses a somewhat different philosophy than Hayley does - like taking the tastes of his fans into account, but not allowing them to dictate his course. He mentioned the willingness to take risks - that great success is only possible when you are willing to risk failure.
The bottom line here is that he has approached much of his career from a rather different angle than Hayley has - and I think has just enough of an "edge" to his persona to overcome the "uncoolness" of his music, but still come off generally as a nice guy. There are a number of things he has done (and they have all worked for the most part) that I doubt would occur to Hayley or her management. Would it even occur to Hayley to try a song from Linkin Park??
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ew-kk5Xt4Ps
Note how different his stage persona is than the generally much more formal (and demure) Hayley. When you add his ability to play the piano and drums to this, a huge difference arises - Hayley does concerts. Josh puts on events.
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Getting back to the Ally McBeal appearances for a moment, the benefit of those was maximized because they directly hit the people who became his original core audience - the demographic of the show was women from say 30 to 50. The song he chose to sing on his first McBeal appearance was one of the least crossover songs he has ever recorded -
"Youre Still You" which is a love song written by Richard Marx. The plot of the story was innocent on the surface with rather romantic underpinnings....he is scheduled to sing a song at his high school prom school so Ally (who is a lawyer almost old enough to be his mother) agrees to go with him as backup - kind of an ersatz date.
www.esnips.com/doc/6574da28-1a11-4a51-88b1-d1228557690d/Josh-Groban--Ally-McBeal-at-the-schoolprom_256K
I have included the above just so everyone can see just how different this appearance was than anything Hayley did.
Jon
Why is it that of these two somewhat similar performers, one is a massive hit in the US, while the other possibly couldnt get arrested here?
If there was one single reason why Josh Groban has enjoyed massive success in the US, it is because of his connections here. David Foster took him under his wing, signed him, and produced many of his bigger hits -and effectively made him a star. When you are lucky enough to get backing like that, all kinds of things are possible - you get to actually act and sing on two episodes of "Ally McBeal". These were far different than what Hayley did on American Dreams - he was on screen about a third of each show. You get to perform "The Prayer" on live network televison with Celine Dion on the Grammies. You get a shot at virtually every "Crossover" song written - perhaps before anyone else does. If the content of his albums is better than Hayley's this is one of the primary reasons why.
-----------------
There are other things afoot as well. Josh has managed to create a more or less "cool" persona which transcends the general "uncoolness" of the music he sings. This is particularly notable in concert - but in interview he also expresses a somewhat different philosophy than Hayley does - like taking the tastes of his fans into account, but not allowing them to dictate his course. He mentioned the willingness to take risks - that great success is only possible when you are willing to risk failure.
The bottom line here is that he has approached much of his career from a rather different angle than Hayley has - and I think has just enough of an "edge" to his persona to overcome the "uncoolness" of his music, but still come off generally as a nice guy. There are a number of things he has done (and they have all worked for the most part) that I doubt would occur to Hayley or her management. Would it even occur to Hayley to try a song from Linkin Park??
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ew-kk5Xt4Ps
Note how different his stage persona is than the generally much more formal (and demure) Hayley. When you add his ability to play the piano and drums to this, a huge difference arises - Hayley does concerts. Josh puts on events.
-------------
Getting back to the Ally McBeal appearances for a moment, the benefit of those was maximized because they directly hit the people who became his original core audience - the demographic of the show was women from say 30 to 50. The song he chose to sing on his first McBeal appearance was one of the least crossover songs he has ever recorded -
"Youre Still You" which is a love song written by Richard Marx. The plot of the story was innocent on the surface with rather romantic underpinnings....he is scheduled to sing a song at his high school prom school so Ally (who is a lawyer almost old enough to be his mother) agrees to go with him as backup - kind of an ersatz date.
www.esnips.com/doc/6574da28-1a11-4a51-88b1-d1228557690d/Josh-Groban--Ally-McBeal-at-the-schoolprom_256K
I have included the above just so everyone can see just how different this appearance was than anything Hayley did.
Jon
