Adele's "25" obliterates every first week sales record in history...

It never disappoints to see how so many run to try to topple the current artist on top... It could be Adele or whomever. At least Adele has some class in how she presents herself to the world, and it could be that likability factor that gives her that extra mass appeal. That said, if the music didn't have something to offer, not so many would really care.

 

It is amusing to read through this thread. I do not understand why some people are having such a hard time to accept that Adele new album is selling so well. She has a really powerful voice with an attractive and unique tone, and she sings from her heart (at least one can feel it). also the truth is that she is appealing to lots of people and has proven to have staying power. It is also impressive that she has taken her time to make her third album to ensure the quality.

 

Which number? The page starts with #201, and #202 is the second one down on that page, but that's a complimentary comment. Post #2 from the entire thread is complimentary too.

 

The post I directly quoted. I was saying it was the second example I had seen on a single page. I was not talking about a post number.

 

Ah, yeah. I see it now.

 

I finally agree with Bob on this :

Adele Lessons

Bob Lefsetz

1. MUSIC, NOT TRENDS

There's been a huge focus on what's hot as opposed to what's good. John Seabrook delineated the "track and hook" singles that dominate today's Top Forty, but could it be that old-fashioned melody, with memorable changes and a good vocal, is what most people really want to hear? Could it be that trendiness is what is putting the music business in the dumper?

2. SOCIAL MEDIA IS OVERRATED

You've got to get the message out. And Adele had a complicit press, which was intrigued by her pursuit of a sales record. But with it being so hard to break through and dominate, many have focused on the penumbra, when it's always been about the music. Yes, you can connect with your fans who will support you, Amanda Palmer is the greatest exponent of this, but most people have never heard her music and when they do they don't want to listen further. You can build it for the hard core, but if you want everybody else to care, you've got to go back to the songs and the performance, the melody and the talent.

3. TALENT COUNTS

Yes, auto-tune can make it so anybody can sing, but it can't make it so anybody will care. Turns out people are looking for the genuine article. What music used to be. Someone who needs no support system to shine.

4. TODAY IS NOT AS IMPORTANT AS TOMORROW

We don't know if anybody will be listening to "25" tomorrow, and we have no way to measure said listens. We've always known the money in music is in the long game. That's why publishing counts, that's why some oldsters can clean up on the road, selling out arenas, and others play clubs, if at all. Longevity is an amalgam of credibility, talent and underlying catalog. The more hits you have, the longer you last. Sell out and your career is shortened. That's right, despite percentage-takers saying the public does not care, the truth is people believe in musical artists in a way they don't believe in actors. Adele's image is burnished by not doing endorsements, by not taking the money, she lives on a higher plane. But in our short term economy everybody says to take it now, for it might not be there tomorrow. But your career might not be there tomorrow... And "25" might not be there tomorrow. History is littered with albums that ran up the chart and fell off nearly as quickly. Now that
the music is out, we'll see if it's embraced by the public. I'm not saying it won't be, but no amount of hype, especially about sales figures, is going to make people listen to a record. There's been too much focus on short term money, the big money is in the long term, never forget it.

5. RULES DON'T APPLY TO SUPERSTARS

Adele can keep her music from streaming services, but can you?

Probably not.

Superstars are in short supply. Therefore their value has skyrocketed. We all want a piece of the big kahuna, we all want to belong. There's only one Adele. Focus on your uniqueness, me-too disappears easily. And know that the spoils go to the rich, and the rich define the game. Adele can tour stadiums or clubs, paperless or at stratospheric prices. We tend to extrude from stars paths the unwashed can follow. But the truth is stars are different, and if you want that power you have to become a star too. And the greatest stars are sui generis.

6. THE PRESS LOVES A HORSE RACE

That's what got everybody excited, the race to break 'N Sync's record, it dominated the discussion, the music took a back seat, if it was mentioned at all. Proving that media is dumb, they want it bite-sized and related to math. And then they'll write all about it and the public will get caught up in it and... This is not good for music, because we want people talking about the tunes, not the sales.

7. DON'T IGNORE OLDSTERS

Be sure to read the "Wall Street Journal"'s expose on who bought "25." Turns out it's soccer moms, aged 25-44: http://on.wsj.com/1Q9JJml Our business is youth-oriented to its detriment. Sure, kids are impulsive and easy to reach, but oldsters have money and care too.

8. RADIO COMES LAST

Slow-moving and over-researched, radio cannot react quickly. And sure, radio went on "Hello," but the truth is the track lived online, on streaming services, on YouTube. Play to the people, not the middlemen. Furthermore, people don't want to be spoon-fed, they want it all and they want it now. Which is why Justin Bieber's new album dominates Spotify, as did the Weeknd's before it. Radio is an old game that doesn't square with today, the more you stretch hits out over time the more you lose touch with your audience. If radio was smart, if it wanted to survive, it would play all the new hits right away and throw over what's successful for new stuff quickly, like Top Forty did in the sixties. That way radio will become relevant and help build careers. But by putting money first and refusing to take chances, radio is sounding its own death knell.

9. QUALITY COUNTS

There was an inane story in yesterday's "New York Times" stating that Bieber and Selena Gomez resuscitated their careers via social media: http://nyti.ms/1NZ9GRf No they didn't, they did it via YouTube and Spotify. If it's good, we want it, we can't find enough good stuff. And sure, Adele kept her album off streaming services, but it's only a matter of time before she caves, after the sales fade and she wants continued listening. If she's smart, she'll make the leap soon, while she can still set records, because that's what her team seems to be into.

10. IMAGE IS NOT AS IMPORTANT AS MUSIC

This is a huge sea change in the post video world. Thin and beautiful never hurt, but they're no longer a requirement. Just ask Meghan Trainor and PSY. A catchy tune breaks through all barriers.

11. THIS SONG IS OVER

Taylor Swift did a good job of keeping herself atop the news cycle, but she too is a party of one. The media will now move on to another story, and "25" will succeed or fail based on its quality and whether it is embraced by the public. Music is not movies, it can't make all its money in a weekend, and when done right it lasts forever. Adele employed the media to get the story out, to carpet bomb the world into awareness, but now she's on her own. So start with the music, the story comes second. And a story might gain you attention, but it does not ensure longevity. We're looking for a few good songs, that everybody knows and can sing along to. It ain't hard to do, assuming you have the chops and inspiration. And the chops require a huge input of time, never forget Adele spent years in music school, and inspiration...that comes from living your life. Which is why the youngsters rarely have anything to say. We want you to channel the human condition, we want you to make us feel like
we belong, that you understand us and will never betray us. That's what Adele did with "21," and that history gave her a good start with "25." The success of "25" still hangs in the balance, despite the sales records, despite the media coverage. Will the public hold the songs near and dear to their heart, will they need to see her in prodigious numbers years from now? We're going to find out!


--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress

 

1) Female
2) Was born after 1979
3) Not the classic pin-up model type (else we'd just have posts of her in scantily-clad outfits)
4) She's fairly young and may just break more Beatles sales / chart records, as time goes on

The odds are stacked against her, in this forum.

 

Maybe.

 

You're right. Some very attractive women shop at Target. They usually bring their kids along.

 

None of those reasons apply to what I'm not keen on her music - it's that her songs are mostly about ex partners and over-sentimental depressing stuff - which makes me think of over-sentimental depressed people who're unable to get over their ex partners, which isn't much fun.... and the music is way too middle of the road, and samey.

I rate other modern artists such as Julia Holter (born in '84) far higher.

 

I'm not an Adele fan either. Doesn't mean I mind her breaking sales records, or making bizarre excuses in my mind as to why her accomplishment is somehow diminished due to the time of year of her release, the amount of people breathing on this planet, social media, a perceived "computer-challenged" demographic, the Freemasons, Illuminati or perhaps even Skynet being involved.

Don't know, don't care. All I know is she's obliterating first week sales records, to quote the OP. Amazing accomplishment.

 

I don't have any issue with that. It's quite bizarre how well her 21 album sold here in the UK. I don't think she'll top the all time best selling album ever, but it went up the all time selling albums list surprisingly fast. I remember saying that a year ago or so.

(I said bizarre because a modern album sold that well).

 

Well done Adele! I really liked the two songs she did on SNL, so I'm going to pick up "25" on vinyl after discovering the vinyl was mastered separately by Ryan Smith.
The two lads from Sterling that did the CD should have begged to keep their names off it, brutally compressed.

 

Well no wonder there's so many CD sales, ha.

 

Right? Hopefully, everyone will follow her lead. Streaming services are just bad for business.

Ed

 

Do you really think that certain forum members who happen to be Beatles fans dislike her music because of her sales records? Why would they be worried about her? It is not even like she is anywhere close to reaching their sales figures, which were already over 1 billion by the mid-80's (as confirmed by the BBC and EMI).

From the comments that I have read on this thread, it seems to come down to the usual debates; some people like her music, and are happy for her, whereas others don't and consider it to be bland. Many of those people still seem to be happy for her, partly because they feel that her sales will help the music industry.

I get your other points about her being a young female who doesn't fit the usual pin-up model type, but I just don't see where these supposedly nervous Beatles fans are.

I personally am very happy for her, and think that it is great that someone is selling so well thanks to their voice, not their image/videos.

 

If the media comes out with an 'Adele topples Beatles' type story, and someone posts it here, then you'll see. A certain subset of Beatles fans here are notoriously defensive about anything that is perceived as a slight on the Fabs, at least in my observations.

 

I've noticed this to be the case, and as a Beatles fan it's really embarrassing to read posts like that.

 

Adele, The Beatles....could it be that the REAL center of popular music is indeed the U.K.?...

 

1) Forum is notoriously anti-female as in the case with Stevie Nicks and Joni Mitchell
2) Rock and rollers ARE notoriously anti-youth, I'll give you that.
3) Aretha Franklin
4) Sales/chart records are not the driving force to spend $10,000+ on a stereo set-up.

 

Yes, vinyl is definitely the way to go. Bought the cd first, sounded like my speakers were going to blow with amp volume at 2. Vinyl is definitely an improvement. This comes from a female forum member who cares about mastering, dynamic range, etc

 

I hope that happens, then we'll get a few more laughs out of the usual suspects here.

 

Probably not. They are all still multi-millionaires and all of them still work. Joey Fatone works all the time hosting tv shows, doing musical theatre and the occasional acting gig, Lance Bass has quite a few hosting tv/radio jobs, JC Chasez still works writing and producing with the occasional guest vocal spot for other artists and he filmed a role in an indie musical. Chris Kirkpatrick. has a music studio and sometimes produces.

 

Name another twenty or so well-regarded female artists here. Ones that are in forum member's top ten or top twenty of all time perhaps. And then how many of them are artists that weren't active until after 1979.

As for a 10K stereo setup, I thought this was a music forum. I spend my money on music, more than I do on hardware.